Askam and Ireleth

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Askam and Ireleth
Statistics
Population:	3,500
Ordnance Survey
OS grid reference:	SD224776
Administration
Parish:	Askam with Ireleth
District:	Borough of Barrow-in-Furness
Shire county:	Cumbria
Region:	North West England
Constituent country:	England
Sovereign state:	United Kingdom
Other
Ceremonial county:	Cumbria
Historic county:	Lancashire (North of the Sands)
Services
Police force:	Cumbria Constabulary
Fire and rescue:	Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service
Ambulance:	North West
Post office and telephone
Post town:	BARROW-IN-FURNESS
Postal district:	LA16
Dialling code:	01229
Politics
UK Parliament:	Barrow and Furness
European Parliament:	North West England

Askam and Ireleth are two villages in the county of Cumbria, northern England. They have separate histories, but following modern growth have merged together to become one continuous settlement.

Administratively, they are classed as a single civil parish (named Askam with Ireleth) in the Borough of Barrow-in-Furness.^[1] Both Askam and Ireleth share the postcode of LA16, and they villages have a population of over 3500.^[2]

The villages lie on the eastern bank of the River Duddon's wide estuary. The A595 trunk road and a railway line connects them to the village of Kirkby-in-Furness in the north and towns of Barrow-in-Furness and Dalton-in-Furness to the south.^[3]

Contents 1 Naming 2 History 2.1 Ireleth 2.2 Askam 3 Environment, geography, wildlife and culture 3.1 Wildlife 3.2 Wind energy 3.2.1 MAIWAG 3.3 Sport 3.4 Public buildings 4 Transport 5 References

[edit] Naming

Both fall into the 'Furness' area, and Askam is often called Askam-in-Furness. However, the phrase 'Ireleth-in-Furness' is rarely used.^[3]

While the strip development has effectively created one larger community, residents of both villages still retain a strong sense of being either from Askam or Ireleth. Road signs read 'Askam and Ireleth' at the entry to the villages, but the older 'Ireleth' sign still stands on the former boundary between the two.

The name 'Ireleth' is often confused in archival records with 'Kirkby Ireleth', the former name for the community (two miles to the north) now known as 'Kirkby-in-Furness'. These communities are differentiated in the Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales.^[4][5]

[edit] History

[edit] Ireleth

Ireleth is the smaller and older of the two villages, located at the top of the hill which runs down into Askam.^[6] Evidence of Manx Vikings has been found near the parish church, and the village is listed in the Domesday Book as Gerleuuorde. It is not certain this name in William the Conqueror's census actually refers to modern day Ireleth, as there is debate as to whether the Furness peninsula fell under Anglo-Norman or Scottish control at the time.^[7]

Ireleth featured in the Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales (1870-72), and the article was written by John Marius Wilson. In this, it is said-

IRELETH, a village and a chapelry in Dalton-in-Furness parish, Lancashire. The village stands at a st. of the Furness railway, on the E side of the Duddon sands, 2¾ miles N of Dalton; is a small sub port to Lancaster; and maintains communication across the sands at low water. The chapelry includes also the hamlets of Lindale and Marton; but does not appear to have definite limits. Post town, Dalton-in-Furness. The living is a p. curacy in the diocese of Carlisle. Value, £100.* Patron, the Vicar of Dalton. The church stands on an eminence, overlooking the Duddon.^[5]

The name translates as 'hill-slope of the irish', from old norse.^[8]

During the Middle Ages, the entire area was controlled by the Cistercian monks of Furness Abbey. During this time, Ireleth was little more than one of many farming communities in Furness. The iron ore developments of Askam largely bypassed Ireleth, and the village developed slowly, housing farmers and workers from local towns.^[7]

[edit] Askam

Askam's history starts much more recently. In 1850, iron ore deposits were discovered here, by H. W. Schneider. These turned out to be the second largest iron ore deposits in the country, with over 7 million tons of ore extracted. Furnaces for smelting were built in 1864, and the village continued to grow, due to the terraced houses and alotments that were erected for the workers.^[9]

Remnants of the steel industry remain in Askam. For instance, there is a pier in the village, jutting out into the bay, towards Millom. The pier consists of slag, from the works. Also, numerous streets are named after the industry, and its owners.^[9] Also, there are a large number of slag banks around the village, now important sites for wildlife.^[10]

By 1918, the iron ore had run out and most of the industrial buildings were demolished in 1933.^[9] Since then, Askam has grown with commuter homes, exploiting the views over the Duddon Estuary to the Lake District.

