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West Wickham

Coordinates:51°22′35″N0°01′09″W/ 51.3765°N 0.0193°W/51.3765; -0.0193
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For another place, seeWest Wickham, Cambridgeshire.
Not to be confused withWest WycombeorWest Wykeham.

West Wickham
West Wickham High Street
West Wickham is located in Greater London
West Wickham
West Wickham
Location withinGreater London
Population14,884 (ward,2011)[1]
OS grid referenceTQ379660
•Charing Cross10.3 mi (16.6 km)NW
London borough
Ceremonial countyGreater London
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townWEST WICKHAM
Postcode districtBR4
Dialling code020
PoliceMetropolitan
FireLondon
AmbulanceLondon
UK Parliament
London Assembly
List of places
UK
England
London
51°22′35″N0°01′09″W/ 51.3765°N 0.0193°W/51.3765; -0.0193

West Wickhamis an area of South EastLondon,England,in theLondon Borough of Bromley.It lies south ofPark Langley,Eden Park,BeckenhamandBromleytown center, west ofHayesand north ofConey Hall,east ofSpring ParkandShirley.10.3 miles (16.6 km) south-east ofCharing Crosson the line of aRoman road,theLondon to Lewes Way.Before the creation ofGreater Londonin 1965, West Wickham was inKent.

History

The Roman site near West Wickham, possibly an open-air market with slight long-term settlement, is probably the site ofNoviomagus Cantiacorum.[2]

West Wickham is mentioned in theDomesday Bookof 1086 with the following entry: "In lordship 2 ploughs. 24 villagers have 4 ploughs. 13 slaves; a church; a mill at 20d.; a wood at 10 pigs. Value before 1066 8; later 6: now 13. Godric son of Karl held it from King Edward".[3]The name dates toAnglo-Saxonand is possibly a corruption of theLatinvicus,denoting an earlierRomansettlement.[4][5]The 'West' was added in the 13th century to differentiate it fromEast Wickham,situated some distance away to the north-east.[4]

The medieval Church of Saint John the Baptist in West Wickham

In Tudor times, the Manor House,Wickham Court,was expanded by theBoleynfamily and the area was popular for deer hunting. TheGrade I listedbuilding[6]was built bySir Henry Heydonin 1469.[7][4]His wife was Anne Boleyn (Bullen), a daughter ofSir Geoffrey Boleyn,who wasLord Mayor of Londonin 1469. She was the great-aunt of QueenAnne Boleyn,second wife ofHenry VIII.[4]The house was later sold to the Lennard family in 1580.[4]In 1935, it was sold and adapted for use as an hotel. After World War II, it was sold to the Daughters of Mary and Joseph, an International Congregation of Religious Sisters, and became Coloma College (a teacher training college). This was run by the Daughters of Mary and Joseph until 1978.[8]From 1978 to 1996 it was occupied by Schiller International University. It later became home to Wickham Court Preparatory School[4]until 2023 and is now occupied by the St Mary and St John Coptic Orthodox & Centre.

Until the 1900s West Wickham remained a small village. The inter-war period saw rapid development and the transformation of the area into a suburb of London, facilitated by the arrival of the railway station, which opened in 1882.[4]Much of the formerly extensive West Wickham Common was built over, though a small tract was purchased and preserved by theCorporation of Londonin 1892.[4]At the crossroads by the Swan pub formerly stood the Stocks Tree, a largeelm treeso named as it lay behind the village stocks. It was damaged during the laying down of sewerage pipes in the 1930s and was moved to Blake Recreation Ground in 1935, but later blew down in a storm.[5]The tree is commemorated in the village sign and a plaque, both of which stand outside the library, with a piece of the tree on display inside.[5]

Modern-day West Wickham is an affluent suburb ofGreater London,after theLondon Government Act 1963,which came into effect in 1965, with West Wickham absorbed into the London Borough of Bromley. The area is a fairly typical London suburb, consisting of predominantly 1930s housing, with a row of shops, restaurants and a library along the High Street and another set around the train station area. There are four pubs in the area - The Swan and the Wheatsheaf on the High Street, The Railway by the station and The Real Ale Way micropub, opened in 2021 in Station Road.[9]There are also several parks, such as West Wickham playing fields (McAndrews), Wickham Park and Blakes Recreation ground.

