122-711: St Neots is a town and civil parish in the Huntingdonshire district of Cambridgeshire , England. It is 18 miles (29 km) west of Cambridge . The areas of Eynesbury , Eaton Ford , Eaton Socon , and Wintringham form part of the town. The town centre lies on the eastern bank of the River Great Ouse . The town is close to the A1 road (north-south), as well as the A421 and A428 roads which link Cambridge to Bedford and Milton Keynes . St Neots railway station
244-522: 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
366-635: A Baron's area of control was called a "soke" and in French the area was called the Soka de Eton, and later Eaton Socon. Before the river was bridged, people waded across it, and this was called a "ford", from which the immediate area became called Eaton Ford. The Priory was destroyed during the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the 16th century, and the relics of St Neot were lost. The River Great Ouse
488-515: 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
610-590: A beautiful mile-long waterside frontage. The park has a cafe, parking for 250 cars, a large children's activity area, a skate park, and a miniature railway, Riverside Miniature Railway . During the summer concerts are occasionally held on Sunday afternoons in the park. Barford Road Pocket Park in Eynesbury, hosts weekly parkrun and junior parkrun events. To the north of the town is Paxton Pits Nature Reserve providing walks through its 190 acres (77 ha) of lakes, meadow, grassland, scrub and woodland. The reserve
732-576: 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
854-477: 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
976-462: 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
1098-559: 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
1220-481: 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
1342-525: A communal leisure budget and supports tourism. The next tier of local government is Cambridgeshire County Council , headquartered in Cambridge. This provides county-wide services such as road infrastructure, fire and rescue, education, social services, libraries and heritage. The fourth tier is the Peterborough and Cambridgeshire Combined Authority, responsible for strategic planning. Eaton Ford
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#17327756873131464-484: A ford. It was constructed entirely in timber and, because there were marshy areas both sides of the river, it included a long causeway. In 1588, a new town bridge was built. A survey of the old bridge showed that it consisted of 72 arches, and it was 704 feet in length and 7 ft 6in wide. The replacement bridge was to have masonry piers up to the flood water level. The river formed the boundary between Bedfordshire and Huntingdonshire, so both counties had to contribute to
1586-547: A further 2,800 houses in 2021 in the nearby Wintringham development. Expansion of light industry facilities was incorporated in the original overspill planning, and has also been continued more recently. The population of St Neots in 2011 was 31,165; in 2021 it was around 33,000. This figure is expected to rise further still in the coming decade. St Neots' position as a traditional town location, with plentiful industrial sites and good transport facilities encourages this expansion. The Loves Farm estate will be extended eastwards, and
1708-584: A hospital for the elderly, and renamed the White House. In the 1950s part of it was converted for use as flats, and in the 1980s the building was completely upgraded internally, and the entire building was made into flats. In the period following 1960 Eaton Ford expanded quickly under the London overspill programme and subsequent housing development. Prior to this scheme, the housing stock in Eaton Ford
1830-583: A mayor. In 1989 the town council moved to new offices in an extension to the Priory Centre. The parishes of St Neots Rural and Eynesbury Hardwicke were both abolished in 2010 and divided between St Neots and Abbotsley . St Neots is in the parliamentary constituency of St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire . The member of parliament is Ian Sollom of the Liberal Democrats . Prior to the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies , St Neots
1952-529: 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
2074-431: 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
2196-681: 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. Eaton Ford Eaton Ford
2318-448: A parish called Eynesbury Hardwicke . In 1938 the urban district council bought a large early 19th century house called Cressner (or Cressener) House at 12 Huntingdon Street and converted it to become its offices and meeting place. The urban district was enlarged in 1965 to take in part of the parish of Eaton Socon from Bedfordshire, including the old village of Eaton Socon and the Eaton Ford area, which by that time were effectively part of
2440-416: 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
2562-431: A population in excess of 100,000 . This scope is similar to that of municipalities in continental Europe, such as 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
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#17327756873132684-503: 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
2806-682: A public house, the Barley Mow. The low-lying areas near the river have been subject to flooding, and a flood control scheme has been implemented; the Riverside Park adjacent to The Paddock, the carpark there, and adjacent areas are planned surge containment zones: in times of heavy water flow in the river, these areas are flooded to prevent more serious inundation; flood control banks are provided to protect houses in The Paddock. In Anglo-Saxon times there were small settlements on
