44-632: Wordsley is a suburban village near Stourbridge in the West Midlands , England. It is part of the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley and is north of the River Stour. Wordsley is part of the Kingswinford and South Staffordshire Parliamentary constituency as of 2024. It is bordered by open Staffordshire countryside to the west, Kingswinford to the north, Brierley Hill to the east and Stourbridge to
88-546: A Dream . The 80s metal bands Diamond Head , Witchfinder General and 80s pop band Kayran Dache also came from Stourbridge and Led Zeppelin 's Robert Plant once attended King Edward VI College (then King Edward VI Grammar School for Boys). Stourbridge is covered by these newspapers: the Stourbridge News (weekly), and the Stourbridge Chronicle (weekly). From the 1860s until the early 1980s, Stourbridge
132-637: A lake, a bandstand, a cafe, and open spaces.There are two other large Parks gifted to Stourbridge people by The Stevens family , one in Lye/Wollescote and in Quarry Bank , both with cafes. Bordered by green belt land, Stourbridge is close to countryside with the Clent Hills to the south and southwest Staffordshire and Kinver Edge to the west. Stourbridge was listed in the 1255 Worcestershire assize roll as Sturbrug or Sturesbridge. The medieval township
176-567: A light rail vehicle similar to that used on the Stourbridge Branch Line. Stourbridge Interchange is the main bus station, located in the town centre next to Stourbridge Town railway station. The Interchange opened in 2012 at a cost of £7 million. Most services are operated by National Express West Midlands and Diamond Bus which offer links to local areas such as Wollaston and Pedmore, and further destinations like Birmingham , Wolverhampton and Kidderminster . Diamond Bus operate
220-708: A mile to the west, and the Stourbridge Canal just to the west, descending in a flight of locks that passes beside the Red House glass cone . The nearest rail station is Stourbridge Town , just under two miles from Wordsley, which is the only station on the Stourbridge Town Branch Line , a branch off the main Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster Line . Wordsley is home to the Dudley Music Centre,
264-527: A respected local facility for the teaching and performance of music. There are two major theatre groups operating from Wordsley: Wordsley Amateur Dramatics Society, and G.I.S.T . The contemporary poet Gary Bills was born at Wordsley Hospital, and attended Lawnswood primary School and The Buckpool School, now known as the Wordsley School. Wordsley is home to four primary schools, one secondary school and one Special Educational Needs school (SEN) . Wordsley
308-615: Is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley in the West Midlands , England. Situated on the River Stour , the town lies around 10 miles (16 kilometres) west of Birmingham . Historically in Worcestershire , it was the centre of British glass making during the Industrial Revolution . The 2011 UK census recorded the town's population as 63,298. Stourbridge is about 10 miles (16 kilometres) west of Birmingham . It
352-840: Is also home to 5th Wordsley Guide on a Thursday night at the Richardson Hall. Wordsley is also home to a Boys' Brigade club, which is held on Monday evenings by Jill Fielder, Sylvia Liddell and Tom Grosvenor; it takes place at Wordsley Community Centre. The three were part of the Boys Brigades' Got Talent judging panel; Fielder was voted most consistent judge while Grosvenor was crowned the favourite judge. There are also Scout and Brownie groups held weekly, and dance classes held at Holy Trinity Church Hall. Wordsley takes great pride in its many great parks. Hagley Camera Club meet at Holy Trinity Church Hall most Tuesday evenings. Stourbridge Stourbridge ( / ˈ s t aʊər b r ɪ dʒ / )
396-481: Is now preserved as a museum and visitor centre with a craft centre. The A491 road passes through Wordsley, being originally a prehistoric track. Wordsley is served by several bus routes operated by National Express West Midlands and Diamond West Midlands . National Route 54 of the National Cycle Network passes a mile to the south-east. The navigable Staffordshire & Worcestershire Canal passes
440-548: Is part of the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley at the southwestern edge of the Black Country and the West Midlands conurbation , Stourbridge includes the villages and suburbs of Amblecote , Lye , Norton , Oldswinford , Pedmore , Stambermill , Stourton , Wollaston , Wollescote and Wordsley . Much of Stourbridge consists of residential streets interspersed with green spaces. Mary Stevens Park , opened in 1931, has
484-529: Is the festival's flagship exhibition, featuring contemporary work by glass makers in the UK. In the late-1980s and early 1990s, three Stourbridge indie bands – The Wonder Stuff , Pop Will Eat Itself and Ned's Atomic Dustbin – all had chart success, selling millions of albums between them and gracing the covers of NME and Melody Maker. Pop Will Eat Itself's former frontman Clint Mansell has since composed musical scores for films including Black Swan and Requiem for
