Bovingdon

Coordinates: 51°43′23″N 0°32′12″W / 51.72312°N 0.5367°W / 51.72312; -0.5367
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Bovingdon
Shire county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townHEMEL HEMPSTEAD
Postcode districtHP3
Dialling code01442
PoliceHertfordshire
FireHertfordshire
AmbulanceEast of England
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Hertfordshire
51°43′23″N 0°32′12″W / 51.72312°N 0.5367°W / 51.72312; -0.5367

Bovingdon is a village in

ward of Bovingdon, Flaunden and Chipperfield, which had a population of 4,600 at the 2001 census,[2] increasing to 9,000 at the 2011 Census.[1]

History

The Old Well and the Bell Inn, Bovingdon.

The name is first mentioned in deeds from 1200 as Bovyndon. It could originate from Old English Bufan dune meaning "above the down" or from Bofa's down, the down belonging to Bofa.

What used to be the Bobsleigh Inn on Box Lane, just east of the village, is a large house with some parts dating to the sixteenth century. It used to be a hotel and restaurant. It was the Bovingdon Country Club until 1964 when

Tony Nash, the son of the owner, was part of the gold medal winning British two-man bobsleigh team at the Winter Olympics at Innsbruck in Austria. It was renamed the Bobsleigh Inn in his honour. During World War 2 many celebrities stayed at the Country Club while entertaining troops at the airfield, including Bob Hope, James Stewart and Glenn Miller.[3]

Bovingdon airfield

RAF Bovingdon from the air in 1946.

Next to Bovingdon is the disused former

B-50 Superfortresses. General Dwight D. Eisenhower
's personal aircraft was said to be located here, as Bovingdon was the closest Eighth Air Force airfield to London.

Flying ceased in 1969, though some flying scenes for the film

Bovingdon stack and is a holding area for aircraft approaching Heathrow Airport
, 20 miles (32 km) to the south. At busy times on a clear day a dozen planes circle.

Part of the airfield was used to build

Of the three original

control tower still exists, but is in a very poor state. A lot of the taxiways
, and the 2nd World War Bomb Dump trackways are mostly gone, a victim of hardcore reclamation, a common end of a large number of disused airfields in the UK.

Halfpenny Green Airfield in Shropshire was renamed from Bobbington, the name of the local village, during World War II after a B-17 tried to land there when the crew became lost.

Community

The village is sometimes confused with Bovington Camp in Dorset.

Bovingdon Parish Council meets in the Memorial Hall.[5] Local charities and nation organisations fundraise in the village throughout the year.

Bovingdon high street provides school access, a library and Memorial Hall, a Tesco store, and predominantly local independent businesses including a newsagent, dry cleaner, two estate agents, a kebab shop, an off-licence, hardware store, pet shop, cafe, two pubs, two butchers, a florist, and a funeral home.

Transport

Carousel Buses, a subsidiary of Go-Ahead Group, operates an hourly bus service through the village between Hemel Hempstead and High Wycombe.[6]

Climate

Climate in this area has mild differences between highs and lows, and there is adequate rainfall year-round. The

Köppen Climate Classification subtype for this climate is "Cfb" (Marine West Coast Climate/Oceanic climate).[7]

Climate data for Bovingdon, United Kingdom
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 5
(41)
6
(43)
9
(48)
12
(54)
16
(60)
19
(66)
21
(69)
20
(68)
18
(64)
13
(56)
9
(48)
7
(44)
13
(55)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 1
(33)
1
(33)
2
(35)
3
(38)
7
(44)
9
(49)
12
(53)
11
(52)
9
(49)
7
(44)
3
(38)
2
(36)
6
(42)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 64
(2.5)
61
(2.4)
46
(1.8)
46
(1.8)
56
(2.2)
53
(2.1)
69
(2.7)
94
(3.7)
69
(2.7)
74
(2.9)
86
(3.4)
71
(2.8)
780
(30.9)
Source: Weatherbase[8]