[edit] Environment, geography, wildlife and culture

[edit] Wildlife

Much wildlife is to be found on the Duddon Estuary, perhaps most notably 20% of the national Natterjack toad population, who are attracted to the shallow breeding pools available. The slagbanks around Askam are also very important as nesting sites for the rare sandwich terns that live in the area.^[11]

The beach is designated an Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI)^[12] because of the range of flora and fauna present on the sands.

The most recent study, in 2002, by conservation organisation English Nature claims wildlife in the area protected is under threat by people's use of the shore.^[13]

[edit] Wind energy

Askam wind farm can be found two kilometres east of the village, on the southern slopes of Hare Slack Hill. Work on the turbines started in late 1998, and the wind farm took 8 months to complete. It first generated energy in July, 1999.^[14]

[edit] MAIWAG

The Marton, Askam and Ireleth Windfarm Action Group (MAIWAG) was formed to combat further growth of wind farms and improve local conditions. It became one of the first such organisations in the UK dedicated to fighting windfarm development.^[15] The group claimed that the planners and council had broken promises that they made when first telling the community about the Wind Farm.^[16] They also claimed that the wind farm was dangerous, and talked a lot of damage that one of the turbines took during a thunderstorm, despite the fact that this turbine was not in the farm they were fundamentally opposed to, be another local one.^[17] The group claimed that their goals were

• To fight against the windfarm at Far Old Park Farm, Ireleth, Cumbria, the ultimate goal being its removal.
• To force the developer to minimise the affects that their turbines are having on our lives in the interim.
• To prevent the addition of further unsuitably sited turbines in this area.
• To highlight to others the realities of living with turbines and expose the myth of them being "eco-friendly".
• To co-ordinate with other action groups to help prevent the construction of wind turbines in other unsuitable sites.^[18]

Legal action was taken against the owners of the wind farm in early 2004, with the prosecutors claiming that the farm was a 'noise nuisance'. A judge overruled the claim, at Kendal Magistrates' Court.^[19] Although their website is no longer operational,^[20] it can be found using the Internet Archive Way Back Machine.^[21]

[edit] Sport

The villages have several sporting facilities, including Fallowfield Park, home of the Askam Amateur Rugby League Football Club. There is also Askam FC, an amateur football club and Duddon SC, a cricket side based at the old K Shoes factory social club.^[22]

A 10 hole golf course, called Dunnerholme Golf Course, lies to the north of Askam. Part of the green is atop Dunnerholme rock,^[23] a limestone rock found near the Duddon Estuary.^[10]

[edit] Public buildings

There are two schools in the villages, Ireleth St Peter's C of E Primary School^[24] and Askam Village School,^[25] both of which are primary schools.

There are also both Methodist and Church of England (St. Peter's) churches in the villages.

There is a lifeboat station, that was established in 1970.

Askam has a fountain commemorating Queen Victoria's Jubilee.^[9]

[edit] Transport

The A595 is the main coastal route, formerly a trunk route, connecting Barrow and South Cumbria to Copeland, Workington and Whitehaven. Its southern ends is 2 miles south of Askam at the junction with the A590 Dalton-in-Furness bypass.

The area is served by Stagecoach Cumbria service X7 as well as various school services.^[26]

Askam is located on the 190-mile Cumbrian Coastal Walk, which winds around the edge of Cumbria^[27]

The railway line passing through the two villages virtually bisects them, with a bridge and a level crossing by the station allowing residents to cross from one side to another. There is a stop called Askam-in-Furness. This line links to the the Sellafield nuclear power plant in Seascale, West Cumbria.

[edit] References