Preston

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This article is about Preston, Lancashire. For other uses, see Preston (disambiguation).

City of Preston
	Shown within Lancashire
Geography
Grid reference:	SD534290
Status:	City (2002)
Region:	North West England
Admin. County:	Lancashire
Area: - Total	Ranked 215th 142.22 km²
Admin. HQ:	Preston
ONS code:	30UK
Demographics
Population: - Total (2005 est.) - Density	Ranked 140th 131,300 923 / km²
Ethnicity:	85.5% White 11.6% S.Asian
Politics
Preston City Council http://www.preston.gov.uk/
Leadership:	Leader & Cabinet
Executive:	Labour (council NOC)
MPs:	Nigel Evans, Mark Hendrick, Michael Jack

Preston is a city and local government district in North West England. It is the administrative centre of Lancashire, and is on the River Ribble. Preston was granted the status of a city in 2002,^[1] becoming England's 50th city in the 50th year of Queen Elizabeth's reign.

Preston forms part of a conurbation with Chorley and Leyland which according to the 2001 census had an overall population of 335,000. Of this, 184,836 lived in the Preston urban sub-area: the figure for those living within the city limits is lower at around 130,000.^[2]

Preston City Council is seeking to form a unitary authority, independent from Lancashire County Council, under the recent Local Government White Paper.^[3]

Moor Park in Preston has also been announced as the venue for Radio 1's Big Weekend 2007 - Europe's biggest free ticket event.^[4]

[edit] History

[edit] Early development

During the Roman period, the road from the Setantian port of Neb of the Nese passed one mile north of Preston. At Tulketh Hall in Preston, that road intersected the road from Languavallium in Cumberland to Condate in Cheshire.

In Ripon in 705 AD the lands near the River Ribble were set on a new foundation, and the parish church was probably erected. Later, Edward the Elder passed the lands to cathedral at York and then from successive transfers the lands were passed round between churches, hence the name Priest's Town or Preston. An alternative explanation of the origin of the name is that the Priest's Town refers to a priory set up by St. Wilfrid near the Ribble's lowest ford. This idea is reinforced by similarity of Preston's crest bearing a lamb with St. Wilfrid's banner (Walsh and Butler 1992).

[edit] Guild Merchant

The right to hold a Guild Merchant was conferred upon the Burgesses of Preston by a charter of 1179; the associated Preston Guild is a civic celebration held every 20 years, with the next due to be held in 2012.

Such a celebration had been held from time to time, but at the one in 1328 it was decreed that the Guild should be held every twenty years. There were breaks in this pattern for various reasons, but an unbroken series of them were held from 1542 to 1922. The 400 year sequence was broken due to World War II, but resumed in 1952. The next one will be held in 2012.

As well as concerts and other exhibitions, the main event is a series of processions through the city. There are also numerous street parties held in and around Preston.

In 1952 the emphasis was the bright new world awaiting us all after World War II. The major event held in Avenham Park had every school participating, and hundreds of children, from toddlers to teenagers, demonstrated different aspects of Physical Education in the natural amphitheatre of the park.

In the mid-12th century, Preston was in the hundred of Amounderness, in the deanery of Amounderness and the archdeaconry of Richmond. The name of Amounderness is more ancient than the name of any other Wapentake or hundred in the County of Lancashire, and the fort at Tulketh, strengthened by William the Conqueror, shows that the strategic importance of the area was appreciated even then. [1] The location of the city, almost exactly mid-way between Glasgow and London, led to many decisive battles being fought here, most notably during the English Civil War (1643), and the first Jacobite rebellion (1715) which began here. Served by the River Ribble, Preston was one of the principal ports of Lancashire. King Charles I demanded a quarter more ship money than from Lancaster and twice as much as from Liverpool.

[edit] Industrial Revolution

The 19th century saw a transformation in Preston from a small market town to a much larger industrial one, as the innovations of the latter half of the previous century such as Richard Arkwright's Water Frame (invented in Preston) brought cotton mills to many northern English towns. With industrialisation came examples of both oppression and enlightenment.

The town's forward-looking spirit is typified by it being the first English town outside London to be lit by gas. The Preston Gas Company was established in 1815 by, amongst others, a Catholic priest: Fr. Joseph "Daddy" Dunn of the Society of Jesus.

