153-580: Betchworth is a village and civil parish in the Mole Valley district of Surrey , England. The village centre is on the north bank of the River Mole and south of the A25 road , almost 3 miles (4.8 km) east of Dorking and 3 miles (4.8 km) west of Reigate . London is 19.5 miles (31.4 km) north of the village. Service sector occupations dominate Betchworth's economy – its station and road links make it
306-513: A London borough . (Since the new county was beforehand a mixture of metropolitan boroughs , municipal boroughs and urban districts, no extant parish councils were abolished.) In 1974, the Local Government Act 1972 retained rural parishes, but abolished most urban parishes, as well as the urban districts and boroughs which had administered them. Provision was made for smaller urban districts and boroughs to become successor parishes , with
459-508: A Royalist garrison imposed on it in 1642. The subsequent Siege of Reading by Parliamentary forces succeeded in April 1643. The town's cloth trade was especially badly damaged, and the town's economy did not fully recover until the 20th century. Reading played a significant role during the Glorious Revolution : the second Battle of Reading was the only substantial military action of
612-466: A non-metropolitan district , with Berkshire County Council providing county-level services in the borough for the first time. Ahead of those reforms, the borough council campaigned to have Reading's boundaries enlarged to take in Earley, Woodley , Purley on Thames , the residual Tilehurst parish (covering the parts of Tilehurst which had not been transferred into the borough in 1911), and the eastern part of
765-888: A "farm or enclosure belonging to a person or family called Becci". Bronze Age artefacts have been found at Betchworth only since 1944. No Roman villas, farms or camps have been found. Betchworth lay within the Wotton hundred and appears in two entries in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Becesworde , held by Richard Fitz Gilbert, Richard de Tonebrige . In the Domesday survey its assets were: 27 villagers/smallholders, 15 slaves, two hides ; one church, two mills worth £1 10 s, 12 ploughlands , 11 acres (4.5 ha) of meadow , pasture for five swine and woodland and herbage/woodland worth 81 hogs . To its overlords it rendered in total £7 10s. A distinct part named Thorncroft
918-515: A Special Expense, to residents of the unparished area to fund those activities. If the district council does not opt to make a Special Expenses charge, there is an element of double taxation of residents of parished areas, because services provided to residents of the unparished area are funded by council tax paid by residents of the whole district, rather than only by residents of the unparished area. Parish councils comprise volunteer councillors who are elected to serve for four years. Decisions of
1071-494: A Wedding and conference venue. Betchworth Park Golf Club holding in its grounds the ruined Betchworth castle is in Brockham though keeps the historic association with Betchworth. Betchworth Memorial Hall is a large village hall with a wooden floor, a high ceiling and a stage, making it suitable for self-nominated activities including badminton, lectures, receptions, and local operatics and drama, with seating for 150 people; leads to
1224-576: A boundary coterminous with an existing urban district or borough or, if divided by a new district boundary, as much as was comprised in a single district. There were 300 such successor parishes established. In urban areas that were considered too large to be single parishes, the parishes were simply abolished, and they became unparished areas . The distinction between types of parish was no longer made; whether parishes continued by virtue of being retained rural parishes or were created as successor parishes, they were all simply termed parishes. The 1972 act allowed
1377-472: A city council (though most cities are not parishes but principal areas, or in England specifically metropolitan boroughs or non-metropolitan districts ). The chairman of a town council will have the title "town mayor" and that of a parish council which is a city will usually have the title of mayor . When a city or town has been abolished as a borough, and it is considered desirable to maintain continuity of
1530-456: A city council. According to the Department for Communities and Local Government , in England in 2011 there were 9,946 parishes. Since 1997 around 100 new civil parishes have been created, in some cases by splitting existing civil parishes, but mostly by creating new ones from unparished areas. Parish or town councils have very few statutory duties (things they are required to do by law) but have
1683-548: A city was Hereford , whose city council was merged in 1998 to form a unitary Herefordshire . The area of the city of Hereford remained unparished until 2000 when a parish council was created for the city. As another example, the charter trustees for the City of Bath make up the majority of the councillors on Bath and North East Somerset Council. Civil parishes cover 35% of England's population, with one in Greater London and few in
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#17328692561951836-440: A civil parish is usually an elected parish council (which can decide to call itself a town, village, community or neighbourhood council, or a city council if the parish has city status). Alternatively, in parishes with small populations (typically fewer than 150 electors) governance may be by a parish meeting which all electors may attend; alternatively, parishes with small populations may be grouped with one or more neighbours under
1989-481: A civil parish which has no parish council, the parish meeting may levy a council tax precept for expenditure relating to specific functions, powers and rights which have been conferred on it by legislation. In places where there is no civil parish ( unparished areas ), the administration of the activities normally undertaken by the parish becomes the responsibility of the district or borough council. The district council may make an additional council tax charge, known as
2142-568: A common parish council. Wales was also divided into civil parishes until 1974, when they were replaced by communities , which are similar to English parishes in the way they operate. Civil parishes in Scotland were abolished for local government purposes by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1929 ; the Scottish equivalent of English civil parishes are the community council areas established by
2295-420: A degree of independence from the abbey from the 13th century onwards, particularly after the town's merchant guild was granted a royal charter in 1253. Following the dissolution of the abbey in 1538 the borough was granted a new charter in 1542. The borough boundaries were then set out in a subsequent charter from Elizabeth I in 1560. The borough covered the whole of the parish of St Laurence and parts of
2448-826: A month. The old Victorian Corn Exchange now provides an alternative access to a shopping centre. Every year Reading hosts the Reading Festival , which has been running since 1971. The festival takes place on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the August bank holiday weekend and is the largest of its kind in the United Kingdom aside from the Glastonbury Festival . Reading Festival takes place at Little Johns Farm in Reading, Richfield Avenue. For some twenty years until 2006, Reading
2601-556: A narrow steep-sided gap in the hills forming the southern flank of the Thames flood plain . The Kennet, which naturally divided into multiple shallow streams through the centre of Reading, was embanked as part of the construction of the Kennet and Avon Canal in the 18th century, allowing the development of wharves . The floodplains adjoining Reading's two rivers are subject to occasional flooding. As Reading has grown, its suburbs have spread: to
2754-517: A new code. In either case the code must comply with the Nolan Principles of Public Life . A parish can be granted city status by the Crown . As of 2020 , eight parishes in England have city status, each having a long-established Anglican cathedral: Chichester , Ely , Hereford , Lichfield , Ripon , Salisbury , Truro and Wells . The council of an ungrouped parish may pass a resolution giving
2907-431: A new smaller manor, there was a means of making a chapel which, if generating or endowed with enough funds, would generally justify foundation of a parish, with its own parish priest (and in latter centuries vestry ). This consistency was a result of canon law which prized the status quo in issues between local churches and so made boundary changes and sub-division difficult. The consistency of these boundaries until
