Earley

Coordinates: 51°25′59″N 0°55′59″W / 51.433°N 0.933°W / 51.433; -0.933
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
For other uses, see Earley (disambiguation).

Earley
Wokingham
Ceremonial county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townREADING
Postcode districtRG6
Dialling code0118
PoliceThames Valley
FireRoyal Berkshire
AmbulanceSouth Central
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Berkshire
51°25′59″N 0°55′59″W / 51.433°N 0.933°W / 51.433; -0.933

Earley (

Borough of Wokingham, outside the area of Reading Borough Council. Its name is sometimes spelt Erleigh or Erlegh and consists of a number of smaller areas, including Maiden Erlegh and Lower Earley, and lies some 3 miles (5 km) south and east of the centre of Reading, and some 4 miles (6 km) northwest of Wokingham
. It had a population of 32,036 at the 2011 Census.

In 2014, the RG6 postcode area (which is nearly coterminous with the area of the civil parish) was rated one of the most desirable

postcode areas to live in England.[2] The main campus of the University of Reading, Whiteknights Park
, lies partly in Earley and partly in the borough of Reading.

History

View down Shepherd's Hill (A4) towards Reading
Local Landmark Lower Earley Water Tower
A Claret 21 service running towards Kilnsea Drive
View down Beeston Way in 1982 during the development of Lower Earley

Evidence of prehistoric man has been found in locations around Earley. For example, a hand axe was found in the railway cutting; flint implements in a garden in Elm Lane; and hand axes in the gardens in Fowler Close and Silverdale Road. Most of these finds are thought to date from the late Paleolithic period, around 35,000 years ago. Traces of flimsy shelters from the Mesolithic were discovered at the site of the old power station at Thames Valley Park in north Earley. Tools from that time have also been found, including a flint blade found in a garden in Silverdale Road. Archaeological evidence for continued human presence during the Bronze Age and Iron Age was also discovered on the site of the Thames Valley Park, and Roman remains were found on a building site off Meadow Road.[3]

Earley is mentioned in the

5th Duke of Marlborough.[7]

The manor of Maiden Erleigh was formed out of the manor of Erlegh, as a gift of land by John de Erlegh to Robert de Erlegh in 1368.

Governor General of the Leeward Islands. In 1818 the property passed to the Rt Hon Edward Golding, MP for Downton in Wiltshire.[9]
In 1878 it was purchased by John Hargreaves, Master of the South Berks Hunt, who created a course where hunt and yeomanry races, similar to modern hunter chases, were run.

The course extended over an area now covered by Sutcliffe Avenue, Hillside Road and Mill Lane. The grandstand stood on an area opposite Loddon Infant School.

First World War and the grandstand was re-erected at Newbury Racecourse.[10] Joel donated a piece of his land to the village to be used for sporting purposes: the park and pavilion were opened by the Duke of York, later George VI, as Sol Joel Park in 1927.[4]

Until 1888,[11] Earley extended westwards from the Three Tuns crossroads down the Wokingham Road and into Reading. To enable this section to be linked into the drainage system, Reading extended its boundaries to the Three Tuns crossroads, and this part of Earley was incorporated into the town.[12] At that time, the centre of Earley was the crossroads and Saint Peter's Church.[7] Even today, some residents living over the boundary in Reading think of themselves as belonging to Earley, at least three businesses along the stretch of Wokingham Road lying within Reading Borough include 'Earley' in their business names. Indeed, this area of Reading Borough still forms part of the ecclesiastical parish of Earley St Peter,[13] which extends as far as, but does not include, Palmer Park.

The University of Reading began as the University College, Reading, an extension of

Whiteknights 1868 (now called Old Whiteknights House), Foxhill 1868 and the Wilderness 1873). Waterhouse also designed Reading School (1865–71) in Erleigh Road,[8] in the borough of Reading, extended Pepper Manor, now 'Old School' in Leighton Park School, on Shinfield
Road, in 1890, and built Grove House on the north of the school site (1892–94).

Earley established its own branch of the Women's Institute, Earley WI, in 1938 to enable women in the local area to come together and develop skills, further their education, and improve the local community.[15] Earley grew rapidly both before and after World War II, and was designated a town in 1974. From 1977, the Lower Earley housing estate was constructed by private companies, almost doubling Earley's population to the current level. Two new primary schools were built, together with a large supermarket complex, which opened in 1979, and a sports centre. In 1988 a second shopping area, Maiden Place, opened. An additional secondary school was planned roughly opposite the sports centre next to Rushey Way, possibly on the site next to the police station. However, the school never materialised, and the land was built on.