The more oppressive side of industrialisation was seen on Saturday 13 August 1842, when a group of cotton workers demonstrated against the poor conditions in the town's mills. The Riot Act was read and armed troops corralled the demonstrators in front of the Corn Exchange on Lune Street. Shots were fired and four of the demonstrators were killed. A commemorative sculpture now stands on the spot (although the soldiers and demonstrators represented are facing the wrong way). In the 1850s, Karl Marx visited Preston and later described the town as "the next St. Petersburg".^[5]

The Preston Temperance Society, led by Joseph Livesey pioneered the Temperance Movement in the 19th century. Indeed the term teetotalism is believed to have been coined at one of its meetings. The website of the University of Central Lancashire library has a great deal of information on Joseph Livesey and the Temperance Movement in Preston.^[6]

Preston was one of only a few industrial towns in Lancashire to have a functioning corporation (local council) in 1835, its charter dating to 1685, and was reformed as a municipal borough by the Municipal Corporations Act 1835. It became a county borough under the Local Government Act 1888. In 1974, county boroughs were abolished, and it became the larger part of the new non-metropolitan district of Preston in Lancashire, also including Fulwood, Lancashire and part of Preston Rural District.

[edit] Geography

[edit] Physical geography

The River Ribble borders the city. The Forest of Bowland forms a backdrop to Preston.

[edit] Civic geography

The southern part of the district is mostly urbanised but the northern part is quite rural. The current borders came into effect on April 1, 1974, when the Local Government Act 1972 merged the existing County Borough of Preston with Fulwood Urban District and part of Preston Rural District. Preston was designated as part of the Central Lancashire new town in 1970. The former Preston Rural District part of the district is divided into a number of civil parishes:

[edit] Electoral arrangements

Preston City Council is elected "by thirds", which means one councillor from each of the three-member wards are elected every year, with those representing 2-member wards being elected in alternative years. The Council is currently with "No overall Control", as no party has an overall majority.

Recent electoral results in Preston can be found at Preston local elections.

The city of Preston is currently divided into three Westminster constituencies, which will be altered in size and shape when proposed boundary changes are implemented for the next United Kingdom general election.

Currently the three constituencies are: Preston, Ribble Valley, and Fylde. When the proposed boundary changes are implemented, the city will continue to be divided between Preston, and Fylde seats, whilst the northern quarters will be placed within Wyre and Preston North.

Historically, Preston was divided into such constituencies as Preston North, Preston South, and Fylde South

[edit] Demographics

According to the 2001 Census 71.5% people were Christians, 9.8% had no religion and 8.2% were Muslims.^[7] The Hindu and Sikh populations are smaller at 2.6% and 0.6% respectively but in both cases this represents the highest percentage of any local authority area in the North West. 1.8% of the city's population were born in other EU countries. Preston is said to be the most Catholic city in England.

Although still small in numbers in Preston the Mormons, officially known as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or LDS for short, maintain a large profile. Preston, and more particularly the small towns along the river Ribble, is where the first LDS missioniaries to Great Britain started preaching, as early as 1837. In 1998 the LDS erected a large temple near to Preston that was described in the Telegraph newspaper as spectacular.^[8] The temple is offically known as the Preston England Temple.

[edit] Landmarks

Preston's premier landmark is probably St Walburge's Church designed by Joseph Hansom of Hansom Cab fame and which has, at 94 metres, the tallest spire in England on a church that is not a cathedral^{[citations needed]}. There are still many notable buildings dotted in and around the city centre. For example, the Miller Arcade, the Town Hall, the Harris Building, St. John's Minster, the former Corn Exchange, Fishergate Baptist Church and many beautiful Georgian buildings at Winckley Square.

[edit] Museums

[edit] Parks

Winckley Square
Miller Park, Preston
Ribbleton Park (formerly known as Waverly Park)
Avenham Park
Moor Park
Grange Park
Haslam Park
Ashton Park

[edit] Economy

The biggest employer in the city is the University of Central Lancashire. Defence contractor BAE Systems also has a strong presence in the surrounding area, like the InBev multinational group of breweries.

The city is home to Alstom's UK factory which is located on Strand Road. Matalan Retail PLC was also founded in Preston. Although the head office of Matalan moved to Skelmersdale in 1998, the city still has the tax office for the company (located in Winckley Square). Plumbs Ltd founded in the 1950s is still a family run business employing over 300 people at its Preston base.

Convenience Store chain operator James Hall and Co who supply SPAR stores in the north of England have their head office located in the Ribbleton district, although it is soon to be moved to a new building in the Bluebell Way area of the city, which would be the biggest building in the city.^{[citations needed]} The financial sector also has a large presence in the city with a large selection of consultancies, insurance and law firms including national debt collection agency Legal & Trade based in Winckley Square in the city centre.