3060-477: A new town hall by inserting an upper floor into the refectory of the Hospitium of St John , the former hospitium of Reading Abbey . For some 400 years up to the 1970s, this was to remain the site of Reading's civic administration through the successive rebuilds that eventually created today's Town Hall . In 1976, Reading Borough Council moved to the new Civic Centre . In 2014, they moved again to civic offices in
3213-506: A nursing home since 1993 with 11 acres at the top end of The Street. In 1924 a hydrator plant at Betchworth Limeworks was installed for slaking the lime. Betchworth Conservation Area contains 22 listed buildings and the church of St Michael, the only Grade I building. The ruins of Betchworth Castle in Betchworth Park are a couple of miles west of Betchworth in the west of Brockham civil parish. St Michael's Church, Betchworth
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#17328692561953366-738: A parish (a "detached part") was in a different county . In other cases, counties surrounded a whole parish meaning it was in an unconnected, "alien" county. These anomalies resulted in a highly localised difference in applicable representatives on the national level , justices of the peace , sheriffs, bailiffs with inconvenience to the inhabitants. If a parish was split then churchwardens, highway wardens and constables would also spend more time or money travelling large distances. Some parishes straddled two or more counties, such as Todmorden in Lancashire and Yorkshire. Reading, Berkshire Reading ( / ˈ r ɛ d ɪ ŋ / RED -ing )
3519-416: A parish council, and instead will only have a parish meeting : an example of direct democracy . Alternatively several small parishes can be grouped together and share a common parish council, or even a common parish meeting. A parish council may decide to call itself a town council, village council, community council, neighbourhood council, or if the parish has city status, the parish council may call itself
3672-450: A part of the London commuter belt – combined with crop agriculture and services for a relatively large retired proportion of the population. A former lime quarry, rebuilt manor house and Grade I-listed church are within its boundaries. State records show the name as Becesworde (11th century), Beceswrde (12th century) and Bechesworth (13th century). The name is generally agreed to mean
3825-503: A population of between 100 and 300 could request their county council to establish a parish council. Provision was also made for a grouped parish council to be established covering two or more rural parishes. In such groups, each parish retained its own parish meeting which could vote to leave the group, but otherwise the grouped parish council acted across the combined area of the parishes included. Urban civil parishes were not given their own parish councils, but were directly administered by
3978-432: A presence in the town, supplying Fibre-to-the-Premises ( FTTP ) broadband internet connections at speeds of up to 1 Gbit/s. Reading School (a state grammar school ), founded in 1125, is the 16th oldest school in England. There are six other state secondary schools and 38 state primary schools within the borough, together with a number of private schools and nurseries. Alfred Sutton Boys' School closed in
4131-467: A professional association football team, Reading F.C. , and participates in many other sports. Reading dates from the 8th century. It was a trading and ecclesiastical centre in the Middle Ages , the site of Reading Abbey , one of the largest and richest monasteries of medieval England with royal connections, of which the 12th-century abbey gateway and significant ancient ruins remain. By 1525, Reading
4284-1079: A range of discretionary powers which they may exercise voluntarily. These powers have been defined by various pieces of legislation. The role they play can vary significantly depending on the size, resources and ability of the council, but their activities can include any of the following: Parish councils have powers to provide and manage various local facilities; these can include allotments , cemeteries, parks, playgrounds, playing fields and village greens , village halls or community centres , bus shelters, street lighting, roadside verges, car parks, footpaths, litter bins and war memorials. Larger parish councils may also be involved in running markets , public toilets and public clocks, museums and leisure centres . Parish councils may spend money on various things they deem to be beneficial to their communities, such as providing grants to local community groups or local projects, or fund things such as public events, crime prevention measures, community transport schemes, traffic calming or tourism promotion. Parish councils have
4437-573: A refurbished existing office building on Bridge Street , in order to facilitate the demolition and redevelopment of the previous site. Reading is 42 miles (68 km) north of the English south coast. The centre of Reading is on a low ridge between the River Thames and River Kennet , close to their confluence , reflecting the town's history as a river port. Just above the confluence, the Kennet cuts through
4590-409: A role in the planning system; they have a statutory right to be consulted on any planning applications in their areas. They may also produce a neighbourhood plan to influence local development. The Localism Act 2011 allowed eligible parish councils to be granted a " general power of competence " which allows them within certain limits the freedom to do anything an individual can do provided it
4743-465: A self-governing, self-funding theatre group and registered charity founded in 1947 that operates and maintains its own 97-seat theatre. Rabble Theatre in Caversham and Reading Rep on London Road offer classic and contemporary performances. Jelly is an artist-led organisation that has been committed to improving access to the arts since 1993. The demonym for a person from Reading is Redingensian , giving
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4896-530: A separate village to the west. Wonham Manor, a grade II listed building , forms the eastern corner of the parish and for centuries owned Wonham Mill at the foot of the Shag Brook, which is a tributary of the River Mole, on the boundary with Buckland . A manorial system continued for a long period in this village; the great tithes were commuted for £295 15s 4d, and the vicarial (lesser tithes) for £20. A school
5049-589: A set number of guardians for each parish, hence a final purpose of urban civil parishes. With the abolition of the Poor Law system in 1930, urban parishes became a geographical division only with no administrative power; that was exercised at the urban district or borough council level. In 1965 civil parishes in London were formally abolished when Greater London was created, as the legislative framework for Greater London did not make provision for any local government body below
5202-442: A significant presence in the town include Huawei Technologies , Pegasystems , Access IS , CGI Inc. , Agilent Technologies , Cisco , Ericsson , Symantec , Verizon Business , and Commvault . These companies are distributed around Reading or just outside the borough boundary, some in business parks including Thames Valley Park in nearby Earley, Green Park Business Park and Arlington Business Park . Reading town centre
5355-587: A single Luftwaffe plane machine-gunned and bombed the town centre, resulting in 41 deaths and over 100 injuries. The Lower Earley development, begun in 1977, was one of the largest private housing developments in Europe . It extended the urban area of Reading as far as the M4 Motorway . Further housing developments have increased the number of modern houses and hypermarkets in the outskirts of Reading. A major town-centre shopping centre, The Oracle , opened in 1999,
5508-938: A small village or town ward to a large tract of mostly uninhabited moorland in the Cheviots, Pennines or Dartmoor. The two largest as at December 2023 are Stanhope (County Durham) at 98.6 square miles (255 km ), and Dartmoor Forest (Devon) at 79.07 square miles (204.8 km ). The two smallest are parcels of shared rural land: Lands Common to Axminster and Kilmington (Devon) at 0.012 square miles (0.031 km ; 3.1 ha; 7.7 acres), and Lands Common to Brancepeth and Brandon and Byshottles (County Durham) at 0.0165 square miles (0.043 km ; 4.3 ha; 10.6 acres). The next two smallest are parishes in built up areas: Chester Castle (Cheshire) at 0.0168 square miles (0.044 km ; 4.4 ha; 10.8 acres) (no recorded population) and Hamilton Lea (Leicestershire) at 0.07 square miles (0.18 km ; 18 ha; 45 acres) (1,021 residents at
5661-470: A smaller community room, the Geoffrey Browne Room, for 40/50 people available for hire separately. There is a 21st-century construction kitchen which can serve either hall, and all are available for hire. An Archives/Meeting Room, The Hamilton Room , suitable for meetings of 30/40 people, and small parties with adjoining kitchen and all amenities, is situated in conservation area Church Street in
