60-727: St David's School was an independent girls' school in Ashford (historically in Middlesex , but from 1965 in the district of Spelthorne in Surrey ), England. The school was originally established in London in 1716 as the British Charity School or Welsh Charity School . It was located in a purpose-built home on Clerkenwell Green from 1738, before moving to Gray's Inn Road in 1772, and eventually to Ashford in 1857. It
120-553: A crossing point of the River Ash , a distributary of the River Colne . Historically part of Middlesex , the town has been part of Surrey since 1965. Ashford consists of relatively low density low- and medium-rise buildings, none of them being high rise. If excluding apartments (at the last census 27% of the housing stock) most houses are semi-detached . In 2011 it had a population of 27,382. Ashford railway station , on
180-416: A 12th-century arch from it were incorporated into St Matthew's. William Butterfield designed St Matthew's in a Gothic Revival style. The tower was not completed until 1865. St Hilda 's parish church at the junction of Stanwell and Woodthorpe Roads was founded as a daughter church of St Matthew's to serve the rapidly expanding community around the railway station. Construction started in 1912 and most of
240-600: A charitable institution to assist impoverished Welsh children in London. In the later 18th century it was also supported by the Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion (founded 1751), another London Welsh society. The school opened informally (with 10 boys and a master) in 1716 in a house in Sheer Lane, London (probably located near Temple Bar ), and was more formally instituted in 1718. In 1719 it moved into one of
300-634: A higher proportion of fee-paying pupils, and as a school exclusively for girls (although those boys already admitted were able to stay for the remainder of their education). It now became known as the Welsh Girls' School . During World War II the school was evacuated to the Powis Castle estate in Montgomeryshire , but returned to its Ashford site in 1946. In the post-war period its connections with Wales became more tenuous, and in 1967
360-413: A minority of the social housing . The non-urban parts, inclusive of the embanked water retaining reservoirs, are today for the most part Spelthorne's parks and lakes . The bulk of the rest is mostly narrow buffering land being arable farming, horse-grazing meadows and sheep grazing on the reservoir embankments and fringes with Green Belt legal status. Shopping is available in each of the towns and in
420-526: A negligible % of households living rent-free). The aspect of the whole parish is rapidly changing. Until a few years ago it was almost completely rural References Borough of Spelthorne Spelthorne is a local government district with borough status in Surrey , England. Its council is based in Staines-upon-Thames ; other settlements in the area include Ashford , Sunbury-on-Thames , Shepperton , Stanwell and Laleham . It
480-567: A regatta to Penton Hook in July for racing shells . Sunbury Skiff and Punting Club is the newest of all six which are quite clustered on the Thames, several of which incorporate dongola racing , dragon boat racing and canoeing . It organises an August regatta with fireworks. In May the Staines 10k charity run takes place organised by two local running/'strolling' clubs and the council. One of
540-765: A reminder of its past status as a grazing common ; these include recreation grounds such as Thames Water -sponsored Spelthorne Sports Club and the BP recreation ground. In The Clumps, 37 houses in the Ashford post town , which has the postcode TW15, are in the London Borough of Hounslow , Greater London, alongside the Princes Club watersports lakes partly in Ashford post town but mostly in East Bedfont , Feltham post town, London. The other road with this status
600-531: A separate manor in 1066, it was part of the manor of Kempton in 1086. It rendered (in total) 14s 0d. Throughout the early medieval period the place was also referred to as Echelford. A stone bridge was built over the ford in 1789 by the Hampton and Staines Turnpike Trust Ashford Common was a large area of common land in the south and east of the town that the British Army used for military displays in
660-549: A stable and energy-efficient drinking water supply to London, are bird reserves and in the case of the Queen Mary Reservoir, a sailing training centre. A similar percentage of land is covered by other lakes, mostly former gravel pits no longer pumped out of water. The 10-kilometre (6.2 mi) River Ash, Surrey starts and ends in the borough. Of recognised high importance to nature is Staines Moor , which alongside Sheepwalk Lake and wetlands , Shepperton are
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#1732787637698720-439: A wide area of Surrey. Active sports clubs in Ashford competitive at many levels are: Ashford Town F.C. , Ashford Casuals F.C. and Ashford Cricket Club. Clubs exist for hockey, tennis, table Tennis, aikido, karate, golf and bowls, with leading clubs in acrobatic gymnastics and sailing which offer professional coaching from Olympic-level coaches. Ashford Manor Golf Club is described above, a golf course that has 18 holes; one other
