94-627: Armley is a district in the west of Leeds , West Yorkshire , England. It starts less than 1 mile (1.6 km) from Leeds city centre . Like much of Leeds, Armley grew in the Industrial Revolution and had several mills , one of which now houses the Leeds Industrial Museum at Armley Mills . Armley is predominantly and historically a largely working class area of the city, still retains many smaller industrial businesses, and has many rows of back-to-back terraced houses . It sits in
188-592: A CAMRA award-winning bar, a restaurant, the Newlyn Gallery, two function rooms (the Congreve Room and the Priestley Room), three rehearsal spaces, a recording studio, extensive technical workshops, dressing rooms, a costume hire department and offices for production, administrative and artistic teams. The foundation stone was laid by Judi Dench in 1989, and on completion it was opened by Diana Rigg . The theatre
282-533: A county borough in 1889, giving it independence from the newly formed West Riding County Council and it gained city status in 1893. In 1904 the Leeds parish absorbed Beeston , Chapel Allerton , Farnley , Headingley cum Burley and Potternewton from within the borough. In the twentieth century the county borough initiated a series of significant territorial expansions, growing from 21,593 acres (87.38 km ) in 1911 to 40,612 acres (164.35 km ) in 1961. In 1912
376-456: A 50% increase in the population of Headingley and Burley from 1851 to 1861. The middle-class flight from the industrial areas led to development beyond the borough at Roundhay and Adel. The introduction of the electric tramway led to intensification of development in Headingley and Potternewton and expansion outside the borough into Roundhay. Two private gas supply companies were taken over by
470-452: A climate that is oceanic ( Köppen : Cfb ), and influenced by the Pennines. Summers are usually mild, with moderate rainfall, while winters are chilly, cloudy with occasional snow and frost. The nearest official weather recording station is at Bingley, some twelve miles (20 km) away at a higher altitude. July is the warmest month, with a mean temperature of 16 °C (61 °F), while
564-485: A continuously built-up area extending to Pudsey, Bramley, Horsforth, Alwoodley, Seacroft, Middleton and Morley. Leeds has the second highest population of any local authority district in the UK (after Birmingham ), and the second greatest area of any English metropolitan district (after Doncaster ), extending 15 miles (24 km) from east to west, and 13 miles (21 km) from north to south. The northern boundary follows
658-613: A county council, so Leeds City Council is the primary provider of local government services for the city. The district is in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. Most of the district is an unparished area . In the unparished area, there is no lower tier of government. Outside the unparished area, there are 31 civil parishes, represented by parish councils . These are the lowest tier of local government and absorb some limited functions from Leeds City Council in their areas. The district
752-456: A discussion of an altar surviving from a church erected by Edwin of Northumbria , that it is located in ...regione quae vocatur Loidis (Latin, "the region which is called Loidis"). An inhabitant of Leeds is locally known as a Loiner , a word of uncertain origin. The term Leodensian is also used, from the city's Latin name. Leeds developed as a market town in the Middle Ages as part of
846-438: A number of one-week or shorter runs which may be by visiting companies. A typical recent season (Autumn-Winter 2007) included: Casanova by Carol Ann Duffy and Told By An Idiot , with Lyric Hammersmith ; a stage adaptation of Don Quixote ; Brief Encounter with Kneehigh Theatre and Birmingham Repertory Theatre ; Rough Crossings adapted by Caryl Phillips from Simon Schama 's book; Salonika , first performed at
940-552: A part of the Victoria Quarter , is enclosed under a glass roof. Millennium Square is a significant urban focal point. Inner and southern areas of Leeds lie on a layer of coal measure sandstones forming the Yorkshire Coalfield . To the north parts are built on older sandstone and gritstones and to the east it extends into the magnesian limestone belt. Outside Leeds centre, there are a number of suburbs and exurbs within
1034-403: A population of 474,632 and had an area of 112 square kilometres (43 sq mi) with a population density of 4,238 inhabitants per square kilometre (10,980/sq mi). It is bounded by, and physically attached to, the other towns of Garforth to the east, Morley to the southwest and Pudsey to the west, all being within the wider borough. 63% of the borough's population of 751,485 live in
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#17328516377261128-474: A populous urban centre formed in the following century which absorbed surrounding villages and overtook the population of nearby York . Leeds' economy is the most diverse of all the UK's main employment centres, and has seen the fastest rate of private-sector jobs growth of any UK city and has the highest ratio of private to public sector jobs. Leeds is home to over 109,000 companies, generating 5% of England's total economic output of £60.5 billion, and