5814-514: A spur to the creation of new parishes in some larger towns which were previously unparished, in order to retain a local tier of government; examples include Shrewsbury (2009), Salisbury (2009), Crewe (2013) and Weymouth (2019). In 2003 seven new parish councils were set up for Burton upon Trent , and in 2001 the Milton Keynes urban area became entirely parished, with ten new parishes being created. Parishes can also be abolished where there
5967-572: Is Church of England , immediately northwest of the village green and is Grade I listed. Most of the church on the Betchworth site now occupied by St Michael's dates to the early 13th century, and in a pillar of the tower's south window there remains a fragment of the stone Saxon church. The south aisle chapel became known as the Hope Chapel after Henry Thomas Hope bought the Manor in 1838. A tall war memorial
6120-578: Is a conversion of a nonconformist chapel dating from 1707. Besides the two major shopping malls, Reading has three smaller shopping arcades, the Bristol and West Arcade, Harris Arcade and The Walk, which contain smaller specialist stores. An older form of retail facility is represented by Union Street , popularly known as Smelly Alley . Reading has no indoor market, but there is a street market in Hosier Street. A farmers' market operates on two Saturdays
6273-642: Is a major commercial centre, especially for information technology and insurance. It is also a regional retail centre, serving a large area of the Thames Valley with its shopping centres, including the Oracle , the Broad Street Mall, and the pedestrianised area around Broad Street. It is home to the University of Reading . Every year it hosts the Reading Festival , one of England's biggest music festivals. Reading has
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6426-793: Is a major shopping centre. In 2007, an independent poll placed Reading 16th in a league table of best performing retail centres in the United Kingdom. The main shopping street is Broad Street , which runs between The Oracle in the east and Broad Street Mall in the west and was pedestrianised in 1995. The smaller Friars Walk in Friar Street is closed and will be demolished if the proposed Station Hill redevelopment project goes ahead. There are three major department stores in Reading: John Lewis & Partners (known as Heelas until 2001), Debenhams (now closed down), and House of Fraser . The Broad Street branch of bookseller Waterstone's
6579-607: Is a museum dedicated to recording the changing face of farming and the countryside in England. It houses designated collections of national importance. It is owned and run by the University of Reading , as are the Ure Museum of Greek Archaeology , the Cole Museum of Zoology and the Harris Botanic Gardens , all of which can be found on the university's Whiteknights Campus . The small Riverside Museum at Blake's Lock tells
6732-624: Is a town and borough in Berkshire , England. Most of its built-up area lies within the Borough of Reading , although some outer suburbs are parts of neighbouring local authority areas. Located in the Thames Valley at the confluence of the rivers Thames and Kennet , Reading is 40 miles (64 km) east of Swindon , 28 miles (45 km) south of Oxford , 40 miles (64 km) west of London and 16 miles (26 km) north of Basingstoke . Reading
6885-507: Is at present the only part of England where civil parishes cannot be created. If enough electors in the area of a proposed new parish (ranging from 50% in an area with less than 500 electors to 10% in one with more than 2,500) sign a petition demanding its creation, then the local district council or unitary authority must consider the proposal. Since the beginning of the 21st century, numerous parish councils have been created, including some relatively large urban ones. The main driver has been
7038-559: Is buried within the Abbey grounds. As part of his endowments, he gave the abbey his lands in Reading, along with land at Cholsey . The town grew around a crossing of the River Kennet, about 1 mile (1.6 km) upstream from its confluence with the River Thames. In 1312, King Edward II directed that its bridges should be kept in good order. It is not known how badly Reading was affected by
7191-554: Is complemented by Palmer Park , a purpose built public park in east Reading gifted to the town by the proprietors of Huntley & Palmers in 1889. A string of open spaces stretch along one or other side of the River Thames throughout its passage through Reading. From west to east these are Thameside Promenade , Caversham Court , Christchurch Meadows , Hills Meadow , View Island and King's Meadow . Reading also has five local nature reserves : Clayfield Copse in Caversham , with
7344-539: Is evidence that this is in response to "justified, clear and sustained local support" from the area's inhabitants. Examples are Birtley , which was abolished in 2006, and Southsea , abolished in 2010. Every civil parish has a parish meeting, which all the electors of the parish are entitled to attend. Generally a meeting is held once a year. A civil parish may have a parish council which exercises various local responsibilities prescribed by statute. Parishes with fewer than 200 electors are usually deemed too small to have
7497-454: Is from Reading, made the film Cemetery Junction , which, although filmed elsewhere in the United Kingdom, is set in 1970s Reading and is named after a busy junction in East Reading . Jasper Fforde 's Nursery Crimes Division novels, The Big Over Easy and The Fourth Bear , are also placed in Reading. The BBC Two sitcom Beautiful People , based on the memoirs of Simon Doonan ,
7650-757: Is largely based on Reading. Described with topographical accuracy, it is still possible to follow the steps of the novel's characters in present-day Reading. Reading also appears in the works of Thomas Hardy where it is called 'Aldbrickham'. It features most heavily in his final novel, Jude the Obscure , as the temporary home of Jude Fawley and Sue Bridehead. Oscar Wilde was imprisoned in Reading Gaol from 1895 to 1897. While there, he wrote his letter De Profundis . After his release, he lived in exile in France and wrote The Ballad of Reading Gaol , based on his experience of
7803-694: Is mentioned in the first listing which was split by five overlords in 1066 before the conquest, Lewis (1848) and Malden (1911) say this relates to the formerly detached part in the west that is now between Brockham and Dorking . Part of the village was reclassified in the 13th century. Subsequently, the east of the village became part of Reigate hundred . Ownership of Betchworth Manor passed to Hamelin de Warenne, Earl of Surrey , who did villein service on Friday's Mead as Lord of (among others) Reigate and Betchworth in 1279. Hamelin's grandson John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey owned much land in Surrey and his widow left
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#17328692561957956-486: Is named after the 17th-century Oracle workhouse , which once occupied a small part of the site. It provides three storeys of shopping space and boosted the local economy by providing 4,000 jobs. As one of the largest urban areas in the United Kingdom to be without city status , Reading has unsuccessfully bid for city status on four recent occasions – in 2000 to celebrate the new millennium; in 2002 to celebrate
8109-405: Is not prohibited by other legislation, as opposed to being limited to the powers explicitly granted to them by law. To be eligible for this, a parish council must meet certain conditions such as having a clerk with suitable qualifications. Parish councils receive funding by levying a " precept " on the council tax paid by the residents of the parish (or parishes) served by the parish council. In
8262-433: Is one of eleven farms in Betchworth and produces cereals and breeds horses. Root Hill farm is a farm and missionary camp. Local businesses include an air filters company. Yellow Pages: Westbury Filters, Betchworth and kennels. Hartsfield Manor Hotel is a major local employer with a long entrance drive off Sandy Lane has 16 acres (6.5 ha) of parkland containing a small gatehouse called Ye Olde Gatehouse and serves also as
8415-558: Is outside of the main west entrance of the building. A particular fine example of medieval Gothic architecture pointed arches is in this church throughout its long nave and forming the entrance to its alcoves . It was used for one of the first scenes of Richard Curtis 's comedy film Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994). And with the church behind you the village street was used for the very first shot in David Lean's film Lawrence of Arabia (1962). Grade II*-listed Betchworth House