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#1732852194814528-578: The A451 , the A458 and the A491 , the last forming the one way Stourbridge Ring Road. Stourbridge has two railway stations, the main one being Stourbridge Junction . From here, it is around 30 minutes to Birmingham, 30 minutes to Worcester and between two and 2.5 hours to London. The other station, Stourbridge Town , is served only by a shuttle to and from Stourbridge Junction. At just over 1 ⁄ 2 mi (800 m),
572-548: The Stourbridge Town Branch Line is believed to be the shortest railway branch line in Europe. The former main line to Wolverhampton via Dudley , and branches to Wombourne and Walsall closed in the 1960s. However the line towards Dudley remains open for freight as far as the Round Oak Steel Terminal north of Brierley Hill . In January 2021, proposals were made to reopen the line to Brierley Hill to passengers using
616-514: The Stourport Ring , navigable by narrowboat and popular with holidaymakers. There is one college in Stourbridge. King Edward VI College was founded in 1552, becoming a sixth form college in 1976. Stourbridge College , south of the town centre, was formed in 1958 and specialised in art and design, but was closed in 2019. There is also a sixth form at Old Swinford Hospital school, which
660-634: The War Memorial in Amblecote. According to the 2011 Census , the majority of people living in Stourbridge identify as Christian (65%). Almost a quarter of people said they had no religion . Less than 1% of people identified as Muslim , Sikh , Buddhist , or Hindu . 43 people identified as a Jedi Knight . Wordsley Hospital Wordsley Hospital was an NHS hospital located in Wordsley , near Stourbridge , West Midlands , England . The facility
704-552: The 1960s modernist style or the 1990s Barratt style. Village buildings that were formerly highly notable fine relics of the Victorian and Edwardian era, such as the Wordsley Hospital and the Wordsley School of Art, have recently been demolished or redeveloped. Wordsley Hospital closed in 2005, with its functions being transferred to Russells Hall Hospital . Some of the less significant buildings were demolished in 2007, but most of
748-579: The Roman Portland Vase was cut in Wordsley. One of the most famous glass designers was a Wordsley man, William Jabez Muckley . Another was John Northwood , and his son Harry C. Northwood who helped establish glassware in the USA. Yet another who established glassware in the USA was John Northwood's friend, Frederick Carder . One of the most accomplished glasscutters was George Woodall , whose campaign led to
792-596: The Stourbridge border between Worcestershire and Staffordshire , which for centuries had been marked by the River Stour , was moved a couple of miles north when Amblecote was incorporated into the Borough of Stourbridge. Following the Local Government Act 1972 , Stourbridge was amalgamated into the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley and became part of the wider West Midlands county in 1974. The town gives its name to local glass production, which has been manufactured since
836-590: The area, will lead to much-increased traffic problems on the High Street. Stuart's Glass Works, another notable building, came under pressure from sales of cheaper imported glass and the business there closed in March 2002. The Stuart's site is earmarked for residential development, which will incorporate some of the historic buildings such as the old flour mill. The glass making centre has now been knocked down and waiting for new housing development. The historic Red House Cone
880-482: The building of the Wordsley School of Art. The ' Red House Glassworks ', a 100-foot high glassmaking cone, survives and has recently been restored. Lead-crystal cut-glass from Wordsley's heyday is now rare and collectable. Glassworking continued in the area, albeit at a reduced scale, until the 1990s. Wordsley was the headquarters of the Royal seedsmen, Webbs of Wordsley. Their grounds covered thousands of acres. A Workhouse
924-497: The closure of the Corbett Hospital and Guest Hospital attracting similar condemnation from the local community. The first phase of Wordsley Hospital's closure took place on 7 January 2005, when the maternity unit closed after just under 17 years in use and was relocated to Russells Hall. The last services at Wordsley were relocated on 22 April 2005. The sale of the site was agreed in March 2005 (when some services were still at
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#1732852194814968-515: The donation of land from the Earl of Dudley . The building was designed by architect Lewis Vulliamy . This replaced the ancient parish church at Kingswinford , which was reopened in 1846, initially as a chapel of ease . Much of the historic fabric of the village has been subject to demolition over the decades. Victorian terraced housing, shops and glassworker cottages - now so valued elsewhere - were replaced en masse by large housing estates built either in