1222-868: A similar trend to the rest of England. The population density was 1,967/km (5,090/sq mi) and for every 100 females, there were 93.5 males. Leeds is a diverse city with over 75 ethnic groups, and with ethnic minorities representing just under 11.6% of the total population. According to figures from the 2011 UK Census , 85.0% of the population was White (81.1% White British , 0.9% White Irish , 0.1% Gypsy or Irish Traveller , 2.9% Other White ), 2.7% of mixed race (1.2% White and Black Caribbean, 0.3% White and Black African, 0.7% White and Asian, 0.5% Other Mixed), 7.7% Asian (2.1% Indian , 3.0% Pakistani , 0.6% Bangladeshi , 0.8% Chinese , 1.2% Other Asian), 3.5% Black (2.0% African, 0.9% Caribbean , 0.6% Other Black ), 0.5% Arab and 0.6% of other ethnic heritage. Leeds has seen many new different countries of birth as of
1316-550: A small area just to the south east of the city centre, where the elevation declines to under 20 metres (66 feet). This is 2 °C (3.6 °F) milder than the typical summer temperature at Leeds Bradford airport weather station (shown in the chart below), at an elevation of 208 metres (682 feet). Situated on the eastern side of the Pennines, Leeds is among the driest cities in the United Kingdom, with an annual rainfall of 660 mm (25.98 in). Though extreme weather in Leeds
1410-428: A wood'). The origin of the first element is less clear, but thought to come from an otherwise unattested Old English name Earma , a plausible nickname form of the name Earnmund . If so, the name originally meant 'Earma's woodland clearing'. Historically lying within the township of Armley, to the south of Armley's centre, the district of Green Side is first mentioned by this name in the nineteenth century. The origin of
1504-487: Is 34.4 °C (94 °F) during the early August 1990 heatwave. It is likely this was exceeded during the heatwaves of July 2019 and July 2022 where many other areas broke their all time records. However, Leeds weather centre closed in the 2000s. As is typical for many sprawling cities in areas of varying topography, temperatures can change depending on location. Average July and August daytime highs exceed 22 °C (72 °F) (a value comparable to South East England) in
1598-460: Is a Local Ecumenical Partnership also involving the Baptist and United Reformed Churches . The current church is the fourth on this site, where the original Methodist Wesleyan chapel stood and where John Wesley once preached. Armley's original leisure centre, based on the old Armley swimming baths, was demolished in 2009. The land is now a large car park for the new leisure centre. The closure of
1692-617: Is a theatre in the city centre of Leeds , West Yorkshire , England. It opened in 1990 in the Quarry Hill area of the city as the West Yorkshire Playhouse , successor to the original Leeds Playhouse, and was rebranded in June 2018 to revert to the title "Leeds Playhouse". It has two auditoria and a studio space, hosts a wide range of productions, and engages in outreach work in the local community. The origins of Leeds Playhouse lie in
1786-546: Is above regional averages. At the time of the United Kingdom Census 2001 , the Leeds urban subdivision occupied an area of 109 square kilometres (42 sq mi) and had a population of 443,247; making it the fourth-most populous urban subdivision within England and the fifth largest within the United Kingdom. The population density was 4,066 inhabitants per square kilometre (10,530/sq mi), slightly higher than
1880-421: Is achieved by restricting inappropriate development within the designated areas, and imposing stricter conditions on permitted building. Over 60% of the Leeds district is green belt land and it surrounds the settlement, preventing further sprawl towards nearby communities. Larger outlying towns and villages are exempt from the green belt area. However, smaller villages, hamlets and rural areas are 'washed over' by
1974-536: Is almost entirely made up of the Leeds post town . Otley, Wetherby, Tadcaster, Pudsey and Ilkley are separate post towns within the postcode area. Leeds is within a green belt region that extends into the wider surrounding counties and is in place to reduce urban sprawl , prevent the settlements in the West Yorkshire conurbation from further convergence, protect the identity of outlying communities, encourage brownfield reuse, and preserve nearby countryside. This
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#17328516377262068-532: Is also ranked as a high sufficiency city by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network . Leeds is considered the cultural, financial and commercial heart of the West Yorkshire Urban Area . Leeds is also served by four universities, and has the fourth largest student population in the country and the country's fourth largest urban economy . The student population has stimulated growth of
2162-453: Is in the banking, finance and insurance sectors that Leeds differs most from the financial structure of the region and the nation. There are 130,100 jobs in the city centre, accounting for 31% of all jobs in the wider district. In 2007, 47,500 jobs were in finance and business, 42,300 in public services, and 19,500 in retail and distribution. 43% of finance sector jobs in the district are contained in Leeds city centre and 44% of those employed in