8568-419: Is predominantly a service sector economy. With its rail station and road links it forms part of the London commuter belt . Cleaning and gardening companies find a strong local market. Crop, chicken and pasture agriculture as well as a relatively large retired proportion of the population. The former lime quarry is managed by workers from Surrey Wildlife Trust and English Heritage . Great Brockhamhurst Farm
8721-459: Is regulated by the Environment Agency . Reading's water supply is largely derived from underground aquifers , and as a consequence the water is hard . The commercial energy supplier for electricity and gas is at the consumer's choice. SSEN runs the local electricity distribution network, while SGN runs the gas distribution network. A notable part of the local energy infrastructure is
8874-686: Is set in Reading in the late 1990s. The Maiwand Lion in Forbury Gardens , an unofficial symbol of Reading, commemorates the 328 officers of the Royal Berkshire Regiment who died in the Battle of Maiwand in 1880. There are a number of other works of public art in Reading. The Blade , a fourteen-storey building completed in 2009, is 86 m (282 ft) tall and can be seen from the surrounding area. Jacksons Corner with its prominent sign, former home of Jacksons department store, occupies
9027-553: Is the largest building in the village, excluding Hartsfield Manor Hotel on the opposite bank of the Sloughs brook, and was built by the lord of the manor in 1675. It was erected by the Freeman local Lords of the Manor after Ralph Freeman, judge, auditor and tin trader bought the manor in 1629, which the House replaced. A painting now in the house shows its appearance then, with corner towers. It
9180-404: Is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes , which for centuries were the principal unit of secular and religious administration in most of England and Wales. Civil and religious parishes were formally split into two types in the 19th century and are now entirely separate. Civil parishes in their modern form came into being through
9333-407: Is within Mole Valley parliamentary constituency. Betchworth is 3 miles (4.8 km) east of Dorking and 3 miles (4.8 km) west of Reigate . The village is 20 miles (32 km) south of London, in the outer London commuter belt . Elevations range from 216 m at the water tower, which marks the highest point of the parish on Box Hill , down to the River Mole , which runs east–west through
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#17328692561959486-504: The 'Standards Board regime' with local monitoring by district, unitary or equivalent authorities. Under new regulations which came into effect in 2012 all parish councils in England are required to adopt a code of conduct with which parish councillors must comply, and to promote and maintain high standards. A new criminal offence of failing to comply with statutory requirements was introduced. More than one 'model code' has been published, and councils are free to modify an existing code or adopt
9639-514: The Battle of Hastings and the Norman conquest of England , William the Conqueror gave land in and around Reading to his foundation of Battle Abbey . In its 1086 Domesday Book listing, the town was explicitly described as a borough . The presence of six mills is recorded: four on land belonging to the king and two on the land given to Battle Abbey. Reading Abbey was founded in 1121 by Henry I , who
9792-493: The Black Death that swept through England in the 14th century, but it is known that the abbot, Henry of Appleford , was one of its victims in 1361, and that nearby Henley lost 60% of its population. The Abbey was largely destroyed in 1538 during Henry VIII's dissolution of the monasteries . The last abbot , Hugh Faringdon , was subsequently tried and convicted of high treason and hanged, drawn and quartered in front of
9945-742: The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 , which have fewer powers than their English and Welsh counterparts. There are no equivalent units in Northern Ireland . The parish system in Europe was established between the 8th and 12th centuries, and an early form was long established in England by the time of the Norman Conquest . These areas were originally based on the territory of manors , which, in some cases, derived their bounds from Roman or Iron Age estates; some large manors were sub-divided into several parishes. Initially, churches and their priests were
10098-1010: The Local Government Act 1894 ( 56 & 57 Vict. c. 73) to become the smallest geographical area for local government in rural areas. The act abolished the civil (non-ecclesiastical) duties of vestries . Parishes which straddled county boundaries or sanitary districts had to be split so that the part in each urban or rural sanitary district became a separate parish (see List of county exclaves in England and Wales 1844–1974 ). The sanitary districts were then reconstituted as urban districts and rural districts , with parishes that fell within urban districts classed as urban parishes, and parishes that fell within rural districts were classed as rural parishes. The 1894 act established elected civil parish councils as to all rural parishes with more than 300 electors, and established annual parish meetings in all rural parishes. Civil parishes were grouped to form either rural or urban districts which are thereafter classified as either type. The parish meetings for parishes with
10251-411: The Local Government Act 1894 ( 56 & 57 Vict. c. 73), which established elected parish councils to take on the secular functions of the parish vestry . A civil parish can range in size from a sparsely populated rural area with fewer than a hundred inhabitants, to a large town with a population in excess of 100,000 . This scope is similar to that of municipalities in continental Europe, such as
10404-524: The River Kennet to boats as far as Newbury . Opposition stopped when it became apparent that the new route benefited the town. After the opening of the Kennet and Avon Canal in 1810, one could go by barge from Reading to the Bristol Channel . From 1714, and probably earlier, the role of county town of Berkshire was shared between Reading and Abingdon . In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries it
10557-472: The break with Rome , parishes managed ecclesiastical matters, while the manor was the principal unit of local administration and justice. Later, the church replaced the manor court as the rural administrative centre, and levied a local tax on produce known as a tithe . In the medieval period, responsibilities such as relief of the poor passed increasingly from the lord of the manor to the parish's rector , who in practice would delegate tasks among his vestry or
10710-529: The central branch of the library was relocated to a new building on King's Road in 1985. The Reading Museum opened in 1883 in the town's municipal buildings . It contains galleries relating to the history of Reading and to the excavations of Calleva Atrebatum , together with a full-size bowdlerised replica of the Bayeux Tapestry , an art collection, and galleries relating to Huntley and Palmers . The Museum of English Rural Life , in East Reading ,
10863-637: The communes of France . However, unlike their continental European counterparts, parish councils are not principal authorities , and in most cases have a relatively minor role in local government. As of September 2023 , there are 10,464 parishes in England, and in 2020 they covered approximately 40% of the English population. For historical reasons, civil parishes predominantly cover rural areas and smaller urban areas, with most larger urban areas being wholly or partly unparished ; but since 1997 it has been possible for civil parishes to be created within unparished areas if demanded by local residents . In 2007
11016-559: The first Battle of Reading , King Ethelred and his brother Alfred the Great attempted unsuccessfully to breach the Danes' defences. The battle is described in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle , and that account provides the earliest known written record of the existence of Reading. The Danes remained in Reading until late in 871, when they retreated to their winter quarters in London . After
11169-724: The lime kilns along the Pilgrims' Way footpath in Betchworth are Scheduled Ancient Monuments , including Hoffman, Dietz and Six Flare kilns. In 1911 A History of the County of Surrey by Malden which is also a county guide, records the earlier key dates in the industry and records that "the chalk furnishes the chief industry...There are also brickyards in the parish, which is, however, mostly agricultural and residential". Accomplished surgeon to George IV , William IV and Queen Victoria , Sir Benjamin Collins Brodie , lived and died at Broome Park
11322-463: The (often well-endowed) monasteries. After the dissolution of the monasteries , the power to levy a rate to fund relief of the poor was conferred on the parish authorities by the Poor Relief Act 1601 . Both before and after this optional social change, local (vestry-administered) charities are well-documented. The parish authorities were known as vestries and consisted of all the ratepayers of
