South Harrowis the southern part of the town ofHarrow,located south-west ofHarrow-on-the-Hillin theLondon Borough of Harrow.Its development originally spread south and west from the hamlet ofRoxethin theurbanisationprocess and easier access fromCentral Londonbyrail.Six roads now converge at Roxeth hamlet centre at the bottom of Roxeth Hill. Its areas include, in the west, the area of Shaftesbury Circus/Avenue and in the south a shopping area,South Harrow tube stationand thehigh street,Northolt Road.
| South Harrow | |
|---|---|
  South Harrow Location withinGreater London | |
| OS grid reference | TQ143863 |
| Ceremonial county | Greater London |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | HARROW |
| Postcode district | HA2 |
| Dialling code | 020 |
| Police | Metropolitan |
| Fire | London |
| Ambulance | London |
| UK Parliament | |
History
editSouth Harrow succeededRoxethand outlying southern fields of Harrow in which thathamletstood. This was a rural area until the late 19th century with remaining agricultural fields converted to housing by the mid-20th century. South Harrow was in the parish of Harrow which has its well-conserved historicclustered village centreat Harrow on the Hill.
A three-storeySainsbury'ssupermarket building was built in the 1960s; it subsequently closed, and after a refit and redesign of its layout (now including an entrance direct to its car park) is now an Aldi.[1]
Parks and gardens
editSouth Harrow has tworecreational grounds:
Alexandra Park was named afterQueen Alexandra,who frequently visited the area. There is a children's play area, natural rough area, and fitness zone. Nearby isNortholt Park(Chiltern Main Line).
Roxeth Recreation Ground is a large recreational ground containing Cricket and Football pitches, Ball courts, natural roughland and a children's play area. Abowling green,operated by Roxeth Bowls Club, risked to close in 2007, following rent increases from Harrow Council.[2]This recreation ground was donated to the people of South Harrow in the early 20th century and is known as Roxeth Park. During theSecond World Warit was made into a market garden; it was then returned to recreational use. It also hosted the Roxeth Show each summer up until 2013, and has been given several Green Flag awards.
Adherents of manyreligious denominationshave places of worship in South Harrow, including:Anglican,Catholic,Free Church,Methodist,Salvation ArmyandWelsh Congregational.TamilsandKoreansmeet in churches on Sunday afternoons.
Shops on Northolt Road (the main shopping street in South Harrow) sellSri LankanandPolishgroceries. There are fiveHalalbutchers, ninepublic housesand fourchicken shops.
Education
editBuilt in 1938, RoxbourneJunior Schooland RoxbourneInfant Schoolshare a site in Torbay Road. The schools were known as RoxbourneMiddle Schooland RoxbourneFirst Schoolbetween 1974 and 2010, when the London Borough of Harrow adopted acomprehensivesystem of education that transferred children to secondary schools at age 12 (after year 7). In 2010 the borough changed the age ranges catered for, and took the opportunity to replace the additional wing that had been added in 1974 to accommodate year 7. The new classrooms are used by Reception and by year 6, at the same time a Nursery class was added to the Infant school. The Infant school now covers ages 4 to 7 as Nursery, Reception, Year 1 and year 2. The Junior school covers ages 8 to 11, as years 3, 4, 5 and 6. The Roxbourne schools have three classes in each year, each class numbering up to thirty pupils.
Welldon ParkJunior Schooland Welldon ParkInfant Schoolare built on separate sites in Wyvenhoe Road. The original school opened in 1910 and was known as Welldon Park Primary School. At the outbreak of war the deputy headmaster was Mr Goodhead. A pupil at that time was Peter Walker, later Lord Walker, and he lived in Eastcote Lane. The school was overcrowded by 1942 as more people moved from central London and as other schools were destroyed by the enemy. Classes had up to 40 children. In the main hall two classes sat back to back simultaneously. The same hall was used for school meals as well as the central ground floor corridor. The school served pupils from age 4 to 11 years and had a reputation for academic rigour under the headship of Mrs. Cooper in the 1950s and '60s. After being separated into Welldon Park First School and Weldon Park Middle School, and then Infant and Primary, both schools amalgamated in circa 2015. In 2019, at the start of the school year, the school became a part of the Pegasus Academy Trust, and is now named Welldon Park Academy.
