Cuffley
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Cuffley | |
  Cuffley shown within Hertfordshire |
|
| Population | 4,295 [1] |
|---|---|
| OS grid reference | |
| District | Welwyn Hatfield |
| Shire county | Hertfordshire |
| Region | East |
| Constituent country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | POTTERS BAR |
| Postcode district | EN6 |
| Dialling code | 01707 |
| Police | Hertfordshire |
| Fire | Hertfordshire |
| Ambulance | East of England |
| European Parliament | East of England |
| UK Parliament | Broxbourne |
| List of places: UK • England • Hertfordshire | |
Cuffley is a village in the Welwyn Hatfield district of south-east Hertfordshire with a population around 4,000 people, located between Cheshunt and Potters Bar.
Cuffley is near to the M25 motorway and is part of the London commuter belt. Cuffley railway station provides a commuter service to Moorgate and connects to King's Cross in the evenings and at weekends. Its most famous current resident is Sir Terry Leahy, current CEO of Tesco, although this has not prevented other locals from objecting vehemently to plans to build a "Express" store in the village [2].
In the 17th century, King James used to visit Cuffley to take the waters at the natural spring. Although no trace of this now remains, it is commemorated by local roads such as Kingswell Ride and King James Avenue.
The railway had an important impact on the development of the village. Cuffley was reached by the Great Northern Railway in 1910, as part of the plan to create the Hertford Loop, as a strategic alternative to the main line out of Kings Cross to the North, by extending the line from Enfield Chase. Before 1910, Cuffley was just a small collection of farms centred on the village green outside The Plough inn at the top of Plough Hill. The new accessibility to London by train triggered the start of the expansion of the village as a convenient rural location within easy commuting distance of London.
The early houses built along Tolmers Road were reminiscent of the Garden City style of housing as found at Letchworth. Later in the 1930s, several estates were built in the village, including many bungalows. A further major expansion of the village occurred in the 1950s and 1960s. The village is also noted for the larger houses along the Ridgeway.
The early history of Cuffley is recounted by one of its residents, M V Hughes, in her autobiographical book "A London Family Between the Wars."
On September 3, 1916 the German airship SL-11 was shot down and crashed in Cuffley during an aerial bombardment intended for London. This incident is commemorated by a Memorial on East Ridgeway to Lieutenant W. Leefe Robinson, the pilot who shot the airship down. He was awarded the Victoria Cross. There is also a model of the airship in the village hall. Contrary to many reports of the incident, the SL-11 airship was not a Zeppelin but an army Schütte-Lanz airship. Regardless, the local football team is still nicknamed 'The Zeps' after this event.
Cuffley has a primary school, Cuffley School, which was built in 1938 to replace the original Victorian school room situated where St Andrew’s Church now stands. This modern church, built in 1965, replaced the ‘tin church’ built next to the old village green in 1911. The village also has a Free Church and a Catholic Church.
Politically, Cuffley is part of Broxbourne Constituency in the House of Commons, and sends a Councillor to Hertfordshire County Council.
In 1939, the Scout Association purchased part of the Tolmers Park Estate that lies within the Parish of Cuffley. Tolmers Scout Camp was opened on Whit Saturday 1940 by Lord Wigram. Today, Tolmers hosts thousands of young people annually from all over the UK and across Europe; not only Scouts and Guides but schools and youth groups as well.