2256-561: Is located on the River Aire in a narrow section of the Aire Valley in the eastern foothills of the Pennines . The city centre lies at about 206 feet (63 m) above sea level while the district ranges from 1,115 feet (340 m) in the far west on the slopes of Ilkley Moor to about 33 feet (10 m) where the rivers Aire and Wharfe cross the eastern boundary. The centre of Leeds is part of
2350-703: Is mainly on-street, with few car parks in the centre. Armley's only supermarket is a LIDL on Armley Road, but Aldi in neighbouring Wortley in a five-minute walk from Town Street. Other amenities include Armley (Gott's) Park , Gott's Park Golf Club and Armley Mills Industrial Museum , and numerous former cinemas and churches. The old Methodist chapel is now a carpet outlet, like a similar chapel in Holbeck . There are present-day Methodist churches in Wesley Road, built in 1987, and in Whingate, built in 1884. The Wesley Road Chapel
2444-464: Is next to the theatre, which was a partner in the development of the work, which commemorates women of Leeds. According to the Leeds Playhouse website it has established a reputation both nationally and internationally as one of Britain's most exciting producing theatres, winning awards for everything from its productions to its customer service, and it is "the largest regional repertory theatre in
2538-518: Is relatively rare, thunderstorms, blizzards, gale-force winds and even tornadoes have struck the city. The last reported tornado occurred on 14 September 2006, causing trees to uproot and signal failures at Leeds City railway station . Leeds forms the main area of the City of Leeds metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire. This district includes Leeds itself as well as surrounding towns of Horsforth , Morley , Otley , Pudsey , Rothwell and Wetherby , Leeds
2632-696: Is represented by ten MPs , for the constituencies of Leeds Central and Headingley ( Alex Sobel , Labour) ; Leeds East ( Richard Burgon , Labour); Leeds North East ( Fabian Hamilton , Labour); Leeds North West ( Katie White , Labour); Leeds South ( Hilary Benn , Labour); Leeds South West and Morley ( Mark Sewards , Labour); Leeds West and Pudsey ( Rachel Reeves , Labour); Selby (constituency shared with North Yorkshire ) ( Keir Mather , Labour); Wakefield and Rothwell (constituency shared with City of Wakefield ) ( Simon Lightwood , Labour); and Wetherby and Easingwold (constituency shared with North Yorkshire ) ( Alec Shelbrooke , Conservative). Leeds has
2726-420: Is the local government district covering Leeds, and the local authority is Leeds City Council . The council is composed of 99 councillors, three for each of the district's wards . Elections are held three years out of four, on the first Thursday of May. One third of the councillors are elected, for a four-year term, in each election. The council is currently controlled by Labour . West Yorkshire does not have
2820-463: Is the central city of the Leeds City Region , a classification for the city region's metropolitan area . The city region has a population of over 3 million, making it the second most populated metropolitan city region in the United Kingdom, behind Greater London . In January 2011, Leeds was named as one of five "cities to watch" in a report published by Centre for Cities. The report shows that
2914-600: Is the largest component of the West Yorkshire Urban Area and is counted by Eurostat as part of the Leeds-Bradford larger urban zone . The Leeds travel to work area in 2001 included all of the City of Leeds, a northern strip of the City of Bradford, the eastern part of Kirklees, and a section of southern North Yorkshire; it occupies 751 square kilometres (290 sq mi). In 2011, the Leeds urban subdivision had
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3008-513: Is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough , which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom . It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines . The city was a small manorial borough in the 13th century and a market town in the 16th century. It expanded by becoming a major production and trading centre (mainly with wool ) in
3102-458: Is well above the national average, like many other English major cities. In July 2006, the think tank Reform calculated rates of crime for different offences and has related this to populations of major urban areas (defined as towns over 100,000 population). Leeds was 11th in this rating (excluding London boroughs, 23rd including London boroughs). Total recorded crime in Leeds fell by 45% between March 2002 and December 2011 The City of Leeds
3196-528: The Armley ward of Leeds City Council and Leeds West and Pudsey parliamentary constituency. In 2022, statistics released by West Yorkshire Police revealed Armley and New Wortley had the second highest crime rate in Leeds after Leeds city centre . First attested in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Ermelai , the name Armley comes from Old English . The second element is from Old English lēah ('open space in
3290-954: The Arts Council and the Gulbenkian Foundation , meant that the project could go ahead and the Leeds Playhouse opened in 1970 in premises loaned to the Leeds Theatre Trust by the University of Leeds . The first performance was held on Wednesday 16 September 1970 with Tony Robinson , who later went on to play Baldrick in the television series Blackadder , starring as Simon in Alan Plater 's play Simon Says , directed by Bill Hays. The following month Robinson also appeared in The Merry Wives of Windsor by William Shakespeare , where he played Abraham Slender. The Leeds Playhouse turned into