Whitmore High Schoolwas formed in 1974 from Lascelles Secondary Boys' and Girls' Schools, and is now a sixth form specialist science school.
Whitmore was demolished and was completely rebuilt by September 2010, following a £30 million grant.
Demography
editSouth Harrow is mostly covered by the Roxbourne and Roxeth wards. According to 2011 Census data, White British was the largest ethnic group in both wards, 24.8% and 23.1% respectively. Other Asian was second biggest, 22% for both, followed by Indian, 19% and 20% respectively.[3][4]The most spoken foreign language in both wards wasTamil.[5]
Transport
editTube/Trains
editBuses
edit| Route | Start | End | Operator |
| 114 | Ruislip | Mill Hill Broadway | Metroline |
| 140 | Hayes and Harlington Station | Harrow Weald | Metroline |
| SL9 (previously X140) | Heathrow Airport | Harrow | London Sovereign |
| N140 | Heathrow Airport | Harrow | Metroline |
| 258 | South Harrow | Watford Junction | London United |
| 395 | Harrow | Greenford | London Sovereign |
| 398 | Ruislip | Wood End | London Sovereign |
| 487 | South Harrow | Willesden Junction | Metroline |
| H9/H10Circular | Northwick Park HospitalH9: clockwise | Northwick Park HospitalH10: anticlockwise | London Sovereign |
| H12 | South Harrow | Stanmore | London Sovereign |
| 640 | South Harrow | Harrow Weald | Sullivan Buses |
Football clubs
edit- Harrow Borough F.C.of theIsthmian LeaguePremier Division
- Rayners Lane F.C.of theHellenic Football LeagueDivision 1 East
Notable people
edit- DameJanet Baker,operasinger, lives in South Harrow
- Bill Bartlett,guitarist of 1960spsychedelic popgroupThe Lemon Pipers,was born in South Harrow
- Todd Carty,actor, star ofGrange Hill,EastEndersandThe Bill,grew up in South Harrow
- Kenneth Connor(1918–1993), actor, best known for his appearances in theCarry Onfilms, lived in South Harrow
- Tom Fletcher,singer and guitarist ofpopgroupMcFly,and his sisterCarrie Hope Fletcher,singer and actress, were born in South Harrow
- Johnny Kidd(1935–1966), Britishrock and rollperformer lived in South Harrow
- Robin Leach,Brit presenter of US TV hitLifestyles of the Rich and Famous,was born in South Harrow
- Screaming Lord Sutch(1940–1999), musician and founder of theMonster Raving Loony Party,lived in South Harrow at the time of his death
- Ernie Wise(1925–1999), of comedy duoMorecambe and Wise,lived in South Harrow
Gas explosion
editOn 7 May 2008 at 9.18pm, two houses were destroyed completely and the third badly damaged by agas explosionin South Harrow. Three people were treated by paramedics after being rescued by firefighters in the rubble. Two survived, but a man was pronounced dead at the scene. Residents of Stanley Road wereevacuated.[6]Scotland Yardannounced that the explosion could have been amurder,but it was later found to be an accident.[citation needed]
References
edit- ^Character Assessment of Harrow's Residential Areas(Report). 2011. p. 80.Archivedfrom the original on 27 April 2020.
- ^"Rent increase threat".Harrow Times.23 September 2007.Retrieved2 December2022.
- ^"Ethnic Group | Roxbourne".UK Census Data 2011.Retrieved2 December2022.
- ^"Ethnic Group | Roxeth".UK Census Data 2011.Retrieved2 December2022.
- ^"Main Language | Roxeth".UK Census Data 2011.Retrieved2 December2022.
- ^"Man dies in suspected gas blast".BBC News.8 May 2008.Retrieved2 December2022.