11475-564: The 19th century is useful to historians, and is also of cultural significance in terms of shaping local identities; reinforced by the use of grouped parish boundaries, often, by successive local authority areas; and in a very rough, operations-geared way by most postcode districts. There was (and is) wide disparity in parish size. Writtle , Essex traditionally measures 13,568 acres (21 sq mi) – two parishes neighbouring are Shellow Bowells at 469 acres (0.7 sq mi), and Chignall Smealy at 476 acres (0.7 sq mi) Until
11628-584: The 2011 census, Newland with Woodhouse Moor and Beaumont Chase reported inhabitants, and there were no new deserted parishes recorded. Nearly all instances of detached parts of civil parishes (areas not contiguous with the main part of the parish) and of those straddling counties have been ended. 14 examples remain in England as at 2022, including Barnby Moor and Wallingwells , both in Nottinghamshire. Direct predecessors of civil parishes are most often known as "ancient parishes", although many date only from
11781-505: The 2021 census). The 2001 census recorded several parishes with no inhabitants. These were Chester Castle (in the middle of Chester city centre), Newland with Woodhouse Moor , Beaumont Chase , Martinsthorpe , Meering , Stanground North (subsequently abolished), Sturston , Tottington , and Tyneham (subsequently merged). The lands of the last three were taken over by the Armed Forces during World War II and remain deserted. In
11934-490: The 20th century, annexing Caversham across the River Thames in Oxfordshire in 1911, as well as most of Tilehurst to the west at the same time. Compared to many other English towns and cities, Reading suffered little physical damage during either of the two world wars that afflicted the 20th century, although many citizens were killed or injured in the conflicts. One significant air raid occurred on 10 February 1943, when
12087-527: The Abbey Church. By 1525, Reading was the largest town in Berkshire and the tenth largest town in England when measured by taxable wealth reported in tax returns. By 1611, it had a population of over 5,000 and had grown rich on its trade in cloth, as instanced by the fortune made by local merchant John Kendrick . Reading played a role during the English Civil War . Despite its fortifications, it had
12240-802: The Bulmershe College of Higher Education , a teacher training college , in 1989, becoming Bulmershe Court Campus . The Henley Management College , situated in Buckinghamshire and about 10 miles (16 km) from Reading, was taken over in 2008, becoming Greenlands Campus . The University of West London maintains a presence in the town for its higher education students, principally in nursing , but has now divested itself of its previous ownership of Reading College and its further education students. The Reading Borough Libraries service dates back to 1877. Initially housed in Reading Town Hall ,
12393-574: The Golden Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II ; in 2012 for the Diamond Jubilee ; and in 2022 to mark the Platinum Jubilee . Local government for the borough is provided by Reading Borough Council , which has been a unitary authority providing all local government functions since 1998. There are no civil parishes in the borough. Some of the built-up area's outer suburbs are outside
12546-459: The Greater Reading area. Reading has over 100 parks and playgrounds, including 5 miles (8 km) of riverside paths. In the town centre is Forbury Gardens , a public park built on the site of the outer court of Reading Abbey . The largest public park in Reading is Prospect Park , an estate in west Reading previously owned by Frances Kendrick but acquired by Reading Corporation in 1901. This
12699-740: The Reading Electric Supply Company Limited, then from 1933 by the Reading Corporation until the nationalisation of the British electricity supply industry in 1948. The dialling code for fixed-line telephones in Reading is 0118. BT provides fixed-line telephone coverage throughout the town and ADSL broadband internet connection to most areas. Parts of Reading are cabled by Virgin Media , supplying cable television, telephone and broadband internet connections. Hyperoptic also has
12852-538: The United Kingdom offices of foreign multinationals, as well as being a major retail centre. Whilst located close enough to London to be sometimes regarded as part of the London commuter belt , Reading is a net inward destination for commuters. During the morning peak period, there are some 30,000 inward arrivals in the town, compared to 24,000 departures. Major companies Microsoft , Oracle and Hibu (formerly Yell Group) have their headquarters in Reading. The insurance company Prudential has an administration centre in
13005-762: The Warren. Reading has a local newspaper, the Reading Chronicle , published on Thursdays. The town's other local newspaper, the Reading Post , ceased publication on paper in December 2014, in order to transition to an online only format under the title getreading . As of 2018, getreading joined the InYourArea local news network. A local publishing company, the Two Rivers Press , has published over 70 book titles, many on
13158-724: The administration of the poor laws was the main civil function of parishes, the Poor Law Amendment Act 1866 , which received royal assent on 10 August 1866, declared all areas that levied a separate rate or had their own overseer of the poor to be parishes. This included the Church of England parishes (until then simply known as "parishes"), extra-parochial areas , townships and chapelries . To have collected rates this means these beforehand had their own vestries, boards or equivalent bodies. Parishes using this definition subsequently became known as "civil parishes" to distinguish them from
13311-564: The borough boundaries in West Berkshire and Wokingham . These outer suburbs belong to civil parishes, in some cases with their own town status. Reading has elected at least one Member of Parliament to every Parliament since 1295. Since the 2024 general election , the borough of Reading has been divided between the parliamentary constituencies of Reading Central , Reading West and Mid Berkshire (which also covers part of West Berkshire), and Earley and Woodley (which also covers part of
13464-627: The borough of Reading in 1977. The borough council became a unitary authority in 1998, when the county council was abolished under the Banham Review , which saw the borough council take over county-level functions, effectively restoring the council to the powers it had held when Reading was a county borough prior to 1974. As part of those reforms, the Local Government Commission had initially recommended expanding Reading's boundaries to include Earley, Tilehurst parish, Purley on Thames and
13617-561: The borough of Wokingham). Reading is the site of venues for both the Crown Court , administering criminal justice, and the County Court , responsible for civil cases. Lesser matters are dealt with in a local magistrates' court . Reading was an ancient borough , being described as a borough by the time of the Domesday Book in 1086. The borough was initially controlled by Reading Abbey as its manorial owner. The town gradually gained
13770-536: The campaign. The 18th century saw the beginning of a major iron works in the town and the growth of the brewing trade for which Reading was to become famous. Reading's trade benefited from better designed turnpike roads which helped it establish its location on the major coaching routes from London to Oxford and the West Country . In 1723, despite considerable local opposition, the Kennet Navigation opened
13923-478: The centre of the village. Within it is a room housing village archives, known as the Meg Ryan Room. The public house in Betchworth is The Dolphin which is near the church and opposite the blacksmith. It has flagstone floors, log fires and a large rear garden. Civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government . It is a territorial designation which
14076-399: The charter, the charter may be transferred to a parish council for its area. Where there is no such parish council, the district council may appoint charter trustees to whom the charter and the arms of the former borough will belong. The charter trustees (who consist of the councillor or councillors for the area of the former borough) maintain traditions such as mayoralty . An example of such
14229-531: The corner of Kings Road and High Street, just south of the Market Place. Reading has six Grade I listed buildings, 22 Grade II* and 853 Grade II buildings, in a wide variety of architectural styles that range from the medieval to the 21st century. The Grade I listed buildings are Reading Abbey , the Abbey Gateway , Greyfriars Church , St Laurence's Church , Reading Minster , and the barn at Chazey Farmhouse on