Preston is the home of Airline network - the consumer brand of Gold Medal Travel - one of the UK's largest travel companies.^{[citations needed]}

On the 20th February 2006 mobile phone retailer The Carphone Warehouse took over Tulketh Mill (formerly the home of the Littlewoods catalogue call centre) a listed building in the Ashton-on-Ribble area of the city. The building has undergone an extensive redo of the interior and is now the workplace of some 800 employees (as of 3rd March 2007). The main purpose of the site is a call centre for its revolutionary broadband and landline service TalkTalk as well as its LLU company Opal Telecom. It was officially opened on 19th December 2006 by CEO Charles Dunstone and the Mayor Of Preston.

Preston is also home to the large "new business" department of finance broker loans.co.uk and took over New City House when Norwich Union moved its call centre to India.

Retail is also a major contributor to Preston's economy. The city houses two major shopping centres

The Fishergate Centre - which boasts a large Debenhams department store, Primark, TK Maxx, Argos and T.J. Hughes stores and is due a £37 million extension in 2007 known as FG2
The Mall (formerly St. George's) - a popular centrally located shopping mall undergoing a multi-million pound redevelopment as of 2006.
The Miller Arcade is a specialist shopping centre which is a listed building and former public baths situated next to the Harris Museum

Preston's main high streets are Fishergate and Friargate which offer shops, bars and restaurants with many more tucked away down the side streets.

A £650 million regeneration project known as the Tithebarn Project is also planned for Preston. The project is being managed by property giant Grosvenor and is dependent upon a number of requirements (such as the re-location of the current Bus Station).

Since city status was awarded, Preston has been targeted by a number of developers. Residential developments are particularly popular with new apartments planned in and around the city centre. Office and hotel space is also in demand and a new Central Business District is being planned as well as a number of new hotels.

[edit] Transport

[edit] Road

The Preston by-pass, opened 5 December 1958, became the first stretch of motorway in the UK and is now part of the M6 with a short section now forming part of the M55. It was built to ease traffic congestion in Preston caused by tourists travelling to the popular destinations of Blackpool and The Lake District. In the 1980s, a motorway running around the west of the city which would have been an extension of the M65 running to the M55 was started but never finished. That is the reason that the M55 has no junction 2, because it was reserved for the new western bypass. However, the existing M6 between junctions 30 and 32 was widened extensively between 1993-95 to compensate for this. A new junction, 31A was opened in 1997 to serve a new business park close to the motorway. As well as the M6 (North and South), there are 3 other motorways which terminate close to the city -

M61 - Preston to Manchester via Chorley and Bolton
M65 - Preston to Colne via Blackburn, Accrington and Burnley
M55 - Preston to Blackpool via Kirkham

Many major A-roads also pass through Preston including the A6 and the A59. These roads have extremely poor traffic management in the city centre and cause major traffic jams at peak times.

[edit] Rail

Preston Railway Station is a major stop on the West Coast Main Line, with regular long distance train services to London (Euston) and the South East, and Glasgow to the North. Preston is also a hub for connecting rail services in the North West, with direct services to Blackpool, Lancaster, Blackburn, Bradford, Leeds, Wigan, Bolton, Manchester and Liverpool.

[edit] Water

The former Preston Port has been the site of an expanding commercial and residential complex since 1988. Known as Riversway or The Docks, it is the biggest man-made marina in the UK , with 40 acres of deep water at all states of the tide.^{[citations needed]} The Dock is no longer used for commercial shipping, is too small a space to cruise on and because of an infestation of blue-green algae (which gives the water a deep green colouration and the surrounding area a pungent smell depending on the how bad the water is at the time) it is not safe for dinghy sailing.

The Marina is just north of the River Ribble which enters into the east of the Irish Sea. This marina has its own chandlery and coffee shop, training courses and boat sales.

There are multi-million pound plans to redevelop Preston's Docks (as well as large sections of the River Ribble running through the city) to introduce lesiure facilities (ie watersports), new landmark buildings, a new central park opposite Avenham Park, office and retail space, new residential developments and the re-opening of some of Preston's old canals. The project is in the early stages of development and is known as Riverworks.

