Leigh Park
Leigh Park | ||
---|---|---|
Shire county | ||
Region | ||
Country | England | |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom | |
Post town | Havant | |
Postcode district | PO9 | |
Dialling code | (023) | |
Police | Hampshire and Isle of Wight | |
Fire | Hampshire and Isle of Wight | |
Ambulance | South Central | |
UK Parliament | ||
Leigh Park is a large
Staunton Country Park lies on the northern edge of Leigh Park, also within the Havant boundary.
History
Leigh Park existed before becoming a post Second world war housing estate,
Early history
As early as 1750 mention was made of a farm on the site in a will of that year and local historians consider it likely that a farm existed there around 100 years earlier.[1]
Leigh Park Estate
The stables, walled garden and coach house of the house survived as part of Staunton Country Park. The estate encompassed decorative planting, lakes and follies[2] and was described as "one of the most beautiful spots in the county" in 1826.[3]
In 'The Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales' Leigh is described as a
Second world war
Leigh Park was re-developed as a new suburb for those made
Post war
The land for the estate was purchased by Portsmouth
The majority of homes in Leigh Park were built by Portsmouth City Council, not
Construction of the estate was not fully completed until the early 1970s, although most of the houses in the area were built by 1960.
In 2004, Leigh Park made the news when a gang stole more than £100,000 from the Nationwide Building Society[5] and a man sleeping on a bench was set on fire, in a separate incident.[6]
Governance
The suburb of Leigh Park comes under the remit of the
Leigh Park is part of the parliamentary constituency of Havant. As of November 2019[update] it is served by MP Alan Mak, a Conservative.
Geography
The modern estate is bordered to the east by the Havant to Petersfield railway line excluding perhaps some industrial units by the railway which would not be considered part of the estate. The Northern extent is approximately defined in line with the A3M and B2150 junction. Staunton Country Park and Leigh Park Gardens may or may not be considered part of the estate, as might the Southleigh House area which lies to the east of the Railway. The western edge is bounded but excluding houses around B2150 road from Old Bedhampton to Waterlooville. To the south, the boundary lies broadly just to the north of the B2149 road.
Leigh Park is broadly flat gradually rising to the North with some sharper rises at fringes around the northern parts.
The Hermitage Stream and tributaries run through parts of Leigh Park while the Lavant stream runs down the left side of the settlement.[8][9] Both run into Langstone Harbour which is approximately 1 mile (1.6 km) to the south at the nearest point.
Culture and community
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (November 2019) |
There was a Bowling alley beside park parade that was converted to a bingo hall and opened by Diana Dors in 1984.[10]: 4
Transport
The main shopping precinct is served by Stagecoach South bus routes 20, 21, 23, 37 and 39, which provide links with central Havant (with some services continuing to Portsmouth and the main area hospital). First Hampshire & Dorset operates the 27 service through the estate between Rowlands Castle, Havant and Emsworth.
Education
Leigh Park contains several primary schools: Front Lawn, Trosnant, Riders, Sharps Copse, Park House, Warren Park, Barncroft School and St Albans C of E.
Leigh Park is currently served by three secondary schools: Havant Academy (known as Wakefords Secondary School when it opened in 1970[11] and latterly Staunton Community Sports College until 2009), Park Community School (known previously as Broomfield Secondary School, when it opened in 1958,[12] and Broomfield Comprehensive School until 1988) and Prospect School, built in 2008, an education centre for children with learning and social disabilities.
The West Leigh area was also served by Oak Park Secondary School on Leigh Road (close to the junction with Crosland Drive - now demolished), from its opening in 1957 to its closure in the late 1980s.[11] Pupils from that area then attended Warblington Comprehensive School situated some distance from the area on Southleigh Road, Denvilles.
Between 1958 and 1960 Havant Grammar School had shared the Broomfield Secondary School site on Middle Park Way until it moved to its own, new buildings on the corner of Barncroft Way and New Road.
Sport
The suburb's main non-league football side is
Havant Hockey Club play at Havant College on Barncroft Way (just on the outskirts of Leigh Park). The team were National and European Champions in the 1990s. The street High Lawn Way just beyond the Crown Bingo Hall also offshoots onto a bowls club, two tennis courts and a common playing fields and children's play area.
Leigh Park boxing club is based at the community centre.[13]
See also
Notes
- ^ The centre consists of two main east-west shopping thoroughfares, with Greywell Road to the north and Park Parade to the south and west, and can be called either name
References
- ^ "Birth of the estate". Staunton Records. Archived from the original on 13 March 2016.
- ^ "Parks & Gardens UK". Archived from the original on 26 March 2012. Retrieved 4 October 2010.
- ISBN 0-904172-01-5
- ^ Wilson (1870), p. 8.
- ^ "Masked robber trio steal £100,000". 27 November 2004. Archived from the original on 24 March 2016. Retrieved 17 November 2019 – via news.bbc.co.uk.
- ^ "Boy, 17, charged over burning man". BBC News Online. 14 June 2004. Archived from the original on 17 November 2005. Retrieved 1 September 2012.
- ^ "HavantWard Boundaries" (PDF). Havant Borough Council. Archived (PDF) from the original on 15 December 2017. Retrieved 17 November 2019.
- ^ "The Lavant Stream at Havant, Rowlands Castle and Finchdean" (PDF).
- ^ "A History of the Hermitage Stream and its Tributaries — Restoration and Enhancement Projects" (PDF).
- ^ Cousins, Ralph (November 2016). "The Early Years of the Leigh Park Housing Estate" (PDF). Havant Borough History Booklet.
- ^ a b "Havant Borough Council Timeline 2012" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 May 2014.
- ^ a b "A History of Havant". www.localhistories.org. Archived from the original on 12 June 2017. Retrieved 10 May 2014.
- ^ "Leigh Park community Centre is saved by charity". The News (Portsmouth). 8 March 2016. Archived from the original on 5 October 2018. Retrieved 4 October 2018.
Sources
- Cousins, Ralph; et al. (2017). A History of Leigh Park and the Hamlet of Leigh. Havant Borough.
- Hammond, Phil (September 1997). Leigh Park — the first fifty years. The Staunton Park Genealogy Centre.
- Community Centre, Leigh Park (1997). Leigh Park — Garden City of the South. ISBN 0953142205.
- Wilson, John Marius (1870). The imperial gazetteer of England and Wales. Vol. 4, L–M. Edinburgh: A. Fullarton. p. 8. OCLC 1046644770.