3384-452: The Bank of England in the UK. In 2012 GVA for the city was recorded at £18.8 billion, with the entire Leeds City Region generating a £56 billion economy. Key sectors include finance, retail, leisure and the visitor economy, construction, manufacturing and the creative and digital industries. It has one of the most diverse economies of all the UK's main employment centres and has seen
3478-556: The Celtic root *lāt- "violent, boiling" and the borrowed Latin plural derivational suffix -ēnses meaning "people of the fast-flowing river", in reference to the River Aire that flows through the city. This name originally referred to the forested area covering most of the Brittonic kingdom of Elmet , which existed during the 5th century into the early 7th century. Bede states in the fourteenth chapter of his Ecclesiastical History , in
3572-483: The Corn Exchange opening in 1864. Marshall's Mill was one of the first of many factories constructed in Leeds from around 1790 when the most significant were woollen finishing and flax mills. Manufacturing diversified by 1914 to printing, engineering, chemicals and clothing manufacture. Decline in manufacturing during the 1930s was temporarily reversed by a switch to producing military uniforms and munitions during
3666-460: The Globalization and World Cities Research Network . Today, Leeds has become the largest legal and financial centre outside London, with the financial and insurance services industry worth £13 billion to the city's economy. Office developments, also traditionally located in the inner area, have expanded south of the River Aire and total 11,000,000 square feet (1,000,000 m ) of space. In
3760-552: The River Wharfe for several miles but crosses the river to include the part of Otley which lies north of the river. Over 65% of the Leeds district is green belt land and the city centre is less than twenty miles (32 km) from the Yorkshire Dales National Park , which has some of the most spectacular scenery and countryside in the UK. Inner and southern areas of Leeds lie on a layer of coal measure sandstones. To
3854-561: The Royal Court Theatre in 1982. There were 6 plays with shorter runs, a visiting production by Northern Ballet Theatre , and two Christmas shows, one for small children and a revived co-production with Birmingham Repertory Company of Adrian Mitchell 's dramatisation of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe . Tony Harrison 's satyr play The Trackers of Oxyrhynchus was performed at
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3948-510: The Skyrack wapentake of the West Riding of Yorkshire . The Borough of Leeds was created in 1207, when Maurice Paynel, lord of the manor, granted a charter to a small area of the manor, close to the river crossing, in what is now the city centre. King James I granted the borough to his wife, Anne of Denmark , and in 1612, she ordered a survey of the borough; in 1615 she was petitioned to remove
4042-458: The UK Census including Zimbabwe , Iran , India and Nigeria all included in the top ten countries of birth in the city. Large Pakistani communities can be seen in wards such as Gipton and Harehills. Chapel Allerton is known for having a large Caribbean community. The majority of people in Leeds identify themselves as Christian. The proportion of Muslims (3.0% of the population) is average for
4136-468: The functional region . Leeds is much more a generalised concept place name in inverted commas, it is the city, but it is also the commuter villages and the region as well. Leeds has a varying extent by context such as the city centre , the built-up sprawl around the centre, administrative boundaries and the travel to work area . The city centre lies in a narrow section of the Aire Valley at about 206 feet (63 m) above sea level . The land use in
4230-402: The 17th and 18th centuries. Leeds developed as a mill town during the Industrial Revolution alongside other surrounding villages and towns in the West Riding of Yorkshire . It was also known for its flax industry, iron foundries , engineering and printing, as well as shopping, with several surviving Victorian era arcades, such as Kirkgate Market . City status was awarded in 1893, and
4324-508: The 18th century) and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal in 1816. In the late Georgian era, William Lupton was one of a number of central Leeds landowners, some of whom, like him, were also textile manufacturers. At the time of his death in 1828, Lupton occupied the enclosed fields of the manor of Leeds , his estate including a mill, reservoir , substantial house and outbuildings. Mechanical engineering, initially to supply tools and machinery for
4418-436: The 1950s and finishing in the early 1970s. From the 1870s until 1956, Armley was home to the J W Roberts asbestos mattress and boiler lining factory. This facility exposed residents to asbestos fibres and resulted in a mesothelioma cancer cluster which persists to this day. One of the victims, June Hancock, launched a court action against Turner & Newall , the company that owned the J W Roberts' factory in 1993. Although