1012-451: The early 1600s. The local clay proved particularly suitable for the industry, taken up predominantly after the immigration of French coal miners in the Huguenot diaspora. However, most of the glass industry was actually located in surrounding areas including Wordsley, Amblecote and Oldswinford. The rich natural resources of coal and fireclay for lining furnaces made it the perfect location for
1056-485: The early 1990s plans were unveiled for Wordsley Hospital, Guest Hospital and parts of the Corbett Hospital to be closed and the services relocated to an expanded Russells Hall Hospital . Local MP Ian Pearson was at the centre of a campaign to try to keep at least some services, particularly the maternity unit, at Wordsley. There was much outrage in the local community at the decision to close Wordsley Hospital, with
1100-655: The escape of the future Charles II during the Third English Civil War . He is said to have stopped at a house (which has since been demolished) on the corner of Kinver Street and the main Stourbridge road in Wordsley, during the night following the Battle of Worcester on 3 September 1651, and taken bread and beer for himself and his party of about 60 cavaliers. There were numerous glassworks in Wordsley from 1776 until 1930, making artisan -created cut glass items such as vases, glasses and objets-d'art. The famous replica of
1144-530: The first and third Saturday of every month in the Clock Square. Throughout the summer, Mary Stevens Park hosts outdoor live music. In the 2011 Census , the average age of people in Stourbridge was 42. Conservative MP Margot James held the Stourbridge parliamentary constituency 2010–2019. She was succeeded in 2019 by Suzanne Webb of the same party. Three main roads meet in Stourbridge, these being
1188-470: The glass trade came from Staffordshire , Warwickshire , Worcestershire and Shropshire . 9% came from other parts of England and 0.2% had come from abroad. Of particular note are glass cutters, as 8.1% had come from Ireland, believed to be as a result of the decline of the Irish glasscutting industry in the first half of the 1800s. The houses inhabited by glassworkers were of a much better quality in comparison to
1232-570: The hospital closed in 2005 with its services being moved to an expanded Russells Hall Hospital in Dudley. Most of the buildings were demolished in 2007 to make way for housing, but parts of the hospital were saved for conversion into housing. These include the chapel, the mortuary and the old workhouse buildings. This church is the Holy Trinity Church in Wordsley which was consecrated in 1831, replacing St. Mary. Construction had begun 1828 following
1276-415: The hospital) when Mar City Developments purchased it for £14.75 million with a view for redeveloping it for housing. A new facility at Ridge Hill Hospital was officially opened on 18 October 2006 by local MP Ian Pearson . Some of the original Ridge Hill Hospital buildings are still in use, although others were demolished in 2007 and several are still standing disused. The road link to Wordsley Hospital
1320-480: The industry. Glass making peaked in the 19th century, encouraged by the famous glass-making family, the Jeavons. The 1861 census identified that 1,032 residents of Stourbridge were involved in the glass trade in some way. Of these, 541 were glass workers - an increase from 409 in 1851, believed to be partly caused by the collapse of the glass industry in nearby Dudley in the 1850s. The vast majority of those involved in
1364-447: The new mall is home to a 60,000 sq ft (5,600 m ) Tesco anchor store, a two-level underground car park, six retail stores and a central food court. Stourbridge Bus Station underwent substantial redevelopment and re-opened as Stourbridge Interchange in April 2012. In 2010, Stourbridge was awarded Fairtrade Town status. Stourbridge Farmers' and Craft Market takes place on
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1408-548: The older buildings are being refurbished and incorporated into the new housing development. The fine Wordsley School of Art, built in 1899 had fallen into disrepair and was demolished at the end of 2000. The first instructor at the school was Frederick Carder, a glass designer. The building had not been used since the Community Association moved to new premises at The Green in the 1970s. The Broadfield House Glass Museum salvaged two granite plaques which were laid down when
1452-560: The renovated former foundry of Foster, Rastrick and Company – where the Stourbridge Lion locomotive was manufactured. The next phase of regeneration on the foundry site will create parkland next to Stourbridge Canal with a "heritage and community hub" named Riverside House. Crown Centre Shopping Mall at the bottom of Stourbridge High Street opened in 2013 at the site of the old Crown Centre and Bell Street multi-storey car park , which were demolished between 2012 and 2013. Costing £50m,
