'Redditch' is a
town and
local government district in north-east
Worcestershire,
England. The district had a
population of 79,216 in 2005.
Geography
Redditch lies just south of (but is not part of) the
West Midlands urban area, northwest of
Studley on the
A435, which skirts it to the East. The main route of access is the
A441, a trunk road from Birmingham to Cookhill, via junction 2 of the
M42 Motorway. The
Roman Road known as
Icknield Street is prominent, running North to South through the eastern side of the town.
History
Commemorative pavement plaque in Alcester Street
The first recorded mention of
Redditch ("''Red-Dych''", thought to be a reference to the red clay of the nearby
River Arrow) is in
1348, the year of the outbreak of the
Black Death. During the
Middle Ages it became a centre of
needle-making and later prominent industries were fish-hooks, fishing tackle, motorcycles and springs, the latter notably by Herbert Terry and Sons. It was designated a
new town in
1964 and the population increased dramatically from 32,000 to around 77,000. Housing developments such as Church Hill, Matchborough, Winyates, Lodge Park and Woodrow were created to accommodate the large overspill from an industrially expanding Birmingham.
Today needle-making and other traditional industries have been replaced by modern light industry and services, with Redditch also functioning as a
dormitory town for Birmingham. The automotive retailer
Halfords and engineering giant
GKN both have their headquarters in Redditch. Leading expanded metal manufacturer Dramex also has a manufacturing plant within the town. With the redevelopment of the flagship Kingfisher Shopping Centre in
2002 Redditch is undergoing an economic and cultural renaissance.
The town is home to several historical sites. Besides the
National Needle Museum and the ruins of
Bordesley Abbey (situated in the Abbey Ward district of Redditch), there are also the remains of a moated settlement called Moons Moat - a Mediaeval moated settlement situated within the Church Hill estate.
In 2007 the town enjoyed increased publicity after its MP Jacqui Smith was chosen to be the country's first female Home Secretary.
Politics
The constituency of
Redditch is represented by
Jacqui Smith of the
Labour Party. With the resignation of
Tony Blair and the succession of
Gordon Brown, Jacqui Smith was chosen by the new
Prime Minister to be
Home Secretary, this making her the UK's first female Home Secretary.
Transport
Located in the heart of England, Redditch is an ideal point of departure for destinations in the surrounding region. The
M42 motorway is a short drive away and it is linked by dual carriageways and A-class roads to surrounding towns such as
Bromsgrove and
Evesham. There are regular bus services to Studley, Bromsgrove,
Catshill and
Birmingham.
The
Cross-City Line provides a regular train service via
Birmingham New Street to
Lichfield.
Redditch railway station, the southern terminus of the line, was first opened as the terminus of the Redditch Railway on
September 19,
1859, alongside what is now Clive Road. This first station stayed until
May 4 1868 when the last section from
Alcester to Redditch of the Redditch and Evesham Railway was opened, at which point a second station was built alongside the junction of Bromsgrove Road and Plymouth Road. This station was provided with a standard Midland Railway design and two platforms. The current station, little more than a ticket office and a store, is now a shadow of its former self.
Previous Redditch Bus Station of boring postcard fame, circa 1996
There is an extensive network of local bus services run by
First and other operators (including Pete's Travel). Many services run from the bus station in the town centre, a postcard of which was voted Britain's most boring postcard in a competition run by the photographer
Martin Parr. The bus station was rebuilt as part of the 2002 shopping centre expansion.
Redditch is locally well known for its confusing road system dominated by a system of dual carriageways built when it became a
New Town, including the only
cloverleaf interchange in England at the junction of the A441 and the Bromsgrove-bound
A448. Due to the similar appearance of the road layout, drivers easily become disorientated, although the story of an elderly couple admitted to hospital with severe dehydration after spending more than sixty hours trying to navigate the highway system is an
urban legend. Redditch was briefly famous for a tongue-in-cheek calendar featuring its "picturesque" roundabouts created by a local printing company, which proved so successful that it sparked a national series
[1].
Church Green and St. Stephen's Church in central Redditch
Education
Redditch schools operate a
three-tier system, where students progress from a 'First (or
Primary) School', to a '
Middle School', and then to a
High School (rather than the more common two-tier system). Although attempts have been made to change the system to two-tier, opposition from students and parents resulted in the plans being dropped, but not before several other schools were closed (including ''Bridley Moor High School'').
Redditch currently has four high schools:
★
Kingsley College, formerly The Leys High School, the sixth form of which gained
Specialist Performing Arts status in September
2003
★ ''St Augustine's Catholic High School'' in Hunt End, which receiving Specialist Science status in
2006
★ ''Trinity High School and Sixth Form Centre'', formerly The Abbey High School
★ ''Arrow Vale High School'' in Eastern Redditch, which specialises as a Sports College
''North East Worcestershire College'' (often referred to locally as "New College") is a large general
Further Education college, has one of its two campuses in central Redditch (the other being in Bromsgrove).
Places of Interest
★ Bordesley Abbey: remains of a former
Cistercian abbey, later used as a Royal Swannery.
