West Hallam | |
The Village Hall, West Hallam. |
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West Hallam
West Hallam shown within Derbyshire |
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Population | 4,829 (2001 census[1]) |
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OS grid reference | SK430415 |
District | Erewash |
Shire county | Derbyshire |
Region | East Midlands |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | ILKESTON |
Postcode district | DE7 |
Dialling code | 0115 |
Police | Derbyshire |
Fire | Derbyshire |
Ambulance | East Midlands |
EU Parliament | East Midlands |
UK Parliament | Mid Derbyshire |
List of places: UK • England • Derbyshire |
West Hallam is a large village close to Ilkeston in the County of Derbyshire in the East Midlands region of England. West Hallam has had its own parish council since 1894 and, since 1974, has been part of the Erewash Borough.
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Although it is not known exactly when the village was founded, it existed at the time of the Domesday Book in 1086. St Wilfrid's Church is over 700 years old.[2] In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, West Hallam had a reputation for Catholic sympathies at a time when Catholics were persecuted.[2]
Until the early 20th Century West Hallam was a small rural village and the property of the Newdigate family. Most jobs were in the agricultural area with mining work locally in the Erewash Valley coalfield. There was also a West Hallam railway station, connected to the Great Northern Railway and Derby Friargate Station.
The Newdigate family finally parted with their interest as Lords of the Manor in 1914.
The later 20th Century saw rapid change with both the collieries and the railway disappearing during the 1960s. Ilkeston Colliery was the last to close in 1959 and some buildings remain, now in industrial use. The railway station is now Station House, a private residence.
The colliery spoil tips were removed and landscaped and after much opencast coal extraction the area regained its traditional rural appeal from the 1970s onward. In the 1970s and 1980s a major new housing development dramatically increased the village's population.
The former Second World War Army Ordnance Depot off Cat and Fiddle Lane to the south of the village was reopened in the 1980s as Midland Storage (now known as TDG Pinnacle) and remains a significant local employer.
Most residents are now employed away from West Hallam, some even commuting daily as far as London.
One of present-day West Hallam's more notable places is the Bottle Kiln. On the site of the former West Hallam Pottery - which once had two such kilns and was virtually derelict for many years - this well renovated bottle kiln and supporting buildings now houses an art and crafts gallery, a cafe and a Japanese style tea garden and gift shop.[3]
A valuable open space is the recreational area at Straw's Bridge (also known as Swan Lake) on West Hallam's eastern border, on the A609, with Ilkeston. This popular lake and walking area was formed from a flood meadow and the site of the old West Hallam Sewage Works in around 1990. This site was opencast mined in the late 1980s and the restored site along with some adjacent land forming part of the Ilkeston area known as 'Manor' or 'Manners Floods' forms the Straw's Bridge area today.
West Hallam also has very active Cricket and Football Clubs,The Cricket Club is West Hallam White Rose and was founded in 1880 and unfounded 1850 making it one of the oldest clubs in derbyshire, it should not be confused with the Nutbrook cricket club who are actually from cotmanhay and have no ties to the village of west hallam.The West Hallam Cricket Club runs three adult teams in the derbyshire county league and junior sections fom U11s to U17s with children welcome from the age of 4 upwards on a wednesday night during the summer months from 6.30 onwards. a Village Hall in The Village and a Community Centre on Station Road. Scargill Church of England School is situated on Beech Lane. There are also currently three pubs (The Punch Bowl, The Newdigate and The White Hart), a shopping centre in the village and four public recreation grounds.
West Hallam is also well provided as far as local charities are concerned. As well as the Rev John Scargill's charity, established in 1662 and still going strong, needy locals may benefit from the Ann Powtrell Foundation and the West Hallam Trust (West Hallam United Charities), all of which are long established.
Shipley | Mapperley, Heanor | Shipley | ||
Stanley Common | Nottingham, Ilkeston | |||
West Hallam | ||||
Derby | Stanley, Dale Abbey | Kirk Hallam |