1496-410: The school was completed in 1898 and extended in 1906. The school's site remains empty and overgrown. In 2006, a row of dilapidated shops at the junction of High Street and Brierley Hill Road were cleared, and plans were announced to widen the often congested road system at this point. New apartments were built on the plot and completed in 2008. There is concern that this, and other major homes schemes in
1540-605: The slums in which the nailmakers of Lye and Wollescote lived. However, only a few glassworkers owned their own houses. The Red House Cone , thought to be the only complete remaining glass cone of its kind, stands on the Stourbridge Canal at Wordsley. It is the site of the Red House Glass Museum and there are regular demonstrations of traditional glass blowing. The town centre has seen major regeneration in recent years. In 2014, Lion Health medical centre opened in
1584-453: The south. Wordsley lies in the far south of the historic boundaries of Staffordshire and, with neighbouring Amblecote , it is one of several urban villages just north of the River Stour that forms the historic border with the county of Worcestershire to the south. It historically formed part of the extensive manor of Kingswinford . ' Monarch's Way ', A 610-mile (982 km) long-distance footpath runs nearby. The path loosely follows
1628-528: The tendered service 242 to Kinver which was previously operated by The Green Bus Company but more recently Select Bus Services and added additional journeys. By bike, National Route 54 of the National Cycle Network links Stourbridge with Dudley via the canal towpaths. The Stourbridge Canal links the town to the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal and the Dudley No. 1 Canal. This places Stourbridge on
1672-528: Was built as part of the redevelopment of the Stourbridge workhouse between 1902 and 1904. It was extended in 1915 during the First World War to provide an annexe to the 1st Southern Military Hospital. Seven new wards were built during the Second World War . Ridge Hill Hospital, which specialised in mental health, opened on an adjacent site in 1982. At the beginning of the 1980s, Wordsley Hospital
1716-508: Was chosen as the site of a new maternity unit to serve the whole Dudley borough and replacing the existing maternity wards at Wordsley as well as Burton Road Hospital in Dudley and Mary Stevens Maternity Home in Stourbridge . Construction work on the new 118-bed maternity unit began during 1985. The maternity unit was officially opened by the Duchess of Gloucester on 24 November 1988. However, in
1760-780: Was covered by the County Express newspaper. The archives are now on microfilm in Stourbridge Library. Stourbridge Football Club , founded in 1876 and nicknamed "The Glassboys", shares the War Memorial Athletic Ground in Amblecote with Stourbridge Cricket Club . Stourbridge Rugby Club play at Stourton Park in nearby Stourton . Dudley and Stourbridge Harriers have trained at the Dell Stadium since 1964. Other teams include Redhill Volleyball Club, which plays at Redhill School. Stourbridge Running Club also train at
1804-566: Was founded in 1667 by the Stourbridge-born politician Thomas Foley . The boarding school was named the best secondary school in Dudley, closely followed by Redhill School , an academy also in Stourbridge. Elmfield Rudolf Steiner School is an independent school which follows the international Steiner Waldorf Education curriculum. The International Festival of Glass is held at Ruskin Mill in Stourbridge every two years. The British Glass Biennale
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1848-576: Was named for a bridge which crossed the River Stour . The settlement was originally known as Bedcote and was likely Anglo-Saxon in origin. It lay within the manor of Swynford or Suineford (now Oldswinford ), which appears in William the Conqueror 's Domesday Book of 1086. Pigot and Co.'s National Commercial Directory for 1828-9 describes Stourbridge as a "populous, wealthy, and flourishing market town" and gives its population in 1821 as 5,090. In 1966,
1892-425: Was opened at Wordsley in 1903 and became fully operational in 1907, becoming a military hospital during World War I (1914–1918) but became Wordsley Hospital , a civilian hospital, after the end of World War II in 1945. The buildings had been extended during its time as a military hospital but it was further expanded afterwards, the final extension being a state-of-the-art maternity unit that opened in 1988. However,
1936-481: Was severed when the bulk of the Wordsley buildings were demolished in 2007. 12 homes on Ashdown Drive, which had been built in the 1960s and housed doctors and nurses at the hospital until its closure, were finally put up for sale by the local health trust in December 2010, nearly six years after the hospital closed. On 6 May 2002, a newborn baby girl was snatched from the unit by a local woman who had recently suffered
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