780-544: Is a Congregational church in Clarendon Road. The Salvation Army has a citadel in Woodthorpe Road. The main street, Church Road, has local businesses, including Co-op , Tesco Express , Costa Coffee , Sainsbury's, several estate agents, three funeral directors, and several places to eat. Church Road is also home to Ashford Library and a prominent World War I memorial. There are several pubs in
840-557: Is due in 2027. Since the last boundary changes in 2003 the council has comprised 39 councillors representing 13 wards , with each ward electing three councillors. Elections are held every four years. The council offices are at Knowle Green in Staines. The building was opened in 1972 for the former Staines Urban District Council, shortly before that council was abolished in 1974 to be replaced by Spelthorne Borough Council. The borough council estimates it has 3.0 square kilometres (750 acres) of parks, including, from Shepperton upstream,
900-647: Is in the borough, Sunbury Golf Course in Charlton . In 1921, the golf course was the site of the murder of British spy Vincent Fovargue by the IRA. Spelthorne Atoms (previously known as Ashford Atoms) are one of the best youth basketball teams in the country having been to the national finals on a number of occasions. Spelthorne Gymnastics club is one of the World's premier clubs for acrobatic gymnastics, having won eight World championship gold medals. Ashford has one river,
960-553: Is largely ceremonial in Spelthorne. Political leadership is instead provided by the leader of the council . The leaders since 1995 have been: Following the 2023 election and subsequent by-elections and changes of allegiance up to July 2024, the composition of the council was: Five of the independent councillors sit together as the 'Independent Spelthorne Group', the other sits with the Conservatives. The next election
1020-696: Is named after the medieval Spelthorne Hundred which had covered the area. The borough is largely urban; although outside the boundaries of Greater London , it is almost entirely inside the M25 motorway which encircles London . The borough contains several large reservoirs, including the Wraysbury Reservoir , Staines Reservoirs and Queen Mary Reservoir , which all supply fresh water to London and surrounding areas. The neighbouring districts are Elmbridge , Runnymede , Windsor and Maidenhead , Slough , Hillingdon , Hounslow and Richmond upon Thames ,
1080-492: Is now defunct, but in 2010 its buildings and playing fields became the premises of St James Senior Boys School . Ashford County Grammar School was founded in 1911. It became Ashford Sixth Form College in 1975 and Spelthorne College later. In 2007 it merged with Brooklands College . A property developer, Inland Homes plc, has since acquired the former grammar school buildings in Church Road. In 2017 it started to demolish
1140-435: Is represented by a Conservative councillor, as is Staines South and Ashford West ; Sunbury Common and Ashford Common is also represented by a Conservative councillor, and part of north Ashford is in the division of Stanwell and Stanwell Moor , represented by Robert Evans , a Labour Councillor. Ashford has 12 representatives on Spelthorne Borough Council , headquartered in Staines-upon-Thames . The details below are for
1200-465: Is surrounded by some areas of green space including The Princes Club, Bedfont Lakes and Shortwood Common. Ashford is in the almost flat alluvial plain formed by the historic courses of the River Thames on fairly fertile but gravelly soil in centuries past covered by deciduous forest for wood gathering, with clearings of meadow for pasture and to a lesser extent arable farming to supply
1260-435: Is the pair of Staines Reservoirs , the other green buffer is The Princes Club, Bedfont Lakes, spanning the northeast border; these areas constitute Metropolitan Green Belt buffers to the country's largest city. The area includes postally much of Queen Mary Reservoir (which covered most of the parish to the south of Littleton and almost none of historic Ashford) named after the wife of George V , Mary of Teck . Most of
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#17327876376981320-475: Is the western half of Challenge Road, which has only business addresses. Bronze Age artefacts have been found in Ashford (at 51.432708N, 0.485174W) giving rise to the name Bronzefield and a henge may have been present in that period. Ashford appears on the Middlesex Domesday map as Exeforde , held by Robert, Count of Mortain . Its Domesday assets were: 1 plough, meadow for 1 plough;
1380-449: The 2023 election , independent councillor Joanne Sexton was appointed leader of the council, with Liberal Democrat councillor Chris Bateson serving as deputy leader. The first elections to the council were held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until the new arrangements came into effect on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows: The role of mayor
1440-663: The Office for National Statistics managed to classify 50.8 square kilometres (19.6 sq mi), 99% of land in Spelthorne. The findings of this study showed that the land use in Spelthorne was as follows: Two Rivers Retail Park and Elmsleigh Shopping Centre in Staines-upon-Thames. In 2016 there were: The district has two publicly sponsored leisure centres and two private clubs with pools, and two without pools: It has two golf courses. School-taught English sports: cricket and football are played at many pitches;