2928-1079: 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
3050-409: 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
3172-598: 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
3294-943: 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
3416-521: 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
3538-504: Is a grassy area at the junction of St Neots Road and Crosshall Road, but has long since lost its attractiveness to road improvement schemes. There is a large school complex, Crosshall Junior School on the Great North Road, with considerable pedestrian and vehicular traffic generated at the start and end of the school day. (Despite the historic name, the Great North Road is only a local distributor road here). St Neots Golf Club
3660-450: Is also a gallery with temporary exhibitions by local creatives including fine art, ceramics, sculpture and illustration. The museum organises a variety of specialist and family events from walks, talks, one-day festivals, temporary and touring exhibitions. St Neots general market is held on the market square every Thursday. A further farmers market is held on the market square every second and fourth Saturday. Thee theatre community includes
3782-403: Is an area in the civil parish of St Neots , Cambridgeshire , England. It is a mainly residential area also containing Riverside Park, a large area of riverside parkland. Much of the housing stock dates from the period of London overspill during the 1960s and subsequently. The former village green is still in place. Eaton Ford lies in the area bounded by the River Great Ouse , Duloe Brook in
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3904-507: 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
4026-539: 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
4148-509: Is expected to begin in spring 2024 with roads and infrastructure, hence Cambridge Road, and the first homes expected to be completed in 2026. St Neots Museum is housed in the town's former Victorian Police Station and Magistrates Court. It has local history collections covering the town's rich past including a display about James Toller, the Eynesbury Giant, a resident from the 18th century who measured over 8 ft in height. There
4270-529: Is famous for its nightingales and cormorants and is home to a wide variety of other birds, insects, mammals and flora. The Rowley Arts Centre was opened in May 2014 and includes a six-screen cinema operated by Cineworld and a complex with three restaurants and a gym. It was named after Peter Rowley, an American playwright, author and critic who was Lord of the Manor of St Neots and who donated £1 million towards
4392-414: Is largely residential, but with an extensive area of parkland – Riverside Park – adjacent to the river. There is practically no industrial activity within Eaton Ford, and most people in work travel to other parts of St Neots, or commute further afield. Eaton Ford Green forms a small but pleasing "village green" focus to the community, and St Neots Town Council arrange to maintain flower beds. Maltman's Green
4514-464: Is located on Crosshall Road, and the grounds occupy nearly all of the northern part of Eaton Ford up to the River Kym, which forms the boundary. The other occupier of this part of Eaton Ford is a marina, Crosshall Marine Ltd. Its tucked-away location means that it may well be unknown to residents who do not play golf and do not use river craft. Eaton Ford has a semi-independent convenience store and
4636-405: 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
4758-464: Is on the Great Northern route between London and Peterborough . St Neots had a population of 33,410 in 2021. The town is named after the ninth century monk Saint Neot , whose bones were brought to St Neots Priory from Cornwall in around 980 AD, resulting in pilgrims visiting in large numbers. Before the founding of the priory the area had been part of the parish of Eynesbury. As
4880-542: Is part of the council's 'One Leisure' brand, which has other sites in Huntingdon and St Ives. The Great Ouse river passes through the centre of the town, through Regatta Meadows and Riverside Park and linking to Eaton Socon providing opportunities for riverside leisure walks, and forms part of the Ouse Valley Way walking route. Riverside Park is close to the town centre and covers 72 acres (29 ha) with
5002-504: 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
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5124-775: The Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority , led by the Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough . The town council is based at the Priory Centre, on the banks of the River Great Ouse. The council consists of 21 elected councillors including a town mayor and a deputy town mayor. With a budget (2020–2021) of £1.8 million, its operations cover cemeteries and "closed" churchyards (those that are full), public conveniences, allotments, play areas, bus shelters in rural locations, and some residual footway lighting (but not street lighting). The historic parish of St Neots
5246-1010: 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
5368-477: The Local Government Act 1894 . That act also said that parishes could no longer straddle district boundaries, and so in 1895 the two parishes of St Neots and Eynesbury were both reduced to just cover the parts within the St Neots Urban District. The part of St Neots parish outside the urban district became a parish called St Neots Rural, and the part of Eynesbury outside the urban district became
