54-690: Castleford is a town within the City of Wakefield district, West Yorkshire , England. It had a population of 45,106 at a 2021 population estimate. Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire , to the north of the town centre the River Calder joins the River Aire and the Aire and Calder Navigation . It is located north east of Wakefield , north of Pontefract and south east of Leeds . Castleford
108-728: A Roman army settlement which was called Lagentium (thought to mean 'The Place of the Swordsmen'). Roman funeral urns have been found in modern-day Castleford, giving further evidence to this theory. A Roman milestone was unearthed in Beancroft Road, now believed to be in Leeds City Museum. Queen's Park in Castleford provides evidence of Roundhouses used by the Anglo Saxons . This was a strategic area due to
162-785: A county borough in 1913, taking it out of the jurisdiction of the West Riding County Council. The present boundaries were set in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972 , when the County Borough of Wakefield merged with the West Riding municipal boroughs of Castleford , Ossett and Pontefract , the urban districts of Featherstone , Hemsworth , Horbury , Knottingley , Normanton and Stanley , along with Wakefield Rural District and parts of Hemsworth Rural District and Osgoldcross Rural District . The new metropolitan district 's city status
216-638: A community online radio station serving the town and surrounding areas. The local newspaper is a weekly called Pontefract and Castleford Express. Stoneground Records is a local independent record label named after the Stoneground Flour Mills on the River Aire. Castleford is only 0.93 miles (1.5 km) away from the M62 at Junction 32 via the A656 road . It has other A roads that criss-cross
270-690: A county; rural districts , Urban districts and municipal boroughs were under the administrative county while county boroughs were in the wider geographic county. The term "West Riding" continues to be used by organisations based in the historic area of the riding, such as the West Riding Sailing Club, the Ramblers , the West Riding County Football Association , and the Freemasons . It
324-622: A large rural area to the north including part of the Yorkshire Dales National Park (the remainder of the park being in the North Riding). The subdivision of Yorkshire into three ridings or "thirds" ( Old Norse : Þriðungr ) is of Scandinavian origin. The West Riding was first recorded (in the form West Treding ) in the Domesday Book of 1086. Unlike most English counties, Yorkshire, being so large,
378-577: A nature reserve." Two children's nursery rhymes with Wakefield connections are " Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush " which may have been sung by women inmates at Wakefield prison . and " The Grand Old Duke of York " which may allude to the Battle of Wakefield in 1460, referring to Richard Plantagenet , the 3rd Duke of York. The lyrics of the popular hymn "Onward Christian Soldiers" were written at St Peter's Church in nearby Horbury. The area
432-794: A small further and higher education college on the Castleford Campus of Wakefield College in Glasshoughton. Castleford has multiple rugby league teams. The local team, Castleford Tigers was formed in 1926, Castleford was one of the twelve founder members of Super League when the new league format was introduced in 1996. The 'Tigers' nickname and logo were introduced in 1992 and the club's honours include four Challenge Cup and one Super League Leaders Shield. The club have been based at Wheldon Road since 1927. Castleford also has two other lower league rugby league teams, Castleford Lock Lane and Castleford Panthers. Both Lock Lane and
486-473: A swimming pool is proposed for nearby Pontefract Park. Built in 1890 the underpass/bridge made by Deborah Saunt Called the Tickle Cock Bridge was established and was refurbished in 2003 and was closed around Christmas 2005, but was completed in 2008. Also known by its original name The Tittle Cot bridge but was later changed To Tickle Cock and still has a controversial stance. Burberry ,
540-405: Is also home to Frankie & Benny's and Nando's restaurants. It is also home to a 14-screen Cineworld , which underwent a refit in 2018 and is now home to a 4DX screen and a Screen X. Castleford has an open and an indoor market, a shopping centre on Carlton Street and a retail park; in addition, Asda , Morrisons , Aldi and Co-operative supermarkets are located there. In December 2013,
594-437: Is mainly made out of old coal-mining towns, although other industries include wool , chemicals , machine tools , glass and other forms of manufacturing. Horbury is something of an anomaly in having had an iron works . When Margaret Thatcher came to power in 1979 there were 21 pits in the district. By the time the 1984 Strike began this had decreased to 15, however it still had more collieries than any other district in