1500-497: The River Ash , one of the six distributaries of the River Colne which runs in line with the Staines bypass under the Fordbridge roundabout at the far end of Fordbridge Road, its upper reach being the traditional border with Staines and then entering Laleham , passing close to the other side of the Queen Mary Reservoir. The Staines Reservoirs Aqueduct (built 1902) flows from west to east across Ashford. It carries water from
1560-463: The Thames Path . Its sixteen main parks with recreational/sports facilities are supplemented by small greens and linear parks, such as those by the River Thames . The largest parks have woodland and flowering meadow. These support diverse and rare grasses, invertebrates and birds on a rich alluvial soil: Laleham Park and Sunbury Park . The final great reduction of private parks was that of
1620-554: The Waterloo to Reading Line , is served by South Western Railway . Heathrow Airport is 2.5 mi (4 km) north of the town. A leading gymnastics club, HMP Bronzefield and one of the sites of Brooklands College are in the town. Ashford Hospital , which began as a workhouse, is to the north of the town centre. Ashford Common has a parade of shops and is a more residential ward that includes part of Queen Mary Reservoir and all of its related water treatment works. The town
1680-462: The civil parish had a population of 16,502. On 1 April 1974 the parish was abolished. The present Church of England parish church of St Matthew in Church Road was built in 1856–58 with financial help from the Welsh School. It was sited some yards west of Ashford's earlier parish church of St Michael , parts of which were Norman . St Michael's was demolished, but internal monuments and
1740-420: The 2011 election: The average level of accommodation in the region composed of detached houses was 28%, the average that was apartments was 22.6%. The proportion of households in the settlement 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 % is made up of rented dwellings (plus
1800-680: The Church of England Diocese of London and the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Westminster . The rest of Surrey falls into the Anglican dioceses of Guildford and Southwark , and the Roman Catholic diocese of Arundel and Brighton . Floods in 2014 caused internal damage to 891 (or 2.2%) of homes in Spelthorne due to record rainfall causing Thames flooding . This compared to internal damage to more than 30% of homes in
1860-416: The London market; sheep grazing continues today around the reservoirs. In common with western fringes of Greater London, gravel commences often within a metre of the surface which has led to 20th-century gravel extraction, which has formed the lakes to the north of the railway line. The extreme west is Shortwood Common, partly converted to a recreation ground, Ashford Park School, a cemetery. North of this
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1920-653: The Staines Reservoirs and King George VI Reservoir to Hampton water treatment works via Sunbury and Kempton Park. Ashford is part of the Spelthorne parliamentary constituency which was represented by the Conservative Kwasi Kwarteng from 2010 to 2024. After Stepping down Kwarteng was replaced by Conservative MP Lincoln Jopp . In Surrey County Council , 4 of the 81 councillors are elected by Ashford in whole or in part: Ashford
1980-515: The area plus adjoining parts of modern Greater London. The district was awarded borough status from its creation, allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor . The borough ceded a small amount of land in 1995, when Poyle was transferred to Slough. The Spelthorne area was included in the Metropolitan Police District from 1840 until 2000, when it passed to Surrey Police . Spelthorne remains part of
2040-479: The borough's religiously denominated senior schools, The Bishop Wand Church of England School and St Paul's Catholic College . Ashford's further education college, Spelthorne College, became a Brooklands College Campus in 2007. In 2016 the Ashford Campus relocated to a new building adjacent to Thomas Knyvett College, and the former Spelthorne College site was demolished. It serves 16 to 18 year olds from
2100-455: The borough, which is an unparished area . On 27 February 2024, Spelthorne Borough Council unveiled their Corporate Plan for 2024-2028, highlighting their key priorities for the next few years. As of 2023, the council had £1.1 billion in borrowing, with the highest borrowing to income ratio of any council in England. The council has been under no overall control since 2020. Following
2160-432: The buildings of Ailesbury Chapel, Clerkenwell , the former chapel of the medieval Clerkenwell Priory , but at this date in use as a Presbyterian meeting-house. The chapel was reconstructed as an Anglican parish church ( St John Clerkenwell ) in 1721–3, when the school appears to have moved to nearby Jerusalem Passage. The numbers of pupils fluctuated through this period, though there were at times up to 50 boys. In 1738