5490-535: The Sandy Heath TV transmitter. Local radio stations are BBC Radio Cambridgeshire , Heart East , Greatest Hits Radio East , Star Radio , HCR FM and Black Cat Radio, a community based radio station. The Hunts Post is the town's local weekly newspaper. St Neots railway station is served by generally half-hourly trains north to Peterborough and south to Horsham via London St Pancras and Gatwick Airport , with additional peak time commuter services in
5612-592: The Southern Football League Division 1 Central. The town also has a rugby club St Neots RUFC , a rowing club St Neots Rowing Club , two Dragon Boat teams and a table tennis club, the St Neots Table Tennis club. Huntingdonshire District Council operates a leisure centre complex in Eynesbury with an indoor swimming pool, gym, squash courts, sports hall, tennis courts, all weather pitches, creche, and cafe. The site
5734-472: 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
5856-595: 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
5978-403: 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 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
6100-470: 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
6222-539: The 1960s they were transferred to Huntingdonshire, to join St Neots, of which they had become a part for practical purposes. In 1974 Huntingdonshire was abolished as a County, and Eaton Ford was in Cambridgeshire. St Neots Golf Club had existed from before 1900, but in 1912 it moved to its present site alongside Crosshall Road. Until the 1960s, the road network in Eaton Ford consisted of the Great North Road,
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#17327756873136344-403: The 19th century and are now entirely separate. Civil parishes in their modern form came into being through 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
6466-564: 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
6588-461: The 19th century, it was provided with a high quality set of stained glass windows depicting the life of Jesus Christ. It is considered to be a very fine building, and has been called the Cathedral of Huntingdonshire. Writing originally in 1958 before the enlargement of the town and the reconstruction of the bridge, John Betjeman said: The good small market community has a medieval bridge over
6710-591: 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
6832-511: 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
6954-499: The Black Death of 1348-9 which reputedly shrank the population of England by a third. Many travellers would have passed through the village from London to the north and they may have carried their germs with them. The first bridge across the River Great Ouse at St Neots was probably built in the 11th or 12th century to bring traders and pilgrims into the market place established by the monks of St Neots Priory. It probably replaced
7076-576: The British Isles and worldwide. Eaton Ford and Eaton Socon , lying on the west side of the River Great Ouse, were formerly within Bedfordshire, but in 1965 they were incorporated into the urban district of St Neots. Technology-based industries operate in some of the town's light industrial estates, and there is a gas turbine power station at Little Barford in neighbouring Bedfordshire . Recent developments in St Neots have expanded
7198-617: The Domesday Book, Eudo Dapifer held Eaton Socon "with the Manors of Wyboston and Sudbury"; the tenant-in-chief at Sudbury being Richard, son of Gilbert. Later, Sudbury was recorded as having belonged to St Neots Priory in King Edward’s time. The family who became Lords of the Manor there in the 13th century eventually adopted the name of the Manor as their surname and became known as "de Sudbury". The Manor House may have stood on or near
7320-570: 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 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
7442-653: The Ouse and a well-proportioned Market Square, but the church is tucked away on the fringe of the town. It is almost everything a good town church should be: a luxurious Perpendicular building with perhaps the finest tower in the county, faced in ironstone and pebbles with ashlar dressings – an agreeable contrast in colour and texture. The roof is almost flat – although not over-elaborate it is very English and most satisfying. There are several Perpendicular screens. Regional local news and television programmes are provided by BBC East and ITV Anglia . Television signals are received from
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#17327756873137564-479: The River Great Ouse was much wider and shallower than at present, with ill-defined banks. This made fording the river possible with care, and by choosing a dryer period to do so. Ea-tun came to be known as Eaton, and after the Norman Conquest the more southerly part was designated by the fact that it was part of a soke, a governmental sub-division, and in time this became Eaton Socon. The important Ford in
7686-553: The River Ouse (Bedfordshire) Navigation Act was passed for improvements to the River Ouse, to enable navigation as far as Bedford. During the 19th century the superstructure of the bridge was widened and the "scallops" peculiar to the Huntingdonshire half were carried across the whole length of the parapet. (The scallops were in fact jack-arches supported on cantilever beams, supporting the footway extensions.) The end of
7808-557: The Riverside Theatre Company, who stage productions, run workshops and have groups for all ages; VAMPS formed in 1961 as the St Neots and District Operatic Society and stage popular musicals and variety shows; St Neots Players, formed in the late 1920s as a play-reading group with past members who used to perform the annual Shakespeare , Pantomime and other mid-season productions at the Kings Head Hotel in