[edit] Bus

Although lacking any rail based rapid transit network, Preston has a very comprehensive bus network. The 3 main local operators are:

Preston Bus - Serving only the Preston borough
Stagecoach in Lancashire (formerly Stagecoach Ribble) - serving most areas outside the borough, particular emphasis on Walton-le-Dale, Penwortham/Longton and Longridge
John Fishwick & Sons - providing frequent services into the city centre for Lower Penwortham, Lostock Hall, Leyland, Euxton and Chorley

Preston is also served by many national bus services. Stagecoach Express, National Express, Eurolines, and Megabus all have a large presence at Preston Bus Station. Preston was one of the first cities in the UK to have its bus network fitted with Realtime, a satellite based technology fitted to every bus stop which aims to provide an accurate time and destination of the next bus arriving using GPS tracking. This service was initially restricted to all services within the borough, however, it has now been expanded to cover Fishwick's 111 City Centre/Leyland route due to its popularity.

Preston Bus Station is one of the largest in Europe. Despite its impressive size, the building has proved very controversial.

[edit] Air

Although not a public airport; Warton Aerodrome is an active airfield west of the city and is the airfield for the BAE Warton factory. BAE Samlesbury to the east of the town is a former active aerodrome but today it serves as a facility for BAE Systems

Blackpool International Airport is located only 20 miles west from the city.

Manchester Airport is a large international airport about 40 miles south-east of the city.

[edit] Education

The city is home to the University of Central Lancashire. Formerly known as Preston Polytechnic, "UCLan" is now the sixth largest university in the country. The university currently has over 33,000 students.^[9] As well as the university, the Preston area is home to many other higher and further education institutes:

Preston College - Based in Fulwood with 2 campuses near the RPH and Moor Park. Specialising in A levels, vocational courses and adult courses. Also has COVE (Centre of Vocational Excellence) status in Retail.
Cardinal Newman College - Based on a single campus in Avenham, close to the city centre.
Myerscough College - College specialising in agricultural courses. Their main campus is based just north of the city, but they also have a smaller campus in Penwortham.
Alston Hall College - Small agricultural college based in Longridge.
TUC Education Unit - Based at Buckingham House, Preston city centre

[edit] Media

[edit] Local Radio Stations

BBC Radio Lancashire - Lancashire wide news, talk and classic hits
105.4 Century FM - North West 80s - present pop and sport
Frequency 1350 - Student radio 1350 kHz AM MW
Magic 999 - Preston and Blackpool classic hits
Proud FM - Launches Autumn 2007
Rock FM - Preston and Blackpool pop music
100.4 Smooth FM - North West Easy Listening

[edit] Sport

Preston is famous for Preston North End F.C. (one of the founder members of the Football League) and the National Football Museum, the home of English football heritage, currently located at Deepdale Football Ground (free entrance).

The Preston Mountaineering Club is based in the town and has been in existence for over 70 years

[edit] Famous residents

Kenny Baker (played R2-D2 in Star Wars)
Paul Burke (lightweight boxer)
Eddie Calvert (trumpeter - "The Man With The Golden Trumpet")
Tom Finney (former England and Preston North End football player)
Andrew Flintoff (England and Lancashire county cricketer)
John Inman (comedy actor)
Sophie McDonnell (TV presenter)
Mark Lawrenson (footballer, TV commentator)
Nick Park (oscar-winning animator and creator of Wallace and Gromit)
A.J.P. Taylor (famous historian)
Franz Carr (football player)
Richard Arkwright (Inventor of the Water Frame)
John Thomson (actor)

[edit] Twin cities/towns

[edit] Trivia

The first Kentucky Fried Chicken outlet in the UK was opened on Fishergate in Preston.
The first traffic cones were used in building Preston bypass in the late 1950s, replacing red lantern paraffin burners.
The parents of legendary American outlaw Butch Cassidy emigrated from Preston to escape religious persecution of their Mormon faith. It was said that, unlike Paul Newman's cinematic portrayal, Butch spoke with a thick Lancashire accent.
Preston has the highest percentage Catholic population of any large town in the UK.
The town of 'Coketown' in Charles Dickens' book Hard Times is based on the city of Preston. In order to gain research for an 'industrial' novel, Dickens visited Preston in January 1854 during a strike by cotton workers that had by that stage lasted for 23 weeks.
Preston North End was one of the founding members and first winners of The Football League and the first winners of a domestic double (league champions and F.A Cup winners).
Preston has the largest civilian cemetery in Europe
Benjamin Franklin (one of the Founding Fathers of the USA) once owned a property on the site of a coffee bar in the city centre, on the corner of Cheapside and Friagate. A Blue Plaque on the wall of the building commemorates the spot.
The Teetotalism Movement was founded in Preston