★
Forge Mill Needle Museum: exhibition of traditional needle making
Kingfisher Shopping Centre
Worcester Square and its new palm trees
One of the mosaic panels
The Kingfisher Shopping Centre, opened in
1978, is the town's primary retail centre and is well-known for its palm trees in the centre's Worcester Square. The original trees and their accompanying fountain were removed by the Centre's management after health and safety fears relating to the age of the trees which were nearly thirty years old. However, more appropriate palm trees were planted after the 2002 redevelopment. The centre is also well known for its large mosaic panels designed by famous Scottish artist and sculptor,
Sir Eduardo Paolozzi. The centre has over 1.1 million square feet of retail space, making it one of the largest shopping centres in the United Kingdom (11th in 2005.) In 2007 a new 7-screen cinema run by
Apollo Cinemas was opened on the new upper floor and a
Primark store will open in late 2007 in the old
Alders Store since they went into administration in 2005.
Arrow Valley Country Park
View across Arrow Valley Lake
Redditch benefits from 900 acres of public open space in
Arrow Valley Country Park. This incorporates the 27 acre Arrow Valley Lake, fed from the
River Arrow.
Royal Enfield motorcycles
Redditch was the home of the
Royal Enfield motorcycle. This is where the main factory of the original company was located and the business continued manufacturing through the sixties, the last model being the
Interceptor. In the mid fifties the Company established a partner
Madras in
India, who manufactured the Bullet model. The Indian factory is still very successful, with new Indian models. It has taken Royal Enfield into its third century of manufacturing. The English manufacturing ended in 1970. A few of the original factory buildings still remain and are part of the Enfield Industrial Estate.
Notable residents
★
John Bonham (1948–1980) of
Led Zeppelin was born in Redditch.
★
Rik Mayall (1958–) (comedian) spent his early life in Redditch.
★
Charles Dance (1946–) (actor) was born in Redditch
★
Ruth England (1970–) (TV presenter) was educated in Redditch.
★
Raymond Thompson (scriptwriter and TV producer) was born in Redditch.
★
Craig Rogers - Four-time World Pinball Champion(1999,2001-2003).
★
Zoë Lister - Actress
Hollyoaks
★
John Taylor - Bassist in the group
Duran Duran. He grew up in Hollywood, Birmingham and went to the ''Abbey High School'' in Redditch.
★
Russell Brookes (1945–) -British Rally Champion
[2]
★
Tony Martin (1957–) (musician) - Singer for Black Sabbath 1987-1991, 1994-1997
★
Jacqui Smith - First and current female Home Secretary for the UK Government.
★
Steff Caldicott - Contestant in Big Brother (UK) Series 4 (finished 4th)
[3]
Local Dialect
Due to its geographical location Redditch was isolated from the Worcestershire vernacular, instead developing a distinguishable local mode of speech which owes more to the influence of nearby Warwickshire and Birmingham. The establishment of Redditch as a new town and the accompanying influx of migrants from the West Midlands area, along with the influence of national television, mean that particularly amongst the younger generation virtually all traces of a local dialect have been lost.
Town twinning
The first twinning of Redditch began in 1956, with a link formed to Auxerre in Burgundy, France. This twinning proved sufficiently popular to form an organisation named The Friends of Auxerre (FoA). At the beginning of June each year the coupling of these two towns is officially celebrated.
In 1986 the second twinning of Redditch was formed, connecting to Mtwara in Tanzania. Frequent events are organised with assistance from the community of Tanzanian students at Birmingham University and Selly Oak College.
★
Auxerre,
France
★
Mtwara,
Tanzania
Friendship Links
Redditch also has formal “Friendship” links with:
★
St.Elizabeth,
West Indies
★
Gruchet-Le-Valasse, France
★
Gujar Khan,
Pakistan
★
More Information
Sport
Redditch sport teams include
★
Redditch United F.C. playing
Football in the
Conference North
★
Redditch Ravens RLFC playing
Rugby League
★ Church Hill United F.C. playing in the local Bromsgrove District Football League
★ Winyates are a local team who play in the redditch county league
Many residents also follow Midlands teams playing in national leagues, including
Aston Villa and
Birmingham City.
See also
★
Radio Redditch
Winyates are a local team who play in the local legue
External links
★
Redditch Standard Local Redditch weekly newspaper
★
Redditch Advertiser Local Redditch weekly newspaper
★
Bus service information
★
Kingfisher Shopping Centre
References
★ Bonham, Mick. ''Bonham by Bonham: My Brother John'' (Solihull: Icarus Publications, 2003). ISBN 0-9545717-0-3
العربية
中国
Français
Deutsch
Ελληνική
हिन्दी
Italiano
日本語
Português
Русский
Español
![Royal treatment at Hotel Fouquet\](images/articles/thumbs/fouquetthumb.jpg "Royal treatment at Hotel Fouquet\")
![Daily flights from NYC to Mont Tremblant\](images/articles/thumbs/nytremblantthumb.jpg "Daily flights from NYC to Mont Tremblant\")