2220-549: The buildings without planning permission. The developer stopped the work at the request of Spelthorne Borough Council after demolition had started, but later continued the demolition, having received planning permission to build 357 new homes on the site. In 1894, under the Local Government Act 1894 , Ashford became part of the Staines Rural District of Middlesex . In 1930 the rural district
2280-424: The church was built in the first few years, but the chancel and some other parts were not completed until 1928. St Hilda's original design included a spire that would have been one of the most significant landmarks in the area, but it was never built. St Hilda's was initially a conventual district of St Matthew's parish, but is now a separate ecclesiastical parish . The easternmost parts of Ashford Common are in
2340-616: The county's major archery clubs (Spelthorne Archers) and five lawn bowls clubs. Fishing is open to all, subject to rod licensing, from the Thames Path National Trail and adjoining islands in Laleham and Staines as well as at lakes in Shepperton and Ashford. One rowing club is in the borough, at Laleham, with others nearby including Staines Boat Club across Staines Bridge from the town centre which organises
2400-632: The early 20th century, a sale of Laleham manor demesne by the Earl of Lucan . The Jockey Club , as owner of Kempton Park Racecourse , is successor to the domain of the lords of the manor of Kempton – about 40% is a large nature reserve with its internal two large ponds abutting the Kempton Park Reservoirs Site of Special Scientific Interest , on Thames flood meadow . The borough has five reservoirs, covering more than 15% of land, which apart from their main use of ensuring
2460-695: The hostages were either released or escaped before the perpetrator surrendered to police. Ashford is on the Waterloo to Reading Line , with South Western Railway stopping services from London Waterloo on two of its three routes, those to Windsor & Eton Riverside and to Weybridge on the South West Main Line via the Chertsey Line . The station is referred to in timetables as Ashford (Surrey) in order to avoid confusion with Ashford International station in Kent. Not far north of
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2520-535: The land is devoted to suburban and low-rise urban housing – as well as recreational areas, green belt in part of the Bedfont/Feltham fringe exists in the form of meadows used for walking, horse grazing and equestrianism around Feltham Young Offenders' Institution . A few parks such as the Ashford Reservoirs or Spelthorne Park are remnants of Ashford Common which give the eastern part of the town
2580-438: The latter three being London boroughs . The district was created on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972 , covering two former districts which were both abolished at the same time: These two urban districts had been part of Middlesex prior to 1965, when they had been transferred to Surrey on the creation of Greater London. The new district was named after the medieval hundred of Spelthorne, which had covered
2640-734: The more than 720 nationwide 5,000-metre running competitions of the major organiser is around the rugby union club in its borders, which has a small nature reserve it owns to one end. Other venues hosting annual events in a range of sports are Kempton Park Racecourse and Staines Lammas Park. The stated proportion of land that is absorbed by domestic dwellings tends to be housing with gardens forming suburbs to London and otherwise has mid rise urban town centres with exceptional offices (in Staines-upon-Thames) and apartments (in Sunbury-on-Thames) which are high rise, including
2700-550: The name was changed to St David's School . The school closed in 2009 because of falling numbers caused by economic recession . In 2010, the Ashford buildings were taken over by St James Independent Schools and opened as St James Senior Boys' School. Ashford, Surrey Ashford is a town in Spelthorne , in Surrey , England, including some areas within the London Borough of Hounslow. The town lies 14 mi (23 km) west of central London. Its name derives from
2760-516: The neighbouring settlement of Wraysbury in the borough of Windsor and Maidenhead . In 2014 a campaign group of local business leaders called for the borough – along with others close to the capital – to be transferred from the county of Surrey to Greater London. The proposal was generally opposed by the public and was not pursued. Spelthorne Borough Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by Surrey County Council . There are no civil parishes in
2820-578: The parish of St Saviour's, Sunbury. The Roman Catholic Church of St Michael in Fordbridge Road was begun in 1927 and the uncompleted building was consecrated in 1928. It was designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott in a Romanesque Revival style. Building continued in 1938, but the tower was not completed until 1960. Ashford has two Methodist churches : one on Clarendon Road and the other in Ashford Common on Feltham hill Road. There
2880-596: The reign of George III . It was inclosed in 1809. Ashford Manor Golf Club was established in 1902 at the property which was the Manor Farm House but the large manorial estate and manor house that were held by Solomon Abraham Hart from 1870 to 1882 had before 1902 been broken up among many small owners, and all trace of the manor house was lost. However the title of Lord of the Manor was acquired by Scott Freeman in 1890, and after passing to another partner of