4512-550: The 1960s. Back-to-back housing has been converted to through terraces. Corporation residential tower blocks, built to replace older housing stock at the centre of Armley, and neighbouring Wortley , are amongst the tallest in Leeds. The tank scene in the 1963 film Billy Liar was filmed in Wellington Road, Armley, and local residents were used as extras. Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire , England. It
4606-552: The 19th century. He apparently sold spicy shortbread to the citizens of Upper Armley for 1d a piece. Today the triangular-shaped park is known as Charlie or Charley Cake Park. According to Armley Through the Camera , written in 1901, the park was "within memory of many present residents of Armley, a patch of wasteland. Some of them regularly played cricket on its turf". There were two railway stations in Armley. Armley Moor railway station on
4700-517: The Leeds Playgoers' Society, founded in 1907 as an off-shoot of the Leeds Arts Club , to stage contemporary drama by writers such as Shaw , Ibsen and Chekhov , and hold lectures and discussions on contemporary drama. The idea of creating a Leeds Playhouse dates from 1964, when a campaign was started for a permanent home for modern and contemporary theatre in Leeds. Despite some opposition from
4794-479: The Second World War. However, by the 1970s, the clothing industry was in irreversible decline, facing cheap foreign competition. The contemporary economy has been shaped by Leeds City Council 's vision of building a '24-hour European city' and 'capital of the north'. The city has developed from the decay of the post-industrial era to become a telephone banking centre, connected to the electronic infrastructure of
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#17328516377264888-621: The UK outside London and Stratford". The theatre's first artistic director was Jude Kelly (1990–2002). Her successor was Ian Brown who ran the theatre until passing the baton to James Brining in the autumn of 2012. Productions cover a wide range from classic drama to modern European theatre and children's shows. There is an emphasis on new writing, especially from the north of England. There are many coproductions with other regional theatres, some of which go on to tour or transfer to London theatres. Visiting companies include Northern Broadsides , Kneehigh Theatre and Peepolykus . The theatre
4982-530: The Washburn Valley north of Leeds. Residential growth occurred in Holbeck and Hunslet from 1801 to 1851, but, as these townships became industrialised new areas were favoured for middle class housing. Land south of the river was developed primarily for industry and secondarily for back-to-back workers' dwellings. The Leeds Improvement Act 1866 sought to improve the quality of working class housing by restricting
5076-624: The West Yorkshire Playhouse in March 1990 when it relocated to the Quarry Hill area of the city as part of a major regeneration scheme. In June 2018, it rebranded as Leeds Playhouse once again in response to the development and growth of Leeds City region and also Leeds City Council's longstanding support for the theatre in Leeds. Leeds Playhouse was designed by The Appleton Partnership architects of Edinburgh. The complex comprises: The Quarry Theatre (750 seats), The Courtyard Theatre (350 seats),
5170-431: The average resident in Leeds earns £471 per week, 17th nationally and 30.9% of Leeds residents had NVQ4+ high-level qualifications, 15th nationally. Employment in Leeds was 68.8% in the period June 2012 to June 2013, which was lower than the national average, whilst unemployment was higher than the national average at 9.6% over the same time period. Leeds is overall less deprived than other large UK cities and average income
5264-545: The bottom fifth of settlements in the Domesday Book by population size. The actual population is indeterminable as this only accounts for the 'head of household'. Armley Mills, now the Leeds Industrial Museum at Armley Mills, was the world's largest woollen mill when it was built in 1788. In the 18th and 19th centuries Armley was, through its mills, a major contributor to the economy of the city of Leeds. Many of
5358-484: The buildings standing in and around Armley were built in the 1800s, including many of the churches, schools, shops and houses. Ledgard Way is named after the entrepreneur Samuel Ledgard . Armley also has picturesque views over the rest of Leeds from certain vantage points. William Tetley started his business of malters in Armley in the 1740s. His grandson Joshua Tetley founded Tetley's Brewery in Hunslet in 1822. Armley
5452-554: The central areas of Leeds is overwhelmingly urban. while being less than twenty miles (32 km) from the rural Yorkshire Dales National Park . It is contained within the Leeds Inner Ring Road , formed from parts of the A58 road , A61 road , A64 road , A643 road and the M621 motorway . Briggate , the principal north–south shopping street, is pedestrianised and Queen Victoria Street,
5546-470: The city and wider region are widespread. It is the county's largest settlement with a population of 536,280, while the larger City of Leeds district has a population of 812,000 ( 2021 census ). The city is part of the fourth-largest built-up area by population in the United Kingdom, West Yorkshire Built-up Area , with a 2011 census population of 1.7 million. The name derives from the old Brittonic *Lātēnses (via Late Brittonic Lādēses ), composed of