14382-529: The council are carried out by a paid officer, typically known as a parish clerk. Councils may employ additional people (including bodies corporate, provided where necessary, by tender) to carry out specific tasks dictated by the council. Some councils have chosen to pay their elected members an allowance, as permitted under part 5 of the Local Authorities (Members' Allowances) (England) Regulations 2003. The number of councillors varies roughly in proportion to
14535-464: The council of the urban district or borough in which they were contained. Many urban parishes were coterminous (geographically identical) with the urban district or municipal borough in which they lay. Towns which included multiple urban parishes often consolidated the urban parishes into one. The urban parishes continued to be used as an electoral area for electing guardians to the poor law unions . The unions took in areas in multiple parishes and had
14688-466: The council will an election be held. However, sometimes there are fewer candidates than seats. When this happens, the vacant seats have to be filled by co-option by the council. If a vacancy arises for a seat mid-term, an election is only held if a certain number (usually ten) of parish residents request an election. Otherwise the council will co-opt someone to be the replacement councillor. The Localism Act 2011 introduced new arrangements which replaced
14841-453: The creation of town and parish councils is encouraged in unparished areas . The Local Government and Rating Act 1997 created a procedure which gave residents in unparished areas the right to demand that a new parish and parish council be created. This right was extended to London boroughs by the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 – with this, the City of London
14994-463: The desire to have a more local tier of government when new larger authorities have been created, which are felt to be remote from local concerns and identity. A number of parishes have been created in places which used to have their own borough or district council; examples include Daventry (2003), Folkestone (2004), Kidderminster (2015) and Sutton Coldfield (2016). The trend towards the creation of geographically large unitary authorities has been
15147-439: The ecclesiastical parishes. The Church of England parishes, which cover more than 99% of England, have become officially (and to avoid ambiguity) termed ecclesiastical parishes . The limits of many of these have diverged; most greatly through changes in population and church attendance (these factors can cause churches to be opened or closed). Since 1921, each has been the responsibility of its own parochial church council . In
15300-521: The established English Church, which for a few years after Henry VIII alternated between the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of England , before settling on the latter on the accession of Elizabeth I in 1558. By the 18th century, religious membership was becoming more fractured in some places, due in part to the progress of Methodism . The legitimacy of the parish vestry came into question, and
15453-559: The estate. Repton created long-distance views radiating from the Garden front of the house. A facsimile of the Betchworth Red Book has been published. Broome Park is a Grade II listed early 19th-century house. It was the home of Sir Benjamin Brodie , the royal physician. After his death in 1862, it was sold to General Sir Percy R. B. Feilding , son of the 7th Earl of Denbigh , and was later
15606-527: The execution of Charles Wooldridge , carried out in Reading Gaol whilst he was imprisoned there. In March 2021, street artist Banksy claimed responsibility for a painting on the wall of the jail. It depicted an inmate escaping with bedsheets and a typewriter, said to resemble Oscar Wilde . Reading was the location of the world's first commercial studio for photograph printing, which was set up by William Henry Fox Talbot in 1844. Ricky Gervais , who
15759-597: The first clear evidence for Reading as a settlement dates from the 8th century, when the town came to be known as Readingas . The name probably comes from the Readingas , an Anglo-Saxon tribe whose name means Reada's People in Old English (the Anglo-Saxons often had the same name for a place and its inhabitants). In late 870, an army of Danes invaded the kingdom of Wessex and set up camp at Reading. On 4 January 871, in
15912-638: The gift and continued patronage (benefaction) of the lord of the manor , but not all were willing and able to provide, so residents would be expected to attend the church of the nearest manor with a church. Later, the churches and priests became to a greater extent the responsibility of the Catholic Church thus this was formalised; the grouping of manors into one parish was recorded, as was a manor-parish existing in its own right. Boundaries changed little, and for centuries after 1180 'froze', despite changes to manors' extents. However, by subinfeudation , making
16065-455: The government at the time of the Local Government Act 1972 discouraged their creation for large towns or their suburbs, but there is generally nothing to stop their establishment. For example, Birmingham has two parishes ( New Frankley and Sutton Coldfield ), Oxford has four, and the Milton Keynes urban area has 24. Parishes could not however be established in London until the law was changed in 2007. A civil parish can range in area from
16218-403: The home of his daughter, Lady Louisa Feilding (d.1918). It is now a nursing home. Falling within the county of Surrey, a third tier of local government is responsible for education, almost all built infrastructure and other services such as social care. Surrey County Council is elected every four years and has one representative, from Betchworth for Dorking Rural: The second party forming
16371-460: The land to his nephew the Earl of Arundel , who eventually left the manor to Lord Abergavenny . The 9th Lord Abergavenny sold it in 1629 for £1,080 to Sir Ralph Freeman , in whose family's hands it remained until 1817 when it was sold to Henry Goulburn . Two manors existed within the boundaries of today's village: Wonham , which still stands today, and Betchworth . A third manor, Brockham , became
16524-471: The late 19th century, most of the "ancient" (a legal term equivalent to time immemorial ) irregularities inherited by the civil parish system were cleaned up, and the majority of exclaves were abolished. The census of 1911 noted that 8,322 (58%) of "parishes" in England and Wales were not geographically identical when comparing the civil to the ecclesiastical form. In 1894, civil parishes were reformed by
16677-554: The low hills by the bank of the River Mole in Betchworth. Most of the parish has free draining slightly acid loamy soil. Soil of the area that forms the top of the Betchworth Hills is "free draining, slightly acid but base-rich soil" rather than "shallow, lime-rich soil over chalk or limestone" which dominates the middle of Box Hill. This is the natural spur to the trees that line the top as it produces extremely fertile pastures and deciduous woodland. Surrey Wildlife Trust manages
16830-482: The main local opposition in the 2013 election, was the Liberal Democrats gaining 1,527 votes versus the winning candidate's 1,810. Betchworth is in the east of Mole Valley District Council area, in which the main town is Dorking . Two councillors sit on Mole Valley District Council , who are: Ward At the local level Betchworth Parish Council provides certain local facilities and services. Betchworth
16983-465: The mid 19th century. Using a longer historical lens the better terms are "pre-separation (civil and ecclesiastical) parish", "original medieval parishes" and "new parishes". The Victoria County History , a landmark collaborative work mostly written in the 20th century (although incomplete), summarises the history of each English "parish", roughly meaning late medieval parish. A minority of these had exclaves , which could be: In some cases an exclave of
17136-550: The mid-1980s. Reading College has provided further education in Reading since 1955, with over 8,500 local learners on over 900 courses. English language schools in Reading include Gateway Languages, the English Language Centre, ELC London Street and Eurospeak Language School . The University of Reading was established in 1892 as an affiliate of Oxford University . It moved to its London Road Campus in 1904 and to its new Whiteknights Campus in 1947. It took over
17289-511: The name of the local rugby team Redingensians , based in Sonning , and of former members of Reading School . Jane Austen attended Reading Ladies Boarding School , based in the Abbey Gateway , in 1784–1786. Mary Russell Mitford lived in Reading for a number of years and then spent the rest of her life just outside the town at Three Mile Cross and Swallowfield . The fictional Belford Regis of her eponymous novel, first published in 1835,