Listed buildings

Despite its generally 19th- and 20th-century appearance, Earley has some remnants of its older past hidden in amongst the newer development. The following buildings in Earley Town are currently listed by English Heritage as being of special architectural or historic interest (all are listed as Grade II except for Foxhill House):

On Whiteknights Campus

  • Landscape garden feature, Whiteknights Park – early C19;[16]
  • North Lodge, Whiteknights Road – early C19 gate lodge;[17]
  • South Lodge, Whiteknights Road – early C19 gate lodge;[18]
  • Foxhill House, Whiteknights Park – 1868 large house in red brick diaper pattern, now the School of Law (formerly a students' hall of residence) (Listed Grade II*);[19]
  • Former stables and coach house immediately north east of Foxhill House, Whiteknights Park (now also part of the School of Law);[20]
  • The Lodge, Whiteknights Road – 1868 red brick lodge to Foxhill;[21]
  • Blandford Lodge, Chancellors Way, Whiteknights Park – late C19 (1870s?) grey brick;[22]
  • Reading War Room ('The Citadel'), University of Reading, Whiteknights – 1953 concrete war room;[23]

Elsewhere in Earley

  • Rushy Mead, Cutbush Close – late C16 timber-framed house altered in C19 and C20;[24]
  • Radstock Cottage, 1 Radstock Lane – early C17 timber-framed cottage altered and extended in mid C20;[25]
  • Sindlesham Farmhouse – early C18 altered C20, brick rendered and painted;[26]
  • The George Inn, Loddon Bridge Road – C18 inn now public house;[27]
  • 25 Church Road – 1820s cottage red and grey chequered brick;[28]
  • Church of St Peter, Church Road – c.1844 grey vitreous brick, aisles and chancel added 1882–83;[29]
  • Bridge at Sindlesham Mill – mid C19 road bridge over mill stream;[30]
  • Sindlesham Mill, Mill Lane – mid C19 watermill now restaurant and club;[31]

Geography

Earley is bordered by the B3270, Lower Earley] Way, to the south and south-east; the boundary then follows the

Whiteknights Road, cuts irregularly across the University of Reading Whiteknights Campus, and then runs to the east of the A327 (Shinfield Road) until it meets up again with the B3270. The extension of the Reading borough boundaries in 1888 had the result that the section of Earley lying to the north of the railway line (sometimes referred to as Old Earley or North Earley) is connected to the larger part to the south by only a narrow corridor of land. The Borough of Reading lies to the west, the River Thames to the north-west, Woodley to the north-east, Winnersh to the east, and Arborfield
and Shinfield to the south.

Lower Earley is often spoken of as a town in its own right,[citation needed] but it is just a development at the southern end of the town. The name Lower Earley is however very old, having originally been applied to the low-lying land between the old Maiden Erlegh Estate and the River Loddon which runs along the eastern edge of the borough.[3]

Governance

Earley is in the

Reading East
.

Earley was originally a liberty in the

Town Council elections are held every four years; the last one was in 2023. Borough
Elections are held by thirds with one in 3 years out of every 4 for the three member wards and one year with no election.

Amenities

Earley town council runs Sol Joel Park, leased from Reading Borough Council for 50 years, Meadow Park off Meadow Road, Bulmershe Park (jointly with

BMX track near Paddick Drive which was opened in 2011, two community centres and Maiden Erlegh Lakes, which was declared a local nature reserve in 1997.[34] The council has a large allotment at Culver Lane and a lawn cemetery at Mays Lane. The council also provides the bus shelters at the main Reading bound stops. Within Earley, the council operates the Waterside Centre, a canoe centre in Thames Valley Park, and the Loddon Valley Leisure Centre. They also own Chalfont Park and Laurel Park in Earley, both of which include football
pitches.

Even after its recent development, Earley has some remnants of ancient woodland within its boundaries, including Pearman's Copse and Redhatch Copse.[35]

Transport

Earley railway station

London Waterloo. Winnersh Triangle railway station, which opened in 1986, is also near Earley. Earley is served by Reading Buses who provide a number of bus services to and from the centre of Reading, namely the 4, X4, 19a, 19b, 19c; and the 21, a 24-hour service. The 17 bus runs 24 hours a day from the junction at the Three Tuns, through Reading town centre, towards Tilehurst.[37] Wokingham can be reached by bus on the Wokingham Road or by train from Earley or Winnersh Triangle stations. Earley is to the north of the M4 motorway which connects London with Bristol
.

Economy

Thames Valley Park

Earley is home to the Thames Valley Park which is alongside the

HP Invent, MOOG, FPS and Royal Mail. One of the main industries located in Earley was Sutton Seeds, whose headquarters were in London Road, at the northern end of what was once the A329(M) motorway spur (now the A3290). The building was partly taken over by the civil engineering consultancy Sir Alexander Gibb & Partners in June 1974, when it relocated from London. Sutton Seeds finally departed in 1975 to its new base in Torquay
.