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#1732771800075648-573: Is served by BBC Yorkshire and ITV Yorkshire received from the Emley Moor TV transmitter. The radio stations that broadcast to the area are: The area is served by the local newspaper, Wakefield Express . A decision was made, in 2004, to transfer the district's extensive council housing to Wakefield and District Housing (WDH), an 'independent' housing association, who would be more efficient with repairs and maintaining decent accommodation; as council housing represented almost 30% of
702-597: Is the largest town in the Wakefield district after Wakefield itself. The town is the site of a Roman settlement. Within the historical Municipal Borough of Castleford are the suburbs of Airedale , Cutsyke, Ferry Fryston , Fryston Village, Glasshoughton , Half Acres, Hightown, Lock Lane, Townville, Wheldale and Whitwood. Castleford is home to the rugby league Super League team Castleford Tigers . Castleford's history dates back to Roman times , archaeological evidence points to modern day Castleford being built upon
756-621: Is the longest continuous horse racing circuit in Europe at 2 miles 125 yards (3,333 m; 16.57 furlongs). The ruins of Sandal Castle and its visitor centre are open to the public, overlooking the Pugneys Country Park . The National Coal Mining Museum for England (an Anchor Point of ERIH, The European Route of Industrial Heritage ), the Yorkshire Sculpture Park and Nostell Priory are within
810-729: Is up for election at any one time. Exceptions include by-elections and ward boundary changes. The city district is home to three professional rugby league clubs, the Wakefield Trinity , Castleford Tigers who both play in the Super League and Featherstone Rovers who play in the Kingstone Press Championship . All three have had periods of success. The city also has several amateur rugby league clubs including Featherstone Lions and Normanton Knights . Current England rugby league internationals from
864-552: The Castleford Forum Museum , a library and heritage museum, opened in a new building. The town's library had been in temporary accommodation for two years, while the old site was redeveloped. The existing frontage was kept, while the building further back was demolished. A new three-floor building was then constructed. The town centre has public houses , bars and social clubs, although the number of these has declined in recent years with leisure becoming focused on
918-687: The City of Wakefield , is a local government district with city status and a metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire , England. Wakefield , the largest settlement, is the administrative centre of the district. The population of the City of Wakefield at the 2011 Census was 325,837. The district includes the Five Towns of Castleford , Featherstone , Knottingley , Normanton and Pontefract . Other towns include Hemsworth , Horbury , Ossett , South Elmsall and South Kirkby (also forms
972-445: The Local Government Act 1888 , and covered the historic West Riding except for the larger urban areas, which were county boroughs with the powers of both a municipal borough and a county council . Initially there were five in number: Bradford, Leeds, Huddersfield, Halifax, and Sheffield. The City of York (also a county borough) was included in the county for census and lieutenancy purposes. The number of county boroughs increased over
1026-523: The Xscape complex. In 2000, three nightclubs were situated in the town centre; today, none remain. Local news and television programmes are provided by BBC Yorkshire and ITV Yorkshire . Television signals are received from the Emley Moor TV transmitter. The town's local radio stations are BBC Radio Leeds on 92.4 FM, Greatest Hits Radio Yorkshire on 106.8 FM, Heart Yorkshire on 106.2 FM, Capital Yorkshire on 105.1 FM and 5 Towns FM,
1080-612: The 1920s Castleford Town played in the Midland League alongside clubs such as Doncaster Rovers, Chesterfield, Scunthorpe United, Halifax Town, Leeds United (for 1919–20 season only), Lincoln City and Mansfield Town. This league also contained the reserve sides of Sheffield Wednesday, Barnsley, Nottingham Forest, Grimsby Town and Hull City. In 1920 Castleford reached the 2nd round of the FA Cup, losing 2–3 at Bradford Park Avenue. Castleford played at Wheldon Road – when they shut down
1134-501: The 1930s. The urban district was incorporated as a municipal borough in 1955. Castleford Civic Centre was completed in 1970. Following the Local Government Act 1972 , the Municipal Borough of Castleford was abolished on 1 April 1974; it then became an unparished area of the City of Wakefield , a metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire . Castleford is now controlled by Wakefield Council . Three electoral wards cover
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#17327718000751188-609: The 20th century. Ferrybridge Power Station and Kellingley Colliery have also closed (in 2015 and 2016 respectively) and used to employ Castleford residents. The newer warehouses and distribution centres in Glasshoughton have brought in many new jobs to the area. In 2008 Grand Designs presenter Kevin McCloud and Channel 4 led a community regeneration scheme to redevelop Castleford. In February 2017 Castleford Swimming Pool closed. A new modern leisure facility including
