High Town
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| High Town | |
|
  |
|
| Population | 7,062(est.).[1] |
|---|---|
| OS grid reference | |
| Unitary authority | Luton |
| Ceremonial county | Bedfordshire |
| Region | East |
| Constituent country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | LUTON |
| Postcode district | LU |
| Dial code | 01582 |
| Police | Bedfordshire |
| Fire | Bedfordshire and Luton |
| Ambulance | East of England |
| UK Parliament | Luton South |
| European Parliament | East of England |
| List of places: UK • England | |
High Town is a hilly district of Luton adjacent to Luton railway station and extends in a north easterly direction towards Hitchin. It is a convenient location for the daily commuter to London and the district has been recently renovated after many years of neglect.
Compared to Luton town centre, High Town is a quieter, older world of small shops and Victorian terraced houses. It was always a mixed area that provided work, housing and leisure to people employed in the hat trade that flourished in Luton until the late thirties.
Luton Council has recently finished a programme of refurbishing shop fronts and re-paving the road, this has been undertaken in a style fitting the Victorian heritage of much of High Town. The High Town Action Trust has its offices in High Town Road, just across the road from the Council’s Wellbeck Centre. There is now a Polish deli and a brand new Lithuanian café and grocers. But there are still the older seedy junk and second hand shops as well as other signs of dereliction.
Further up High Town Road and on the side streets and adjacent roads are terraces of Victorian houses, traditionally built in local brick with bay-windows and all with very substantial back gardens. Between High Town Road and Hitchin Road, is an area of warehouses and factories.
High Town has always been a favourite location for the young with many lively pubs and clubs in the area. Diana Dors, the famous 60s British actress, spent some time as a barmaid at The Rabbit public house, located in the area. With recent renovation and building projects, such as Milliners Court (a large warehouse converted into apartments), High Town is seeing a growth in commuters living in the area. This has been encouraged by the fast train connection to London's Kings Cross which is less than 25 minutes journey time.
Contents |
[edit] Politics
High Town is represented by Cllr Lakhbir Singh (Labour) and Cllr Dave Magill, an independent member of the council.
The ward forms part of the parliamentary constituency of Luton South, and the MP is Margaret Moran (Labour). High Town is within the East of England (European Parliament constituency).
[edit] Local Attractions
| Key | |
 |
National Trust |
 |
English Heritage |
 |
Forestry Commission |
 |
Country Park |
 |
Accessible open space |
  |
Museums (free/not free) |
 |
Heritage railway |
 |
Historic House |
|
[edit] Local Newspapers
Two weekly newspapers are delivered free to all houses in High Town, with news about Luton and the surrounding area.
- Herald and Post (Luton based) - Delivered every Thursday
- Luton on Sunday - Delivered every Sunday
[edit] Further reading
- J. G. Dony, The Story of High Town, Bedfordshire County Library, 1985, ISBN 978-0-907041-30-6.
|
Places within Luton: Barnfield • Biscot • Bramingham • Bury Park • Bushmead • Challney • Crawley Green • Farley Hill • Dallow • High Town • Hockwell Ring • Icknield • Leagrave • Lewsey • Limbury-cum-Biscot • Marsh Farm • New Town • Northwell • Putteridge • Round Green • Saints • South ward • Stopsley • Sundon Park • Warden Hills • Wigmore Amenities: Kenilworth Road • Luton Museum • Stockwood Park • Wardown Park • Waulud's Bank Education: Ashcroft High School • Barnfield College • University of Bedfordshire • Cardinal Newman • Denbigh High School • Icknield High School • Luton Sixth Form College • South Luton High School • Woodlands Secondary School |
|