7930-618: The Roundhouse Community Primary School. Into the east of Love's Farm, there are developments to upgrade Cambridge Road (B1428) between the A428 junction and the Bret Road junction at Wintringham. This will support the eastern expansion of St Neots, and make way for Monkfields, the next development and Phase 3 of Love's Farm. L&Q Estates, the developers of Monkfields, have stated that construction work on site
8052-642: The Stables Theatre; and Stageworks, a performing arts group offering classes, holiday programmes, workshops and a college offering full-time training to students aged 16 years and over that prepares students for musical theatre and acting, SJ School of Dance, Pocket Productions, and Peppercorns Academy. The local creative community is served by Neotists, a community interest company for creative professionals with members covering design, illustration, art, photography and IT, which commissions local creatives to collaborate on projects, run workshops and events for
8174-603: The Wintringham Estate is under construction, and will infill a substantial part of the space between Cambridge Road and the by-pass. The town is to benefit from the Government Future High Streets Fund. Huntingdonshire District Council will manage the expenditure of £12.8 million. St Neots has a semi-professional non-League football team, St Neots Town F.C. , who play at Rowley Park Stadium. The club are currently members of
8296-738: 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
8418-450: The bridge at Eaton Ford was also widened to make less of a bottleneck. The old stone bridge survived well into the 20th century, but it proved inadequate for the weight of modern motor traffic, even when passage over it was restricted to one-way operation. There was a five mph speed limit. Because of its position on a county boundary, the negotiations regarding its replacement were prolonged and took over 20 years to complete. Finally in 1964,
8540-402: The built-up area of the town. St Neots Urban District was abolished in 1974, with district-level functions transferring to the new Huntingdon District Council (later renamed Huntingdonshire District Council). A successor parish was created covering the area of the former urban district. The parish council declared the parish to be a town, allowing it to take the style "town council" and appoint
8662-399: 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
8784-668: The community and provide opportunities and connections for professionals working in the creative industry . In 2023, the Neotists organised the St Neots Festival, a music and performing arts festival in Priory Park. There are three tiers of local government covering St Neots, at civil parish (town), district , and county level: St Neots Town Council, Huntingdonshire District Council and Cambridgeshire County Council . The district and county councils also form part of
8906-425: The costs of materials and labour. The town bridge was replaced again, probably in 1617, but this time entirely in masonry. The bridge was clearly of great importance as it allowed river traffic to pass without hindrance (by removal of the ford), and commerce was becoming increasingly important. Other improvements in the same period included river work to improve navigability, and to make Bedford accessible. In 1670
9028-537: 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
9150-464: 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
9272-466: 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
9394-525: 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
9516-463: 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
9638-465: The development from the profit he made from selling the land on which the Love's Farm development was built. The complex was subsequently purchased as an investment by Huntingdonshire District Council for £7.6 million in 2019. St Neots has a ten pin bowling centre with 16 lanes, which was built on part of the site of the outdoor swimming pool that closed in 2003. Originally the intention for the remainder of
9760-439: 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
9882-534: 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
10004-534: The formation of St Neots Poor Law Union on 24 September 1835. After some difficulty in finding a suitable site, a workhouse was built in Eaton Socon (the location is now considered to be in Eaton Ford). Its capacity was 250 persons. A separate infirmary block was ready in 1879, increasing the limited capacity of the workhouse. In the late 1920s the building ceased to operate as a workhouse, and became used as
10126-455: 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
10248-508: The land as it was vacated. The last remaining building from the Army activity was removed in 1983. Eaton Ford is within the area of St Neots Town Council; there is an Eaton Ford ward. Huntingdonshire District Council is the next tier, with offices in Huntingdon. It collects all council tax and administers/provides building regulations, planning and environmental checks/approvals, day centres, assessed housing benefits, parks, waste collections,
10370-476: 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
10492-480: The length of Mill Hill Road. Intensely heightened political tension with Germany led to a period of rearmament, and a basic training camp for recruits was established. On the outbreak of World War II the camp was converted to be a base for the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers . A searchlight and anti-aircraft gun emplacement were located within the camp, at the boundary at Great North Road. After
10614-465: 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