5640-405: The city centre live more than nine kilometres (5.6 miles) away. In 2011, the financial and services industry in Leeds was worth £2.1 billion, the fifth-largest in the UK, behind London, Edinburgh, Manchester and Birmingham. Tertiary industries such as retail, call centres , offices and media have contributed to a high rate of economic growth. The city also hosts the only subsidiary office of
5734-407: The city, attracting in investments and flagship projects, as found in Leeds city centre . Many developments boasting luxurious penthouse apartments have been built close to the city centre. At 53°47′59″N 1°32′57″W / 53.79972°N 1.54917°W / 53.79972; -1.54917 (53.799°, −1.549°), and 190 miles (310 km) north-northwest of central London , central Leeds
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#17328516377265828-511: The coldest month is January, with a mean temperature of 3 °C (37 °F). Temperatures above 30 °C (86 °F) and below −10 °C (14 °F) are not very common but can happen occasionally. Temperatures at Leeds Bradford Airport fell to −12.6 °C (9.3 °F) in December 2010 and reached 31.8 °C (89 °F) at Leeds city centre in August 2003. The record temperature for Leeds
5922-668: The corporation in 1870, and the municipal supply provided street lighting and cheaper gas to homes. From the early 1880s, the Yorkshire House-to-House Electricity Company supplied electricity to Leeds until it was purchased by Leeds Corporation and became a municipal supply. Slum clearance and rebuilding began in Leeds during the interwar period when over 18,000 houses were built by the council on 24 estates in Cross Gates , Middleton, Gipton, Belle Isle and Halton Moor. The slums of Quarry Hill were replaced by
6016-411: The country. Leeds has the third-largest community of Jews in the United Kingdom, after those of London and Manchester. The areas of Alwoodley and Moortown contain sizeable Jewish communities. 16.8% of Leeds residents in the 2001 census declared themselves as having "No Religion", which is broadly in line with the figure for the whole of the UK (also 8.1% "religion not stated"). The crime rate in Leeds
6110-518: The county council was abolished in 1986, the city council absorbed its functions, and some powers passed to organisations such as the West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Authority . From 1988 two run-down and derelict areas close to the city centre were designated for regeneration and became the responsibility of Leeds Development Corporation , outside the planning remit of the city council. Planning powers were restored to
6204-520: The court case was successful, corporate restructuring had, as of 2005, avoided the case being settled. Hancock's story was the subject of a play, Dust , by Kenneth F. Yates, performed in Armley and at the West Yorkshire Playhouse in July 2009. The parish church, St Bartholomew's , is home to a notable pipe organ built by the German organ builder Edmund Schulze . Originally built for Meanwood Towers in 1866–69, it
6298-580: The designation. The green belt was first adopted in 1960, and the size in the borough in 2017 amounted to some 33,970 hectares (339.7 km ; 131.2 sq mi). A subsidiary aim of the green belt is to encourage recreation and leisure interests, with rural landscape features, greenfield areas and facilities including Temple Newsam Park and House with golf course, Rothwell Country Park, Middleton Park, Kirkstall Abbey ruins and surrounding park, Bedquilts recreation grounds, Waterloo lake, Roundhay castle and park, and Morwick, Cobble and Elmete Halls. Leeds has
6392-401: The district. Some of Leeds suburbs include Headingley, Harehills and Hunslet. while exurbs of Leeds include Pudsey, Horsforth and Morley. Lying in the eastern foothills of the Pennines , there is a significant variation in elevation within the city's built-up area. The district ranges from 1,115 feet (340 m) in the far west on the slopes of Ilkley Moor to about 33 feet (10 m) where
6486-403: The fastest rate of private-sector jobs growth of any UK city. It also has the highest ratio of private to public sector jobs of all the UK's Core Cities, with 77% of its workforce working in the private sector. Leeds has the third-largest jobs total by local authority area, with 480,000 in employment and self-employment at the beginning of 2015. Leeds is ranked as a "High Sufficiency" level city by
6580-550: The innovative Quarry Hill flats, which were demolished in 1975. Another 36,000 houses were built by private sector builders, creating suburbs in Gledhow, Moortown, Alwoodley, Roundhay, Colton, Whitkirk, Oakwood , Weetwood, and Adel. After 1949 a further 30,000 sub-standard houses were demolished by the council and replaced by 151 medium-rise and high-rise blocks of council flats in estates at Seacroft, Armley Heights, Tinshill, and Brackenwood. Leeds has seen great expenditure on regenerating