2940-540: The school moved into a new building in Gray's Inn Lane (now Gray's Inn Road ). (Coincidentally, the site was almost exactly opposite that on which the London Welsh Centre would open in 1930.) The school now became predominantly residential. In 1857 the school moved out of London to a new site at Ashford, Middlesex. It began to have difficulty attracting charitable pupils, and in 1882 was reconstituted to admit
3000-529: The school moved into a new purpose-built home on Clerkenwell Green. The construction of this building, designed by James Steer, was funded by subscriptions. The building (greatly altered and restored) survives, and is now the Marx Memorial Library . The first girls were admitted to the school in 1758. In 1768, a decision was taken to admit a small number of residential pupils : the first were six girls. Thomas Pennant 's British Zoology (1766)
3060-485: The sites of special scientific interest (SSSI). Hospitality is widespread in the riverside towns. Sunbury and Staines town hubs are within 6 miles (10 km) of top UK attractions such as Windsor Castle, Thorpe Park, Hampton Court, Twickenham Rugby Stadium and Kew Gardens. Staines is the borough's main station, being served by South Western Railway services to London Waterloo , Reading and Windsor & Eton Riverside . A January 2005 enhanced base map study by
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#17327876376983120-403: The solicitors Horne, Engall & Freeman the title passed in more recent times to Russell Grant . Ashford's housing stock is chiefly a mixture of detached and semi-detached housing built between 1885 and 1960. The Welsh School (later St David's School ) was founded in 1857. Its building north of Ashford railway station is Gothic Revival , designed by Henry Clutton . St David's School
3180-564: The station is the A30 dual carriageway, which marks much of Ashford's northern border. It follows the old route from London to Devon and Cornwall. The alignment of this road is WSW–ENE. A straight relief road, roughly WNW–ESE, was built by the Hampton and Staines Turnpike Trust. Now the A308 , it has become a dual carriageway from Sunbury Cross to the junction with the A30 at Staines. This road marks some of
3240-659: The third, rugby union is played at the London Irish Hazelwood Centre sharing pitches with London Irish Amateur Rugby Football Club in Sunbury. Staines Rugby Club play next to the Feltham -Hanworth-Sunbury tripoint in Lower Feltham. Spelthorne has two football clubs – semi- or non-professional – as the top men's sides compete in the lower leagues: Spelthorne hosts one of
3300-767: The town including the King's Fairway, the District Arms, the King's Head, the Freemans Arms, and the Bulldog (a Harvester gastropub ). Ashford, in common with most of London suburbia , has very low unemployment rates. A great deal of local employment is directly related to Heathrow Airport . BP International is another major employer. Many other residents work in London or in the Thames Valley . Main dealers of Ford , Citroën and formerly Suzuki are along
3360-460: The town's outlying dual carriageway roads. The town previously had multiple high street banks including Barclays , HSBC , Lloyds and Santander , however all of these have since closed. The Barclays branch located on Church Road was the site of an attempted robbery in June 2010, when a man armed with an imitation gun and a fake bomb took multiple hostages, demanding £800,000 and a helicopter. All of
3420-568: The town's southern border. Ashford is close to the M25 , M3 and A3 roads . The town is on Hallmark Connections route 555 from Heathrow Airport to Walton-on-Thames , on three Transport for London routes, the 117 , 216 and 290 , also serving Isleworth , Kingston upon Thames and Twickenham respectively, and more occasional routes, including special school services run by other operators. In addition, three secondary schools were established in Sunbury-on-Thames , including
3480-474: Was abolished and joined Staines Urban District . In 1965, under the London Government Act 1963, Middlesex County Council was abolished and the urban district was transferred to Surrey . In 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972 , Staines Urban District was abolished and its area combined with that of Sunbury-on-Thames Urban District to create the present borough of Spelthorne . In 1931
3540-483: Was at first a boys' school, and then from 1758 co-educational , but from 1882 it began to admit girls only and became known as the Welsh Girls' School . It changed its name to St David's School in 1967, and closed in 2009. The school's patron was Queen Elizabeth II . The school was originally established by the Honourable and Loyal Society of Antient Britons (founded 1715), a London -based Welsh society, as
3600-546: Was published "under the auspices of the Cymmrodorion Society", and "sold for the benefit of the British Charity-School on Clerkenwell Green". Pennant in fact lost heavily on the publication, and so the school derived no direct benefit from it. Independently of this work, however, he did give the school a donation of £100. Conditions at Clerkenwell Green became increasingly cramped, and in 1772
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