10736-451: The mornings and evenings to and from London King's Cross . Journeys are typically around 45 minutes to London King's Cross, 55 minutes to St Pancras, and a little under two hours to Gatwick Airport. St Neots was the 423rd busiest station in the UK in 2018–19 (out of 2560) with 1.3 million journeys beginning or ending there. St Neots station footbridge has access to the car park and taxi rank on
10858-441: The name Eaton Ford came to be used. Young speculates that it was a little to the north of the present-day bridge, because of the angle of approach of Crosshall Road, which nowadays lurches southwards as it approaches the river. In Anglo-Saxon times there was a small settlement named Sudbury ("southern fort"). It was probably at the junction of the present-day Crosshall Road and the traditional Great North Road. In 1086, according to
10980-465: 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
11102-574: The new line and the existing East Coast Main Line will intersect. Civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government . It is a territorial designation which 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
11224-399: The night of 9 July resting in the town. In the small hours of 10 July Parliamentary troops attacked, taking them by surprise, and the battle centred on the market square area. Many Royalists were killed or taken prisoner. In the 18th and 19th centuries the town enjoyed prosperity through corn milling and brewing, and from stagecoach traffic and from 1850 its railway connection. Eaton Socon
11346-535: The northern part came to be known as Eaton Ford. There were other places where the Great Ouse could be forded, but this seems to have been the principal crossing place. The name Eaton Ford was understood casually, but only took formal significance in 1963, when it was separated from Eaton Socon. About 972 AD an Anglo-Saxon landowner named Leofric and his wife Leoflaed founded a small monastery in Eynesbury (at that time known as Ernulph's Bury, and including part of
11468-508: The object of pilgrimages. Leofric arranged to abstract Neot's bones, depositing them in his Priory. This had the desired effect and the Priory became a major centre of attention for pilgrims. Over time, the Priory and the locality where it was situated, became known as St Neots. The combination of visits of pilgrims and visitors to the market made the Ford at Eaton of great importance, and slowly
11590-488: 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
11712-448: 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 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
11834-401: 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
11956-404: 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
12078-562: 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
12200-499: 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
12322-675: The picturesque but fragile structure was demolished and work began on the present more practical bridge. In the early years of the nineteenth century, the provision of relief for the destitute was uncoordinated and unsatisfactory. It was the Poor Law Amendment Act of 1834 which gave local government the task of making coordinated arrangements, and this swiftly led to the formation of Poor Law Unions, in which parishes would collaborate in providing workhouses. The destitute would be given indoor shelter and food, and would be allocated work they were considered capable of. This resulted in
12444-417: The population in the last few years: to the east of the local train station are the developments of Love's Farm, with more than 1,000 houses being built in the late 2010s and early 2020s. There is more to Love's Farm, as the second phase, to the south of phase 1, is Wintringham , planned to be a vibrant community with 2,000 homes, and there is a selection of two primary schools: Wintringham Primary Academy and
12566-411: 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
12688-523: The present day St Neots). The settlement was established at the junction of Huntingdon Street and Cambridge Street. The Priory had the potential to generate considerable income from the visits and donations of pilgrims, but to attract pilgrims they needed relics. Leofric decided to obtain the remains of Saint Neot, a much-revered Saxon monk who had spent much of his life in Cornwall and who had died in about 875 AD. His remains were kept there and had become
12810-511: The present-day Cornish village of St Neot . When he died, his remains were kept there as holy relics, and many pilgrims visited, making donations. In the later tenth century a priory was established immediately north of the village of Eynesbury in what is now St Neots. The landowners, Leofric and his wife Leoflaed, obtained Neot's remains (leaving an arm in Cornwall), realising that they would attract pilgrims, and their money, to their priory. This
12932-558: The route into St Neots from Wyboston, and the section north of the roundabout carried local traffic only. When St Neots by-pass opened, the A45 traffic used the A1 to the Wyboston roundabout and then the by-pass, so that the whole Eaton Ford road network was now of local significance only. From 1937 or 1938 there was an army depot alongside Mill Hill Road, on the south side. It extended over most of
13054-425: The site of the present farmhouse to the north-east of Cross Hall crossroads. The word "Hall" is usually associated with manor houses and it would be logical for a manor house situated at a crossroads to be called "Cross Hall". Traces of the strips that once composed the arable fields of Sudbury can still be seen as ridge-and-furrow waves on St Neots Golf Course. The disappearance of Sudbury village may have been due to