17442-465: The new district councils (outside London) to review their parishes, and many areas left unparished in 1972 have since been made parishes, either in whole or part. For example, Hinckley , whilst entirely unparished in 1974, now has four civil parishes, which together cover part of its area, whilst the central part of the town remains unparished. Some parishes were sub-divided into smaller territories known as hamlets , tithings or townships . Nowadays
17595-462: The north bank of the Thames from Oxfordshire (except the Caversham Park area, which was transferred to the parish of Eye and Dunsden ), and most of the parish of Tilehurst (including the main village at Tilehurst Triangle and the area around the parish church at Churchend) to the west. Local government was reformed in 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972 , which saw Reading redesignated as
17748-451: The north-western parts of Earley , and the eastern end of the parish of Tilehurst . When elected county councils were established in 1889 under the Local Government Act 1888 , Reading was considered large enough for its existing borough council to provide county-level services, and so Reading was made a county borough , independent from Berkshire County Council . The borough boundaries were enlarged again in 1911 to take in Caversham on
17901-488: The other conurbations. Civil parishes vary greatly in population: some have populations below 100 and have no settlement larger than a hamlet , while others cover towns with populations of tens of thousands. Weston-super-Mare , with a population of 71,758, is the most populous civil parish. In many cases small settlements, today popularly termed villages , localities or suburbs, are in a single parish which originally had one church. Large urban areas are mostly unparished, as
18054-631: The other four McIlroy Park , Blundells Copse , Lousehill Copse and Round Copse all in Tilehurst The principal National Health Service (NHS) hospital in Reading is the Royal Berkshire Hospital , founded in 1839 and much enlarged and rebuilt since. A second major NHS general hospital , the Battle Hospital , closed in 2005. Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust runs a NHS hospital, Prospect Park Hospital, which specialises in
18207-467: The parish of Theale . The government decided to make no change to Reading's boundaries, leaving them as they had been since last reviewed in 1911. Shortly after the 1974 reforms came into effect, a more limited review of the borough's boundaries north of the Thames was carried out, which saw the Caversham Park area and part of the parish of Mapledurham on the western side of Caversham transferred into
18360-401: The parish the status of a town, at which point the council becomes a town council . Around 400 parish councils are called town councils. Under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 , a civil parish may be given one of the following alternative styles: As a result, a parish council can be called a town council, a community council, a village council or occasionally
18513-404: The parish. As the number of ratepayers of some parishes grew, it became increasingly difficult to convene meetings as an open vestry. In some, mostly built-up, areas the select vestry took over responsibility from the entire body of ratepayers. This innovation improved efficiency, but allowed governance by a self-perpetuating elite. The administration of the parish system relied on the monopoly of
18666-562: The parish; the church rate ceased to be levied in many parishes and became voluntary from 1868. During the 17th century it was found that the 1601 Poor Law did not work well for very large parishes, which were particularly common in northern England. Such parishes were typically subdivided into multiple townships , which levied their rates separately. The Poor Relief Act 1662 therefore directed that for poor law purposes 'parish' meant any place which maintained its own poor, thereby converting many townships into separate 'poor law parishes'. As
18819-642: The parishes of St Giles and St Mary . The part of St Giles' parish outside the borough was known as the hamlet of Whitley , and the part of St Mary's parish outside the borough was known as the tithing of Southcote . The borough was reformed in 1836 to become a municipal borough under the Municipal Corporations Act 1835 , which standardised how most boroughs operated across the country. The borough boundaries, which had not been changed since 1560, were enlarged in 1887 to take in Southcote, Whitley,
18972-463: The parts of the parishes of Shinfield , Burghfield and Theale north of the M4 motorway , but it was ultimately decided to leave Reading's boundaries unchanged. Reading's boundaries south of the Thames therefore have not changed since 1911, despite the urban area having now expanded well beyond the borough boundaries. Cross-boundary working between the borough council and the neighbouring councils which cover
19125-499: The perceived inefficiency and corruption inherent in the system became a source for concern in some places. For this reason, during the early 19th century the parish progressively lost its powers to ad hoc boards and other organisations, such as the boards of guardians given responsibility for poor relief through the Poor Law Amendment Act 1834 . Sanitary districts covered England in 1875 and Ireland three years later. The replacement boards were each entitled to levy their own rate in
19278-482: The population identified themselves as Christian, 0.7% as Muslim, 1.4% other religions, 13.4% as atheist. 10.5% declined to state a religious affiliation. Betchworth's economy is predominantly a service sector economy reflected by the low concentration at one end of the official categorisation table of occupation given, compiled from the 2001 census: Whereas 34.3% of the population worked in middle or higher professional occupations. The average level of accommodation in
19431-411: The population of the parish. Most rural parish councillors are elected to represent the entire parish, though in parishes with larger populations or those that cover larger areas, the parish can be divided into wards. Each of these wards then returns councillors to the parish council (the numbers depending on their population). Only if there are more candidates standing for election than there are seats on
19584-425: The population were in full-time further education; 74.5% of all men were economically active whereas 2.5% were unemployed and 4.2% worked part-time; 56.1% of all women were economically active whereas 1.6% were unemployed and 35.1% worked part-time. In the 2001 census 98.5% of the population identified as white, 0.7% as mixed and 1.3% as one of the four other main categories (five including mixed ). In 2001 74.7% of
19737-482: The presence of a 2 megawatt (peak) Enercon wind turbine at Green Park Business Park , with the potential to produce 2.7 million kWh of electricity a year, enough to power over a thousand homes. Additionally, Reading Hydro runs a micro hydroelectric power station on the Thames. Reading had its own power station in Vastern Road from 1895 to the 1960s. The power station was initially owned and operated by
19890-733: The provision of care for people with mental health and learning disabilities. Reading has three private hospitals: the Berkshire Independent Hospital in Coley Park , the Dunedin Hospital situated on the main A4 Bath Road, and the Circle Hospital at Kennet Island. Mains water and sewerage services are provided by Thames Water Utilities Limited , a private sector water supply company, whilst water abstraction and disposal
20043-685: The rare flower meadows beneath the old quarry. The land rises towards the North Downs AONB . Below this range of hills the Mole flows briefly along the Vale of Holmesdale and the area around its tributary the Gadbrook is within the village. In 2001 Betchworth comprised 372 households and 12 vacant houses, shops and country businesses such as stone merchants and garden centres. In the 2001 census, Betchworth had 919 residents, of whom 26.5% were aged over 65; 4.8% of
20196-453: The rear room. By 1961 the house was in disrepair. It was reduced in scale and rationalised in the 1980s by architect Sir William Whitfield for James Hamilton, 4th Baron Hamilton of Dalzell and today has a late Regency appearance. The stables in front of Betchworth House by the Street are separately listed. Humphry Repton produced a Red Book for Betchworth in 1801, which is still held by
20349-444: The region composed of detached houses was 28%, the average that was apartments was 22.6%. The proportion of households in the civil parish who owned their home outright compares to the regional average of 35.1%. The proportion who owned their home with a loan compares to the regional average of 32.5%. The remaining percent is made up of rented dwellings (plus a negligible percentage of households living rent-free). Betchworth's economy