1242-647: The Panthers play in the fourth tier of British Rugby League, meanwhile Castleford Tigers have play in the top tier of British Rugby League. Castleford Tigers have played majority of their Rugby League in the top tier and have done since their promotion in 2008, to present day. Rugby league in the town was originally represented by Castleford , unrelated to Castleford RUFC, who did not participate in The schism in English rugby and still exist, nor were they predecessors of
1296-466: The Wakefield metropolitan area, as is Walton Hall , a Georgian mansion set in what was the world's first nature reserve, created by the explorer Charles Waterton ; the house is now a proposed UNESCO World Heritage Site. Sir David Attenborough has stated that "Walton Hall is an extremely important site in the history of nature conservation worldwide. It is, arguably, the first tract of land anywhere in modern times to be protected, guarded and maintained as
1350-708: The area include; Tom Briscoe , Rob Burrow , Zak Hardaker , and Brett Ferres . The district is also home to two clubs in the Northern Premier League : Ossett United and Pontefract Collieries . The district has a strong heritage of cricket with former Yorkshire and England captain Geoffrey Boycott born in Fitzwilliam and former Yorkshire and England cricketer Tim Bresnan from Pontefract . Pontefract Racecourse in Pontefract ,
1404-530: The city from the sub-region – and a recognition of undeveloped assets. For instance Castleford , to the North East of Wakefield is seeing extensive development and investment because of the natural asset of its outlook on to the River Aire , its easy access to the national motorway network and the availability of former mining land for house-building. In Ossett, house prices have risen from an average of £50,000 in 1998 to £130,000 in 2003. Although unemployment
1458-614: The civil parish of South Kirkby and Moorthorpe ). The city and district are governed by Wakefield Council from the County Hall . In 2010, Wakefield was named as the UK's third most musical city by PRS for Music . The economic and physical condition of several of the former mining towns and villages in Wakefield District have started to improve due to the booming economy of Leeds – and an increase in numbers of commuters to
1512-532: The country. At the time of privatization in November 1994, only two remained: the Prince of Wales at Pontefract, which closed in 2002, and Kellingley at Knottingley which closed in 2015 ending the industry that once dominated the district. Most of the district's pits had been very hardline during the 1984 strike. The former Borough of Wakefield was raised to city status by letters patent in 1888. It became
1566-579: The current Castleford Tigers who were founded in 1926. The original Castleford rugby league club played in the Northern Union (Rugby Football League) from 1896–97 to 1905–06 , and it had one player named Isaac Cole who won a cap for England in 1906 against Other Nationalities . From June 1979 to July 1980, Castleford had its own Speedway racing team, The Kings, based at the Castleford Whitwood Stadium . The circuit
1620-408: The designation. The green belt was adopted in 1987, and in 2017 amounted to some 23,500 hectares (235 km ; 91 sq mi). The district is divided into 21 wards , each represented on Wakefield Metropolitan District Council by three councillors. Councillors are elected on a first past the post basis, usually for a four-year period which is staggered so that only one councillor per ward
1674-516: The district, this was the second-largest stock transfer in British history. WDH are investing over £700 million to regenerate the District and working with partners, such as WMDC, are investing in new housing within the District. 53°40′59″N 1°29′56″W / 53.683°N 1.499°W / 53.683; -1.499 West Riding of Yorkshire The West Riding of Yorkshire
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1728-475: The early 18th century until 1961, notably the Castleford Pottery (1790–1820) of David Dunderdale, which gave its name to "Castleford-type" stonewares. Castleford was established as an urban district , in the administrative county of the West Riding of Yorkshire in 1894 under the Local Government Act 1894 , with an urban district council. Whitwood and Glasshoughton were added to the district in
1782-538: The entirety of Todmorden with the West Riding administrative county, and also in its lieutenancy area ("county"), though the postal address for Todmorden was Lancashire. Other boundary changes in the county included the expansion of the county borough of Sheffield southward in areas historically in Derbyshire such as Dore . Fingerposts erected in the West Riding until the mid-1960s had a distinctive style. At