6674-784: The line between Leeds and Bradford Exchange closed 1966, and Armley Canal Road railway station on the line between Leeds and Shipley closed 1965. Armley is located between the M621 motorway and the River Aire , stretching from roughly the New Wortley roundabout (the Armley Gyratory) to the start of the Stanningley By-pass and Cockshott Lane where it merges into Bramley . Armley Town Street includes high street names, charity shops and food and independent retailers. There are bus links to Leeds, Bradford, Pudsey and Whinmoor. Armley's Town Street has free off-road car parking, but parking
6768-447: The local agricultural economy. Before the Industrial Revolution , it became a co-ordination centre for the manufacture of woollen cloth, and white broadcloth was traded at its White Cloth Hall . Leeds handled one sixth of England's export trade in 1770. Growth, initially in textiles, was accelerated by the creation of the Aire and Calder Navigation in 1699 (with major additional works in
6862-617: The local authority in 1995 when the development corporation was wound up. In 1801, 42% of the population of Leeds lived outside the township, in the wider borough. Cholera outbreaks in 1832 and 1849 caused the authorities to address the problems of drainage, sanitation, and water supply. Water was pumped from the River Wharfe, but by 1860 it was too heavily polluted to be usable. Following the Leeds Waterworks Act of 1867 three reservoirs were built at Lindley Wood, Swinsty, and Fewston in
6956-673: The local council on the grounds that Leeds already had a theatre (the Grand Theatre ), a public appeal was launched to raise funds at a mass meeting in Leeds Town Hall on 5 May 1968. The meeting was addressed by Peter O'Toole , Keith Waterhouse , and the actor and joint artistic director of Nottingham Playhouse , John Neville , amongst others. £20,000 was raised by public subscription, but the project still needed support from Leeds City Council. The Council eventually promised £25,000, and £5,000 annually if necessary. This, along with grants from
7050-423: The main streets, including Briggate and further powers were added in 1790 to improve the water supply. The borough corporation was reformed under the provisions of Municipal Corporations Act 1835 . Leeds Borough Police force was formed in 1836, and Leeds Town Hall was completed by the corporation in 1858. In 1866, Leeds and each of the other townships in the borough became civil parishes . The borough became
7144-533: The modern global economy. There has been growth in the corporate and legal sectors, and increased local affluence has led to an expanding retail sector, including the luxury goods market. Leeds City Region Enterprise Zone was launched in April 2012 to promote development in four sites along the A63 East Leeds Link Road. Leeds was a manor and township in the large ancient parish of Leeds St Peter , in
7238-532: The most diverse economy of all the UK's main employment centres and has seen the fastest rate of private sector jobs growth of any UK city and has the highest ratio of public to private sector jobs of all the UK's Core Cities . The city had the third-largest jobs total by local authority area with 480,000 in employment and self-employment at the beginning of 2015. 24.7% were in public administration, education and health, 23.9% were in banking, finance and insurance and 21.4% were in distribution, hotels and restaurants. It
7332-502: The name is not certain, but is probably named after the green space now constituted as Wortley Recreation Ground and Western Flatts Cliff park. Armley is mentioned in the 1086 Domesday Book reference to "Ristone, Ermelai". At the time there were eight villagers in Ristone (now east Armley) and Ermelai (now west Armley). Armley was recorded as lying within the hundred of Morley and was estimated to comprise only four households, placing it in
7426-517: The nightlife in the city and there are ample facilities for sporting and cultural activities, including classical and popular music festivals, and a varied collection of museums. Leeds has multiple motorway links such as the M1 , M62 and A1(M) . The city's railway station is, alongside Manchester Piccadilly , the busiest of its kind in Northern England . Public transport, rail and road networks in
7520-410: The north parts are built on older sandstone and gritstones and to the east it extends into the magnesian limestone belt. The land use in the central areas of Leeds is overwhelmingly urban. Attempts to define the exact geographic meaning of Leeds lead to a variety of concepts of its extent, varying by context include the area of the city centre , the urban sprawl, the administrative boundaries, and
7614-490: The number of homes that could be built in a single terrace. Holbeck and Leeds formed a continuous built-up area by 1858, with Hunslet nearly meeting them. In the latter half of the nineteenth century, population growth in Hunslet, Armley, and Wortley outstripped that of Leeds. When pollution became a problem, the wealthier residents left the industrial conurbation to live in Headingley, Potternewton and Chapel Allerton which led to
7708-425: The original 25-metre swimming pool with redundant and unused space attracted some controversy because of the age and local architectural significance of the building. HM Prison Leeds , formerly Armley Gaol is located in Armley. Armley housing includes Victorian back-to-back houses , through terraces and tower blocks. There is much council housing, although most of the housing stock is privately built and dates from