20502-438: The right to create civil parishes was extended to London boroughs , although only one, Queen's Park , has so far been created. Eight parishes also have city status (a status granted by the monarch ). A civil parish may be equally known as and confirmed as a town, village, neighbourhood or community by resolution of its parish council, a right not conferred on other units of English local government. The governing body of
20655-494: The sole county town of Berkshire, a decision that was officially approved by the privy council in 1869. The town became county borough under the Local Government Act 1888 . In the 19th and 20th centuries, the town's three largest industries were known as the Three Bs : beer (1785–2010, H & G Simonds ), bulbs (1837–1974, Suttons Seeds ), and biscuits (1822–1976, Huntley and Palmers ). The town continued to expand in
20808-545: The story of Reading's two rivers. The Museum of Berkshire Aviation has a collection of aircraft and other artefacts relating to the aircraft industry in the town. Reading's location in the Thames Valley to the west of London has made the town a significant element in the nation's transport system. The town grew up as a river port at the confluence of the River Thames and the River Kennet . Both of these rivers are navigable, and Caversham Lock , Blake's Lock , County Lock , Fobney Lock and Southcote Lock are all within
20961-461: The suburban and adjoining rural areas is sometimes criticised, particularly over matters such as transport and school catchment areas. Prior to the 16th century, civic administration for the town of Reading was situated in the Yield Hall , a guild hall situated by the River Kennet near today's Yield Hall Lane. After a brief stay in what later became Greyfriars Church , the town council created
21114-615: The top of the hill, included some of these quarries and was integral to the Dorking Grey Stone and Lime Company and the North Downs Line 's spur lines leading to these three pits. After an Act authorising the railway from Reading to Reigate was passed in 1847 and its construction, opening in 1849 the Betchworth Quarry Railways were built. To calcinate the lime from the stone, lime kilns were required. The six of
21267-426: The topic of local history and art. Three local radio stations broadcast from Reading: BBC Radio Berkshire , Heart South and Greatest Hits Radio Berkshire and North Hampshire . Local news and television programmes are provided by BBC South and ITV Meridian , BBC London & ITV London can also be received. Reading has one local television station, That's Thames Valley , which broadcasts local news throughout
21420-422: The town. PepsiCo and Wrigley have offices. Global pharmaceutical giant Bayer Life Sciences relocated to Reading's Green Park Business Park in 2016. Reading has a significant historical involvement in the information technology industry, largely as a result of the early presence in the town of sites of International Computers Limited and Digital Equipment Corporation . Other technology companies with
21573-405: The valleys containing the two rivers remain largely unimproved floodplain . Apart from the M4 curving to the south there is only one road across the Kennet flood plain. All other routes between the three built-up areas are in the central area. Like the rest of the United Kingdom, Reading has a maritime climate , with limited seasonal temperature ranges and generally moderate rainfall throughout
21726-623: The village at 43 m AOD . Between these extremes the landscape is mainly undulating, except for the steep (and where quarried for several hundred metres, sheer ) chalk face of the North Downs. Formation of the North Downs and the erosion that has taken place widely with repeated sea inundations and deposition is described in detail in the Geology of Surrey . Mammoth fossilised bone remains have been found below flint beds under considerable clay in
21879-568: The west between the two rivers into the foothills of the Berkshire Downs as far as Calcot , Tilehurst and Purley ; to the south and south-east on the south side of the River Kennet as far as Whitley Wood and Lower Earley and as far north of the Thames into the Chiltern Hills as far as Caversham Heights , Emmer Green and Caversham Park Village . Outside the central area, the floors of
22032-559: The year. The nearest official Met Office weather station is located at the Reading University Atmospheric Observatory on the Whiteknights Campus , which has recorded atmospheric measurements and meteorological observations since 1970. The local absolute maximum temperature of 37.6 °C (99.7 °F) was recorded on 19 July 2022 and the local absolute minimum temperature of −14.5 °C (5.9 °F)
22185-648: Was also known for its WOMAD Festival until it moved to Charlton Park in Malmesbury , Wiltshire . The Reading Beer Festival was first held in 1994 and has now grown to one of the largest beer festivals in the United Kingdom. It is held at King's Meadow for the five days immediately preceding the May Day bank holiday every year. Reading also holds Reading Pride , an annual LGBT festival in Kings Meadow. The Frank Matcham -designed Royal County Theatre, built in 1895,
22338-413: Was endowed with £20 per annum as at 1848 four other significant endowment charities existed then and continued though were less significant due to inflation through to at least 1911 for the benefit of the poor. To supply the cement for construction associated with required brick built housing, a rich seam of suitable chalk and limestone was identified in the North Downs . Broome Park estate, extending to
22491-495: Was extended and re-faced in 1808 and again 1820. The house is constructed of red brick covered in stucco , tiled roofs behind parapets, long slated roofs to the back forming eaves and features sash windows. Merstham stone (of the North Downs) forms its main entrance surround—a "Gibbs-style door surround with pulvinated frieze and rusticated, arched, surround". Half-oval balconies are to the first floor windows. Marble columns are in
22644-416: Was located on the south side of Friar Street. It burned down in 1937. Within the town hall is a 700-seat concert hall that houses a Father Willis organ. Reading theatre venues include The Hexagon and South Street Arts Centre. Reading Repertory Theatre is based at Reading College : its Royal Patron is Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh . Amateur theatre venues in Reading include Progress Theatre ,
22797-627: Was one of the southern termini of the Hatfield and Reading Turnpike that allowed travellers from the north to continue their journey to the west without going through the congestion of London. During the 19th century, the town grew rapidly as a manufacturing centre. The Great Western Railway arrived in 1841, followed by the South Eastern Railway in 1849 and the London and South Western Railway in 1856. The Summer Assizes were moved from Abingdon to Reading in 1867, effectively making Reading
22950-691: Was recorded in January 1982. In mid-2018, the area covered by the Borough of Reading had 174,820 inhabitants and a population density of 4,327 per square kilometre (11,207/sq mi). Meanwhile, the wider urban area had a population of 318,014 in the 2011 census , ranking 23rd in the United Kingdom. This grew to an estimated 337,108 by mid-2018. According to the 2011 census, 74.8% of the borough's population were described as White (65.3% White British ), 9.1% as South Asian , 6.7% as Black , 3.9% Mixed , 4.5% as Chinese and 0.9% as other ethnic group . In 2010, it
23103-528: Was reported that Reading had 150 different spoken languages within its population. Reading has a large Polish community, which dates back over 30 years, and in October 2006 the Reading Chronicle printed 5,000 copies of a Polish edition called the Kronika Reading . Reading is a commercial centre in the Thames Valley and Southern England . The town hosts the headquarters of several British companies and
23256-419: Was the largest town in Berkshire, and tenth in England for taxable wealth. The town was seriously affected by the English Civil War , with a major siege and loss of trade, but played a pivotal role in the Glorious Revolution , whose only significant military action was fought on its streets. The 18th century saw the beginning of a major ironworks in the town and the growth of the brewing trade for which Reading
23409-411: Was to become famous. The 19th century saw the coming of the Great Western Railway and the development of the town's brewing, baking and seed growing businesses, and the town grew rapidly as a manufacturing centre. Reading is also the county town of Berkshire. Occupation at the site of Reading may date back to the Roman period , possibly in the form of a trading port for Calleva Atrebatum . However,
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