1836-641: The ground was taken over by the rugby league team. Castleford hosted two greyhound tracks both of which are no longer in existence. The first was in Whitwood and held racing from 1939 until 2001. The second track was the slightly larger 1,500 capacity Castleford Sports Stadium located east of Lock Lane sitting on the north bank of the River Aire. People born in Castleford: [REDACTED] Media related to Castleford, West Yorkshire at Wikimedia Commons City of Wakefield Wakefield , also known as
1890-654: The identity of outlying communities, encourage brownfield reuse, and preserve the countryside. It restricts inappropriate development within the designated areas and imposes stricter conditions on permitted building. Green belt surrounds the Wakefield built up area and stretches into the wider borough and outlying towns and villages. Walton , Netherton , Featherstone , South Kirkby , South Elmsall , Hemsworth , Castleford , Knottingley , and Pontefract are surrounded by it. Smaller villages, hamlets and rural areas such as Warmfield and Heath , Stanley Ferry , Newmillerdam , Snydale, Wintersett , and Chapelthorpe are included in
1944-511: The industrial region, other urban districts included Bingley , Bolton on Dearne , Castleford , Cleckheaton , Elland , Featherstone , Handsworth , Hoyland Nether , Liversedge , Mexborough , Mirfield , Normanton , Rawmarsh , Rothwell , Saddleworth , Shipley , Skipton , Sowerby Bridge , Stanley , Swinton , Thornhill , Wath-upon-Dearne , Wombwell and Worsborough . Outside the industrial region were Goole , Ilkley , Knaresborough , Otley and Selby . The West Riding also contained
1998-399: The old style still survive within the West Riding boundaries. By 1971 1,924,853 people (or 50.85% of the West Riding's population) lived in the administrative county, against 1,860,435 (or 49.15%) in the ten county boroughs. In the Domesday Book of 1086 they were eleven wapentakes, these were as follows: In the end of regular use, the wapentakes were: During the West Riding's time as
2052-606: The part of the East Riding of Yorkshire around Goole and southwest of the River Ouse . The West Riding encompassed 1,771,562 acres (7,169 km ) from Sheffield in the south to Sedbergh in the north and from Dunsop Bridge in the west to Adlingfleet in the east. The southern industrial district, considered in the broadest application of the term, extended northward from Sheffield to Skipton and eastward from Sheffield to Doncaster , covering less than one-half of
2106-711: The retailer and designer label, has a factory in the town, plans were proposed to close this once a new facility was built in Leeds. However these plans were put on hold in 2016 and the factory is due to remain in the town for the foreseeable future. A large Nestlé factory, which produced Toffee Crisp and After Eights for 40 years, closed in 2012 and demolition starting in 2014 to make way for housing. Castleford has previously been home to Dunsford and Wesley Textiles, which at peak business times had three factories in Castleford which have all since ceased production. TEVA also have their UK headquarters here. Castleford had potteries from
2160-471: The riding. Within this district were Barnsley , Batley , Bradford , Brighouse , Dewsbury , Doncaster , Halifax , Huddersfield , Keighley , Leeds , Morley , Ossett , Pontefract , Pudsey , Rotherham , Sheffield , Todmorden (partly in Lancashire until 1888, when fully incorporated into Yorkshire) and Wakefield . Major centres elsewhere in the riding included Harrogate and Ripon . Within
2214-588: The section retained for freight workings only. Castleford also had a second service to Leeds that left the station eastwards and swung north onto the former Castleford–Garforth line , which saw services calling at Ledston and Kippax, before arriving in Garforth and continuing to Leeds. In December 2023, services were restored towards York, with Transpennine Express providing four round-trips daily, from Manchester Piccadilly to York via Huddersfield , Wakefield Kirkgate and Castleford. The Glasshoughton area of
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2268-403: The top of the post was a roundel in the form of a hollow circle with a horizontal line across the middle, displaying "Yorks W.R.", the name of the fingerpost's location, and a grid reference. Other counties, apart from Dorset , did not display a grid reference and did not have a horizontal bar through the roundel. From 1964, many fingerposts were replaced by ones in the modern style, but some of
2322-633: The town and provide access to Junction 31 on the same motorway. The rivers Aire and Calder have a confluence just north-west of the town and also feed the Aire and Calder Navigation. Whilst it is an industrial waterway, it also hosts tourism with moorings on the Castleford Cut of the Navigation. Castleford railway station is situated on both the Hallam and Pontefract lines ; these lines connect