13176-467: The site was to build a new outdoor pool, but these plans were not realised. Discussions are ongoing about the creation of a splash park on the remaining part of the site There are two golf courses: St Neots Golf Club and Wyboston Lakes. St Neots parish church is dedicated to St Mary. The late 12th-century parish church was almost completely rebuilt in the 15th century, making it one of the largest and grandest medieval churches in modern Cambridgeshire. In
13298-579: The south, the A1 road to the west, and the River Kym in the north. The small marshy island in the Great Ouse at the confluence of the Kym is included. Eaton Ford is approximately 81 km (50 mi) north of London. Historically Eaton Ford was in Bedfordshire ; it was transferred to Cambridgeshire in 1974. Eaton Ford is a distinct area of St Neots, lying to the west of the River Great Ouse. It
13420-419: The spur of St Neots Road leading from the roundabout to the river bridge, Crosshall Road, and Mill Hill Road. The Great North Road was a busy and important route, but it was a single carriageway. Crosshall Road was part of the A45 trunk road, leading from Kimbolton to St Neots town centre and on to Cambridge. When the present A1 road was built, forming a by-pass on the western side, the Great North Road served as
13542-411: The town around the priory grew it became a separate parish of St Neots in the twelfth century. The two were administratively reunited in 1876 when Eynesbury was absorbed into St Neots. Remains of Iron Age settlement have been found in the town centre; a Roman encampment was located in the town. It became known as Eynesbury, after Ernulf, a local leader. Neot was a holy man who founded a monastery near
13664-418: The war some families continued in residence on the site until 1959, when the site was sold out of army usage. The Eastern Electricity Board purchased it and from 1960 used it as a works depot and training facility. The EEB planned to develop the site further, but the local authority planning strategy prevented that. The EEB later ran their activity down, and withdrew completely by 1977. Housebuilding took place on
13786-666: 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 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
13908-473: The west side of the River Great Ouse. A village was formed near the water's edge, probably opposite the Coneygeare, and this was called Ea-tun, meaning waterside-village. Another, smaller settlement a little further north was called Forda, and later simply Ford. A further small settlement was on the hilltop near the present Duloe windmill, and was then called Sudbury, meaning the southern fort. At that time
14030-412: The west side, and the district of Love's Farm on the east side. There are lifts to the platforms. East West Rail is a plan to establish a railway between Oxford and Cambridge. As of 2023 Construction is underway on the western section between Oxford and Bedford. The company's preferred route between Bedford and Cambridge has been announced, which includes a station at Tempsford south of St Neots, where
14152-434: 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 the gift and continued patronage (benefaction) of
14274-503: Was governed by its vestry , in the same way as most rural areas, until 1819 when the more built-up part of the parish was given improvement commissioners . In 1876 the commissioners' district was reconstituted as a local government district run by an elected local board. The district was enlarged at the same time to also include part of the neighbouring parish of Eynesbury, including the old village itself. Such local government districts were in turn reconstituted as urban districts under
14396-488: Was largely confined to ribbon development along St Neots Road and Mill Hill Road. The new housing infilled practically the whole of Eaton Ford, leaving only the Riverside Park and the golf course undeveloped. The Crosshall Infant and Junior Schools were opened in 1974 to respond to population growth. The Eaton Oak is a hotel and restaurant near Crosshall crossroads; it is a listed building. In common with Eaton Socon, Eaton Ford had historically been part of Bedfordshire. In
14518-528: Was made navigable from St Ives to Bedford, via St Neots, in 1629, increasing river-borne trade in the town. The Second English Civil War began in April 1648. The Parliamentarians under Oliver Cromwell were in control, but King Charles I planned to overthrow them by force of arms. An attempt to seize London by his supporters, the Royalists, failed. A group of them retreated to St Neots and planned to spend
14640-613: Was on the Great North Road and had inns used as a staging post and overnight stop for stagecoaches travelling between London and York ; some of the routes ran via St Neots instead of Eaton Socon, and intersected with traffic on the east–west route from the Eastern Counties and the Midlands. Between 1851 and 1885 George Bower's Vulcan Iron Foundry was a major employer, supplying equipment for gasworks throughout
14762-480: Was part of Huntingdon constituency . St Neots experienced considerable growth in the 1960s and later, when much new housing was built to accommodate families from London, as part of the London overspill plan. Further housebuilding followed and in 2010, the Loves Farm development was built, with 1,400 houses to the east of the railway line; further construction is continuing further east in 2020–2023, followed by
14884-400: Was successful, and the priory became rich and famous, and the area became known as St Neots. St Neots subsequently became a separate parish from Eynesbury sometime between 1113 and 1204, with the boundary between them being a stream called Hen Brook. About this time, the settlement to the west of the River Ouse was known as Ea-tun, meaning "waterside village". In Norman times, a sub-division of
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