7802-418: The parish and county borough of Leeds absorbed Leeds Rural District , consisting of the parishes of Roundhay and Seacroft ; and Shadwell , which had been part of Wetherby Rural District. On 1 April 1925, the parish of Leeds was expanded to cover the whole borough. The county borough was abolished on 1 April 1974, and its former area was combined with that of the municipal boroughs of Morley and Pudsey ;
7896-439: The period from 1999 to 2008 £2.5 billion of property development was undertaken in central Leeds; of which £711 million has been offices, £265 million retail, £389 million leisure and £794 million housing. The city saw several firsts, including the oldest-surviving film in existence, Roundhay Garden Scene (1888), and the 1767 invention of soda water . West Yorkshire Playhouse Leeds Playhouse
7990-517: The rest of the West Yorkshire Urban Area . It accounts for 20% of the area and 62% of the population of the City of Leeds. The population of the urban subdivision had a 100 to 93.1 female–male ratio. Of those over 16 years old, 39.4% were single (never married) and 35.4% married for the first time. The urban subdivision's 188,890 households included 35% one-person, 27.9% married couples living together, 8.8% were co-habiting couples, and 5.7% single parents with their children. Leeds
8084-455: The rivers Aire and Wharfe cross the eastern boundary. Land rises to 198 m (650 ft) in Cookridge, just 6 miles (9.7 km) from the city centre. The northern boundary follows the River Wharfe for several miles (several kilometres), but it crosses the river to include the part of Otley which lies north of the river. The Leeds postcode area covers most of the City of Leeds district and
8178-460: The strict Calvinist preacher Alexander Cooke as vicar of Leeds, but she refused. The inhabitants petitioned Charles I for a charter of incorporation, which was granted in 1626. The new charter incorporated the entire parish, including all eleven townships, as the Borough of Leeds and withdrew the earlier charter. Improvement commissioners were set up in 1755 for paving, lighting, and cleansing of
8272-514: The textile sector, rapidly became a diverse industry. The railway network constructed around Leeds, starting with the Leeds and Selby Railway in 1834, provided improved communications with national markets and, significantly for its development, an east–west connection with Manchester and the ports of Liverpool and Hull giving improved access to international markets. Alongside technological advances and industrial expansion, Leeds retained an interest in trading in agricultural commodities, with
8366-435: The urban districts of Aireborough , Horsforth , Otley , Garforth and Rothwell ; and parts of the rural districts of Tadcaster , Wetherby , and Wharfedale . This area formed a metropolitan district in the county of West Yorkshire . It gained both borough and city status and is known as the City of Leeds . Initially, local government services were provided by Leeds City Council and West Yorkshire County Council . When
8460-468: The urban subdivision, while it takes up only 21% of its total area of 552 km . At the time of the 2011 UK Census , the district had a total population of 751,500, representing a 5% growth since the previous census ten years earlier. According to the 2001 UK Census, there were 301,614 households in Leeds; 33.3% were married couples living together, 31.6% were single-person households, 9.0% were co-habiting couples and 9.8% were single parents, following
8554-570: Was completed at a cost of £13 million. The building underwent a £16.8 million redevelopment in 2019: creating a new foyer, improving access throughout the building, moving the front of the building to face the city and creating the Bramall Rock Void studio space (130 seats). The playhouse has a large neon sculpture on its exterior which spells out the lyric from the song " Tubthumping " by Chumbawamba : "I get knocked down but I get up again". The sculpture Ribbons by artist Pippa Hale
8648-461: Was formerly a township and chapelry in the parish of Leeds, in 1866 Armley became a separate civil parish , on 26 March 1904 the parish was abolished to form Armley and Bramley . In 1901 the parish had a population of 27,521. Damage caused by a raid in the Leeds Blitz in March 1941 and later slum clearance schemes brought about the redevelopment of much of Armley in a programme beginning in
8742-457: Was home to the original version of the musical Spend Spend Spend , the story of the life of Viv Nicholson, the 1961 famous Pools winner and author of the book of the same name. The original, starring Rosemary Ashe appeared at the Playhouse before it went on to West End success starring Barbara Dickson. A typical season includes four or five major productions which run for three or four weeks, and
8836-507: Was opened by S. S. Wesley . It was moved to St Bartholomew's in 1879. Schulze's work, and this organ in particular, had enormous influence on the development of British organ building in the 19th century. Both church and organ have been restored. The smaller Christ Church is located at the end of Theaker Lane nearer the centre of Armley. Legend has it that a pedlar called Charlie used to rest and water his pony and trap in Whingate Park in
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