2376-417: The town directly with Leeds , Barnsley , Goole , Pontefract and Sheffield . All trains arrive from the west and leave in that same direction. In January 2021, the station was completely revamped, providing a modern waiting facility, sheltered cycle parking and changes to the car park layout. Train services used to travel eastwards to York , via Burton Salmon , but passenger workings ceased in 1970 with
2430-924: The town is served by its own railway station , which is situated one stop beyond Castleford on the Pontefract line. In 2016, a new £6 million bus station was opened adjacent to the railway station to allow an integrated travel site for the 12,000 people using the bus station per day. Local services are provided primarily by Arriva Yorkshire , but also by Globe Holidays (Barnsley) and Ross Travel. Routes link Castleford with Leeds, Pontefract and Wakefield. The town's primary schools for young children are Wheldon Infant School, Castleford Park Junior, Smawthorne Henry Moore, Townville Infant School, Airedale Juniors, Oyster Park Primary, Fairburn View Primary, Three Lane Ends Academy, Ackton Pastures and Half Acres. Castleford's secondary schools for children aged 11–16 are Castleford Academy and Airedale Academy . The town has
2484-648: The town: Airedale and Ferry Fryston; Altofts and Whitwood; and Castleford Central and Glasshoughton. The town contains the Junction 32 multi-store outlet shopping village and the Xscape leisure complex, both in the Glasshoughton suburb at the south of the town. Within Xscape is the large Snozone , which used to have Britain's largest indoor real snow slope; this was later edged out by Chillfactore in Manchester. It
2538-413: The views of the entire settlement. The history of the area includes Oliver Cromwell 's encampment in nearby Knottingley and Ferrybridge (originally thought to be in Castleford itself) whilst his forces laid siege to Pontefract Castle. In the 19th century, Castleford became a boomtown with the population growing from 1,000 to 14,000 as collieries opened around the town; however, these collieries closed in
2592-502: The years; Rotherham gained this status in 1902, Barnsley and Dewsbury in 1913, Wakefield in 1915 and Doncaster in 1927. The boundaries of existing county boroughs were also widened. Beginning in 1898, the West Riding County Council was based at the County Hall in Wakefield, which was inherited by the West Yorkshire Metropolitan County Council in 1974. The Local Government Act 1888 included
2646-642: Was 202 yards and the team never entered the league – only challenge matches were staged. In the 1960s, motorcycle scrambling used to take place on the north side of the hill at Queens Park. This was often featured on the BBC's Grandstand sports programme on Saturday afternoons and was commentated upon by Murray Walker . Glasshoughton Welfare play in the Northern Counties East League, Fryston Colliery Welfare were members of this league until they left in 1991 due to ground grading problems. In
2700-467: Was amongst the highest in the country for most of the 1980s, and 1990s, Wakefield District now has below-average unemployment. The "Wakefield East" ward had 4.7% unemployment in May 2005 (source: Office for National Statistics )—which was more than 1% higher than any other ward. The eastern half of the district remains considerably less prosperous than the western half, with several deprived wards The district
2754-404: Was divided first into the three ridings ( East , North and West) and, later, the city of York (which lay within the city walls and was not part of any riding). Each riding was then divided into wapentakes , a division comparable to the hundreds of southern and western England and the wards of England's four northernmost historic counties. The administrative county was formed in 1889 by
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#17327718000752808-465: Was one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire , England. From 1889 to 1974 the riding was an administrative county named County of York, West Riding . The lieutenancy at that time included the city of York and as such was named "West Riding of the County of York and the County of the City of York". The riding ceased to be used for administrative purposes in 1974, when England's local government
2862-488: Was reconfirmed by letters patent in 1974. The Council's headquarters is County Hall , originally built for the West Riding County Council and acquired by Wakefield in 1989. The district is within a green belt region that extends into the surrounding counties that is in place to reduce urban sprawl , prevent the cities and towns in the West Yorkshire Urban Area conurbation from convergence, protect
2916-669: Was reformed. Contemporary local government boundaries in Yorkshire largely do not follow those of the riding. All of South Yorkshire (except Finningley ) and West Yorkshire were historically within its boundaries, as were the south-western areas of North Yorkshire (including Ripon ), the Sedbergh area of Cumbria , the Barnoldswick and Slaidburn areas of Lancashire , the Saddleworth area of Greater Manchester and
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