Churches

St Lawrence Church, Bovingdon

The Church of

yew trees and several installations, including a sculpture made from a tree felled in the churchyard. As well as traditional 8am communion the church holds weekly child-focused morning service at 9:30am and a family communion at 10am on the first Sunday each month. They have several youth teams, including Littlefish for Infant age, Explorers for Primary and the 3:16s for Secondary School age.[10] St Lawrence has a close relationship with Bovingdon Academy.[11] St Lawrence hosts annual community events including Easter Egg Hunt, Summer Fete, Light Party, Christmas Market and Nativity.[10]

The first record of a meeting-house for

Anabaptists in Bovingdon was in 1702.[12] The current Baptist church building started as a Wesleyan Methodist Church and changed to Baptist. The Baptist church has a weekly morning service at 10:30 a.m. with a Sunday school.[13] They also host a youth group on a Friday evening. The churches organise a joint live nativity in the high street every Christmas.[14]

Education

Bovingdon has one Primary school. In 2011 it achieved Academy status, and is now known as Bovingdon Primary Academy.[11] The school is part of the Aspire Academies Trust. The school regularly achieves 'outstanding' on Offsted reports and has been allocated 'Teaching School Status' by the National College of School Leadership. The students are divided up into houses called 'Ryder' 'Shantock' 'Shothanger' and 'Westbrook' which are named for families and places of local historical importance.

Bovingdon Pre-School is held in the Memorial Hall. Several Toddler groups are held at various locations throughout the week, at St Lawrence Church Hall - Wednesdays 9-11:30am, the Baptist Church - Mondays 9-11:30am and Toddler Tales[15] at Bovingdon Community Library - Fridays 9:15-9:45am

Sports & Leisure

Bovingdon Football Club[16] has 2 full size pitches, clubhouse and both Junior and Adult teams. Bovingdon Bowls Club[17] has a bowling green and Bovingdon & Flaunden Tennis Club[18] offers lessons to all ages and abilities on 5 hard courts.

Bovingdon has its own Community Library.[19]

Bovingdon also has a highly popular online community via the Facebook Group, founded on 17 June 2013 and boasts over 8900 members who share local information, news and discuss local affairs.

Notable residents

References

  1. ^ a b "Dacorum Ward population 2011". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 26 October 2016.
  2. ^ National Statistics Population of Bovingdon, Flaunden & Chipperfield ward at 2001 census. Accessed August 2007
  3. ^ "Heritage special Sign tells of hotel's sporting history". Hemel Hempstead Gazette. 20 February 2010. Retrieved 20 February 2010.[dead link]
  4. ^ Ltd, Pixel Love. "ITV Studios Bovingdon". ITV Studios Bovingdon.
  5. ^ "Home - Bovingdon PC". www.bovingdonparishcouncil.gov.uk.
  6. ^ https://www.carouselbuses.co.uk/services/CSLB/1
  7. ^ "Bovingdon, England Köppen Climate Classification (Weatherbase)". Weatherbase.
  8. ^ "Weatherbase.com". Weatherbase. 2013. Retrieved on 25 June 2013.
  9. ^ Historic England. "Church of Saint Lawrence, Church Street (1348432)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  10. ^ a b "Home". St Lawrence Church Bovingdon.
  11. ^ a b "Bovingdon Primary Academy".
  12. ^ Page, William, ed. (1908). "Parishes: Hemel Hempstead". A History of the County of Hertford: Volume 2. London: Victoria County History. p. 215-230.
  13. ^ "Services". www.bovingdonbaptist.org.uk.
  14. ^ Turrill, Katrina (17 December 2015). "PICTURES: This year's live nativity in Bovingdon not to be forgotten". www.watfordobserver.co.uk. Newsquest Media Group Ltd. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  15. ^ "Libraries Events and things to do | Hertfordshire County Council". www.hertfordshire.gov.uk.
  16. ^ https://www.bovingdonfc.co.uk/
  17. ^ "Herts Bowls".
  18. ^ "Bovingdon & Flaunden Tennis Club". Bovingdon & Flaunden Tennis Club.
  19. ^ HP3 0HJ, Bovingdon Library High Street Bovingdon Hertfordshire. "Bovingdon Community Library/services/libraries-and-archives/library-opening-hours/bovingdon-library.aspx". hertfordshire.gov.uk.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)

Bibliography

  • Brown, Sarah C. M. , Bovingdon – A History of a Hertfordshire Village, 2002, pub by Bovingdon Parish Council, Alpine Press,

External links