Cubbington

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Map sources for Cubbington at grid reference SP343682

Cubbington is a village (ward population estimated 5,700 in 2002, village population 4,034 in 2001) connected to the north-east of Royal Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, England. It is often regarded as a northern suburb of Leamington, being situated only 5 km from the town centre. The Welsh Road, running through the village crossroads is rumoured to be an old sheep drovers route connecting London and Wales. Since the 1950s when the village expanded there has technically been two parts to the village, Cubbington proper which was the old village core and New Cubbington which is to the north west. In reality though little attention is paid to the divide and both are referred to as Cubbington.

1 Amenities and Schools
2 Cubbington History
3 Cubbington Today
4 Cubbington Trivia
5 Cubbington Stats
6 External links

[edit] Amenities and Schools

The village has three pubs, The King's Head and The Queen's Head in the old village and The Rugby Tavern on the Rugby Road into Leamington. The village hall (opened March 1951) is located on Broadway and the Working men's club on Windmill Hill. The village also has a small brewery located in Queen Street. On the Rugby Road are found a fish and chip shop, a Chinese takeaway, a laundrette, a grocery store, a paper shop, a pet shop, a garage selling off road vehicles and a veterinary surgeon's surgery. Interestingly, in 1946 there was a legal battle between two local residents, one of whom wanted to open a fish shop next to an existing fish shop. In the end one shop was fresh fish and the other fried fish! In the old village there is a bakery, a DIY shop, a SPAR convenience store, and a takeaway shop. In Kelvin Road, located in New Cubbington is found a hairdressers, an off license and the locally well known Kelvin Cycles. The 68 bus runs every half hour from Cubbington Church to Leamington via several parts of the village. Leamington Spa railway station is the nearest station.

There are two grassed play areas for children in the village. The first is in the old village located next to the village hall on land purchased in 1952 by the Village Hall Trust. This play area contains a good variety of play equipment, a basketball court and the village football teams pitch. The second play area is in New Cubbington, near to the Kelvin Road shops. This contains two mini football goals and swings.

Schools in Cubbington are Cubbington School, Our Lady and Saint Teresa's School, and Telford School, all state run infant and junior schools. These schools were ranked 45th, 128th and 21st best junior schools in the county respectively out of 158. The local senior school is the state run co-ed North Leamington Community School and Arts College which is just three kilometres from the village. This school is ranked 27th out of 42 in the county for GCSE and 15th out of 26 for AS Level and A-Level. These stats were taken from the 2005 government league tables.

The earliest written record of a school in Cubbington is from 1780 on a different site to any of the schools now in existence. The first buildings on the site of the present Cubbington School were built in 1846. Extensions to the school were made in 1893 and the 1960s. St Teresa's School was opened in 1961 on a site overlooking much of the surrounding countryside.

[edit] Cubbington History

There are two possible origins for the name of Cubbington based on its earlier names. The first is Cobynton, meaning 'town of the descendants of Coba'. The second is from the name used for a period of time after the Domesday Book of 1068, Cumbynton. Cumbe was a medieval word signifying that a settlement was in a low or deep hollow. The fact that the village lies in a shallow valley is seemingly proof that the second theory is true.

Queen Steet, Cubbington with The Kings Head and St.Mary's Church in shot

Cubbington's Church of England church, St Mary's has a documented chronology of Vicars dating from 1346. The church was originally a chapelry of Leek Wootton and was granted to Kenilworth Priory at the Priory's foundation by Geoffrey de Clinton in 1122. By 1331 it had become a separate parish and was appropriated by (fully granted to) the monastery; a Vicarage with House, Mortuaries, Altarage and small tithes being granted in 1345. The building of the present church was probably started by the Augustinian Canons at Kenilworth in the early 12th century and when finished consisted of the nave, chancel, South aisle and Western tower.

There is also a Methodist church in Cubbington. The orginial Wesleyan chapel fell out of use in 1843. A second was in use between 1844 and 1888. 1888 was also the year that the present church building was erected. A church hall was added in 1965.

In early November 1605 a group of men, including Robert Catesby, who were involved in the gunpowder plot, passed through the village. They were fleeing from London after the arrest of Guy Fawkes. Apparently they were on their way to Wales (via Warwick Castle to steal fresh horses), after a meeting at Dunchurch, near Rugby.

The village church aside the other famous landmark of Cubbington's past was the windmill which stood at the top of Windmill Hill, the section of Welsh Road which crosses the road to Rugby. The first mention of the windmill was in 1355 in a dispute between the Prior of Kenilworth and the Abbot of Stoneleigh. No mention of it was made again however until it appeared on a map of Warwickshire over 400 years later in 1789. The sails of the windmill could be turned using a wheel to face in the optimum direction in relation to the prevailing wind.

Cubbington men played their part in First World War and the Second World War. In the First World War 139 men served their country, 31 of whom lost their lives. In the Second World War 10 men lost their lives. Although the village never received direct hits from Luftwaffe bombers two bombs landed in Cubbington Woods near the village after a raid on Coventry some 10 miles to the north.

[edit] Cubbington Today

Thwaites Dumpers, a dumper truck company who sell throughout the UK and across Europe have their headquarters on Windmill Hill in the village. The company was founded on that site in 1937 by Basil Thwaites and the ownership remains in the family. In 2005 there were rumours that the company would move out of the village but this has not yet happened.

Cubbington's most famous export is probably its Silver Band which plays all around Warwickshire. The current Cubbington Silver Band was formed in 1995 as a result of an idea by the Reverend Ken Lindop of St. Mary's Church.

The village hall still plays an important part in village life for many people. The National Blood Service visits regularly to take blood from donors. Parties of all kind take place there as the hall can be hired out. The Cubbington OAP group meet there where they organise fundraisers for their outings and play bingo. The hall also sees performances by the Cubbington Players, an amateur dramatics group. The highlight of the year for this group is the pantomime each December and January.

In 2006, the villagers of Cubbington successfully campaigned against a mobile telephone mast being built along the Cubbington Road. The mobile company has however appealed. There was also an attempt to set up a Cubbington music festival but these ideas were cancelled after several objections were raised.

[edit] Cubbington Trivia

The Member of Parliament for Cubbington is the MP for Warwick & Leamington Spa James Plaskitt. After coming into office in 1997 Plaskitt has won a further two elections.
The village was used for some scenes in the BBC television comedy series Keeping Up Appearances starring Patricia Routledge and Clive Swift.
Jane Austen's brother James lived in Cubbington for most of his adult life and was vicar of St Mary's between 1792 and 1820.
Cubbington manor house (now demolished) was said to be haunted by a young woman who starved herself to death there.
The village football team, Cubbington Albion, play an annual match against an Aston Villa XI comprised of Villa stars of the past.
Up until the mid 1820s the population of Cubbington was actually larger than that of Leamington, which now dwarfs it!

[edit] Cubbington Stats

Population density (people / sq mi): 13.4
Gender split (females / male): 1.05
Average commute: 6.61 miles
Average age: 40
% Aged 0-19: 23.4%
% Aged 65 or over: 19.2%
% Homes owned outright/Paying mortgage: 39.7%/44.4%
% Homes rented: 13.0%
Student population: 2.4%
People in 'good health': 72.5%
Ethnic diversity: 96.2% White, 2.4% Asian, 0.81% Mixed, 0.31% Other, 0.23% Black
Unemployment: 1.55%

Population At Selected Dates

1068: 88
1665: 257
1730: 280
1801: 440
1851: 885
1901: 1,164
1951: 1,479
2001: 5,777 (ward)