The Swan Public House, West Wickham, dating to circa 1840 and listed at grade II[10]

Education

West Wickham (including Coney Hall as it is a district of West Wickham) has four state schools (all primary schools). They are Oak Lodge, Wickham Common, Pickhurst and Hawes Down. St David's Prep and Wickham Court (serving as a nursery, primary school and secondary school) are private schools.[citation needed]In 2012, Wickham Common won a hockey gold medal when they represented Bromley in the London Youth Games.[11]

There are no secondary schools in West Wickham, but there are some in neighbouring areas.Langley Park School for BoysandLangley Park School for Girlsare located in Beckenham,Hayes Schoolis located in Hayes, andRavens Wood Schoolis located in Keston.

All Saints' Catholic Schoolwas a secondary school located on Layhams Road, West Wickham,London Borough of Bromleywhich closed in 2007 a few years after a major fraud scandal.[12]

Transport

Rail

West Wickham railway stationTfLtravel card zone 5, serves the area with services toLondon Charing Cross,andHayes.

Buses

West Wickham is served by severalTransport for Londonbuses connecting it with areas includingBeckenham,Bromley,Croydon,Hayes,Penge,SydenhamandThornton Heath.Services include routes, 119 (which runs 24/7), 138, 194 and 352.[13]While SuperloopLondon SuperloopSL5 will not stop in West Wickham it will stop near to the town's boundary at both Westmoreland Road, BR2 and Bethlem Royal Hospital, BR3.

Sport and leisure

West Wickham has anon-League footballclubGlebe F.C.who play at Oakley Road.[14]

West Wickham is home to Beccehamians RFC arugby unionclub founded in 1933 which plays competitive rugby at Sparrows Den[15]at the bottom of Corkscrew Hill.[16]

Other clubs nearby includeCroydon RFC(formerly Shirley Wanderers), a club that currently competes in Surrey 1, that has a rugby pitch used often for county matches.[citation needed]

West Wickham is well served by green spaces, including Spring Park and Sparrows Den, which are connected to Threepenny Woods. The London Loop walking trail and cycling track go through here. Kelsey Park in the Langley area of neighbouring Beckenham is also considered a local park, as is Addington Park.

Since 1958 the area has had an Arts association[17]and since 1967 it has had its own community theatre known asTheatre 62/West Wickham Theatre centre.[18]

On 1 August 1964, Blakes Recreation Ground hosted a concert featuringManfred Mann(featuringPaul Jones),The Merseybeatsand theJohnny DankworthOrchestra.[19]

The town appeared in the 2000 UK television seriesThe 1940s House,with 17 Braemar Gardens taking the starring role as a family lived aWorld War IIexperience in a typical London suburb.[20][4]

Notable people

  • St Mark's Catholic Church, built 1962-63[31]
    St Mark's Catholic Church, built 1962-63[31]
  • The Railway pub
    The Railway pub
  • Emmanuel United Reformed Church
    Emmanuel United Reformed Church
  • Old Unigate Dairies on Kent Road, built circa 1890 and now listed at grade II[32]
    Old Unigate Dairies on Kent Road, built circa 1890 and now listed at grade II[32]
  • St Francis of Assisi Anglican Church on Ravenswood Avenue, built 1935-36[33]
    St Francis of Assisi Anglican Church on Ravenswood Avenue, built 1935-36[33]
  • Entrance to the West Wickham train station
    Entrance to the West Wickham train station