Education

Earley has 6 primary schools, Aldryngton, Earley St Peters, Hillside, Radstock, Whiteknights and Hawkedon, and

Forest School, The Holt School and The Piggott School
.

Religion

The parish church is Earley St Peter's in Church Road.

Baptist church is in Maiden Place in Lower Earley.[40] The Roman Catholic church of Our Lady of Peace & Blessed Dominic Barberi is on the Wokingham Road.[41] The Aisha Masjid mosque & Islamic Centre is on London Road,[42] the Jamia Masjid mosque is on Alexandra Road[43] and the Jamiat Ahl-e-Hadith and Sri Guru Singh Sabha Gurdwara are on Cumberland Road.[44]

Notable people

References

  1. ^ "Civil Parish population 2011". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Archived from the original on 30 November 2016. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  2. ^ "UK's 'most desirable' postcodes revealed". BBC News.
  3. ^ a b c Earley Days, Earley Local History Group, 2000
  4. ^ a b 'the New Berkshire village book', Berkshire Federation of Women's Institutes, 1985
  5. ^ DOMESDAY BOOK. A Complete translation (Volume 1 ed.). London: Folio Society. 2003. p. 154.
  6. ^ Domesday 39.1, Winchester 1086
  7. ^
    ISBN 9781905191024
    .
  8. ^ a b 'The Buildings of England – Berkshire', Pevsner 1966
  9. ^
    ISBN 9781905191024
    .
  10. ^ Earley Town Guide 2010–12 page 37
  11. ^ "RBH: History of Earley, Berkshire". Berkshirehistory.com. Retrieved 23 August 2012.
  12. ISBN 9781905191024
    .
  13. ^ "Earley St Peter". Google Maps. Retrieved 21 September 2014.
  14. ISBN 9781905191024
    .
  15. ^ "EARLEY WOMEN'S INSTITUTE - Charity 1019262". register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk. Retrieved 1 July 2021.
  16. ^ Historic England. "Landscape garden feature at NGR SU 7390 7158 (1118127)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
  17. ^ Historic England. "North Lodge (1136059)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
  18. ^ Historic England. "South Lodge (1118128)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
  19. ^ Historic England. "Foxhill House (1136050)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 27 April 2014.
  20. ^ Historic England. "Former stables and coach house immediately north east of Foxhill House (1271248)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 27 April 2014.
  21. ^ Historic England. "The Lodge (1319122)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
  22. ^ Historic England. "Blandford Lodge, Chancellor's Way (1157221)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 27 April 2014.
  23. ^ Historic England. "Reading War Room ('The Citadel'), University of Reading, Whiteknights (1393194)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 27 April 2014.
  24. ^ Historic England. "Rushy Mead, Cutbush Close (1319121)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
  25. ^ Historic England. "Radstock Cottage, 1 Radstock Lane (1136320)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
  26. ^ Historic England. "Sindlesham Farmhouse (1136295)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
  27. ^ Historic England. "The George Inn, Loddon Bridge Road (1136284)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
  28. ^ Historic England. "No name for this entry (1303525)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
  29. ^ Historic England. "Church of St Peter (1118126)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 10 September 2014.
  30. ^ Historic England. "Bridge at Sindlesham Mill (1118107)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
  31. ^ Historic England. "Sindlesham Mill (1136288)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
  32. ISBN 978-1-905191-02-4
    .
  33. ^ "Local Government Boundary Commission for England, Electoral Review of Wokingham UA, published 6 June 2002" (PDF). HMSO. Retrieved 5 December 2014.
  34. ^ Maiden Erlegh Lake Homepage
  35. ^ "Natural England - Special Sites". Lnr.naturalengland.org.uk. Retrieved 30 April 2017.
  36. ^ "National Rail Enquiries – Station Facilities for Earley". Nationalrail.co.uk. Retrieved 23 August 2012.
  37. ^ "Reading Bus Network Map" (PDF). Reading Buses. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 August 2014. Retrieved 1 September 2014.
  38. ^ "Early St Peter's, Reading". church near you. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  39. ^ "Welcome to St Nicholas Church, Early". St Nicholas Church, Early. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  40. ^ "Home". Lower Early Baptist Church. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  41. ^ "History". Our Lady of Peace & Blessed Dominic Barberi Parish. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  42. ^ "Aisha Masjid & Islamic Centre". Muslims in Britain. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  43. ^ "Jamia Masjid". Muslims in Britain. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  44. ^ "Jamiat Ahl-e-Hadith". Muslims in Britain. Retrieved 30 November 2021.

External links

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