References

  1. ^"Bromley Ward population 2011".Neighbourhood Statistics.Office for National Statistics. Archived fromthe originalon 6 January 2019.Retrieved11 October2016.
  2. ^The discovery of the lost Roman town of Noviomagus, at West Wickham, Kent. Brian Philp, Gerald Clewley, Debbie Cooper. Kent Archaeological Rescue Unit, Special Subject Series 26. 2021. ISBN 0947831371
  3. ^[1]Archived7 May 2009 at theWayback MachineWest Wickham Residents Association
  4. ^abcdefghiWilley, Russ.Chambers London Gazetteer,p 550
  5. ^abc"Local History".West Wickham Residents Association.Retrieved13 August2020.
  6. ^Good Stuff IT Services."Wickham Court – Bromley – Greater London – England".British Listed Buildings.Retrieved4 August2013.
  7. ^"Timeline".Wickham Court.Retrieved5 August2013.
  8. ^"Background History of the West Wickham Site".Hmt-uk.org. Archived fromthe originalon 13 October 2013.Retrieved4 August2013.
  9. ^"Pubs in West Wickham".WhatPub.Retrieved13 August2020.
  10. ^Historic England."The Swan Public House (1359301)".National Heritage List for England.Retrieved13 August2020.
  11. ^"Title success for Wickham Common".News Shopper.March 2010.Retrieved19 January2023.
  12. ^"Headmistress sentenced to five years for £500,000 theft".4ni.co.uk. 1 September 2003.Retrieved13 August2020.
  13. ^"Map"(PDF).content.tfl.gov.uk.Retrieved14 October2021.
  14. ^"Everything we do we always exceed in, says Glebe chairman Rocky McMillan".Kentishfootball.co.uk. 1 July 2013.Retrieved4 August2013.
  15. ^"London Gardens Online".londongardensonline.org.uk.Retrieved2 February2017.
  16. ^Beccehamians RFC
  17. ^"About Us".westwickhamarts.org.Retrieved28 September2017.
  18. ^"About Us".Theatre 62.15 August 2013.Retrieved28 September2017.
  19. ^"New Musical Express"(904). July 1964: 2.{{cite journal}}:Cite journal requires|journal=(help)
  20. ^[2]Telegraph
  21. ^Burnside, W. (2004). Neumann, P.M.; Mann, A.J.S.; Tompson, J.C. (eds.).The Collected Papers of William Burnside: Commentary on Burnside's life and work; Papers 1883–1899.Vol. 1. Oxford University Press. p. 106.ISBN9780198505860.
  22. ^"Player profile: Michael Carberry".ESPNcricinfo.Retrieved5 August2011.
  23. ^"Marcks, Violet Olivia Cressy- [née Violet Olivia Rutley; other married name Violet Olivia Fisher]".Oxford Dictionary of National Biography(online ed.). ODNB. 2004.doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/57179.ISBN978-0-19-861412-8.Retrieved19 August2020.(Subscription orUK public library membershiprequired.)
  24. ^Gosse, Edmund William(1911)."Carew, Thomas".Encyclopædia Britannica.Vol. 5 (11th ed.). p. 328.
  25. ^Powell, Lucy (12 June 2010)."Stephen Dillane, actor of rare introspection".The Times.(Subscription required.)
  26. ^GrahamGroom (2017).The Complete Book of the Commonwealth Games.Lulu. p. 118.
  27. ^"Interview with Chris Philp, Conservative Parliamentary Candidate for Croydon South".Croydon Constitutionalists. 26 November 2019.Retrieved19 August2020.
  28. ^"Obituary: Alan Ridout".The Independent.23 March 1996.Retrieved19 August2020.
  29. ^"The contents of field notebook containing the continuation of St Johns the Baptist West Wickham Taken on 1st August 1891 - Leland L. Duncan Transcribed by Frank Bamping 5 March 2001".Kent Archaeological Society - West Wickham.Retrieved30 May2017.
  30. ^Clark, Martyn (27 August 2005)."Interview with Skream".Retrieved30 June2007.
  31. ^"West Wickham – St Mark".Taking Stock - Catholic Churches of England and Wales.Retrieved13 August2020.
  32. ^Historic England."Unigate Dairies (1268412)".National Heritage List for England.Retrieved14 August2020.
  33. ^"St Francis West Wickham History".St Francis West Wickham.Retrieved13 August2020.

Further reading

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