39-616: Wigston , or Wigston Magna , is a town in the Oadby and Wigston district of Leicestershire , England, just south of Leicester on the A5199 . It had a population of 32,321 in 2011. Wigston is 4 miles (6.4 km) south of the city of Leicester, at the centre of Leicestershire and the East Midlands . Oadby is 1 mile (1.6 km) to the east, connected by the B582 road. To the west along
78-595: A Manchester accountant whose accounting methods in relation to capitalisation and depreciation have attracted interest even 100 years or more later. Pochin was elected to the Parliament of the United Kingdom in 1868 as one of two members of parliament for Stafford . He also held public office at times as a Deputy Lieutenant , Justice of the Peace and for two years, 1866–8, Mayor of Salford . Henry Pochin
117-507: A community based radio station. The town is served by the local newspaper, Leicester Mercury (formerly Oadby, Wigston & Blaby Mail). South Wigston railway station lies on the Birmingham to Peterborough Line . Trains to Leicester run every hour and take five minutes. Wigston Magna and the surrounding estates are served by bus services operated by Arriva Midlands and Centrebus . Oadby and Wigston Oadby and Wigston
156-705: A low cost alternative to alumstone in the production of alum cake used in the manufacture of paper. The process required china clay , and Pochin bought several china clay mines in Cornwall for this purpose. In time H. D. Pochin & Co. became one of the three largest British producers of china clay until they were acquired in 1932 by the English China Clays along with the second largest producer, Lovering, to form English China Clays Lovering Pochin & Co. Ltd (ECLP), with both Lovering and Pochin remaining shareholders. Pochin's principal china clay works
195-697: A member of the Hong Kong anti-corruption squad in the 1970s and ended his career as head of the Leicester murder squad. Henry Davis Pochin , the manufacturing chemist who later owned the Bodnant Estate (now the National Trust's Bodnant Garden ), was born in Wigston, son of another notable householder, William Pochin. Bushloe House, currently the offices of Oadby and Wigston Borough Council,
234-635: A residence in Llandudno , North Wales at Haulfre, on the south facing landward side of the Great Orme where he was able to pursue his passion for gardening in an extensive and steeply terraced garden that since 1929 has been under the care of the local authority and is freely open to the public. In 1874 Pochin bought the Bodnant estate at Tal-y-Cafn in the Conwy Valley comprising 25 farms with
273-785: Is South Leicestershire College , an FE college. Next to the Beauchamp College is Gartree High School , a former middle school. Another school is Manor High School, Oadby , which was the largest middle school in the country. The following people, military units and Organisations have received the Freedom of the Borough of Oadby and Wigston. 52°35′31″N 1°05′42″W / 52.592°N 1.095°W / 52.592; -1.095 Henry Davis Pochin Henry Davis Pochin (25 May 1824 – 28 August 1895)
312-618: Is a local government district with borough status in Leicestershire , England. It covers the two towns of Oadby , where the council is based, and Wigston , which is the larger town. Both form part of the Leicester urban area , lying south-east of the city. The neighbouring districts are Leicester , Harborough and Blaby . The district was created on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972 , covering
351-792: Is a large further education provider for the area. It was rebuilt on Canal Street, South Wigston in 2010. 1461 (Wigston) Squadron of the Air Training Corps is located in Tigers Road, South Wigston, and recruits many members from the schools in Wigston. Local news and television programmes are provided by BBC East Midlands and ITV Central . Television signals are received from the Waltham TV transmitter. Local radio stations are BBC Radio Leicester , Capital East Midlands , Smooth East Midlands , Hits Radio East Midlands , Greatest Hits Radio Midlands , and Cross Counties Radio,
390-531: Is an area of housing developed up until the early 1990s between the Little Hill and Meadows estates. These three estates mark the boundary of the greater Leicester urban area, beyond which lies agricultural land. One of the earliest records of Wigston is in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Wichingstone in the ancient wapentake of Guthlaxton , listed amongst the lands held by Hugh de Grandmesnil for
429-531: Is instead provided by the leader of the council . The leaders since 2006 have been: Following the 2023 election and a change of allegiance in March 2024, the composition of the council was: The next election is due in 2027. Since the last boundary changes in 2003 the council has comprised 26 councillors representing 10 wards , with each ward electing two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years. The wards are: The district forms part of
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#1732771745385468-496: Is the secondary school for the area. It was formed in September 2015 from the merger of Abington Academy and Bushloe High School . Wigston College (formerly known as Guthlaxton College) is the post-16 provider for the area. Both institutions are part of Wigston Academies Trust. Wigston Birkett House Community Special School is a special school located in the town that serves the wider area. South Leicestershire College
507-600: The Birmingham to Peterborough Line . It passes northwards on the east side of the Glen Parva prison (in Blaby district ). It meets Leicester UA south of Eyres Monsell , a large housing estate. Following the Leicester boundary, it crosses Saffron Road (B5366), then follows Dorset Avenue , follows the Midland Main Line northwards, crossing Aylestone Lane (B5418), then crosses the Midland Main Line. It crosses
546-692: The Harborough constituency . The council meets at the Brocks Hill Council Offices in Brocks Hill Park on Washbrook Lane in Oadby. Until 2023 the council was based at Bushloe House on Station Road in Wigston, which had been built c. 1850 as a house and had been bought in 1942 by the old Wigston Urban District Council and converted to become its headquarters. In 2023 the council moved its meetings and offices to
585-517: The King . In the Middle Ages it was known as Wigston Two Spires as, unusually, there were two mediaeval churches there, All Saints' and St Wistan's. St Wistan's is so called because it was one of the places where the body of St Wistan or Wigstan rested before burial. Wigstan was a Mercian prince who was assassinated, but was regarded as a martyr. He was initially buried at Repton , but his body
624-749: The Midland Main Line . It crosses the Grand Union Canal , and towards Kilby it meets the district of Blaby at the River Sence . It follows the River Sence, crossing the A5199 ( Welford Road ). At Rose Farm it follows Countesthorpe Road towards South Wigston, to the Grand Union Canal, crossing the former Midland Counties Railway , which it follows westwards. It passes northwards across St Thomas Road (B582) and
663-677: The Welford Road (A5199) at the point where the road becomes a dual-carriageway south of the Best Western Leicester Stage Hotel (in Leicester UA). It passes on the south edge of Knighton Park , and the western edge of Oadby Golf Club , west of Leicester Racecourse (in the district). Near the racecourse entrance it crosses the A563 southern ring road, then London Road (A6), passing northwards along
702-484: The social history of this town from earliest recorded history into the 19th century. It was the birthplace of George Davenport, a notorious highwayman; Abigail Herrick, the mother of Jonathan Swift , author of Gulliver's Travels ; former Leicester Tigers and England scrum-half Harry Ellis who attended Bushloe High School; and former Leicester Sound and BBC Radio Leicester presenter, Mark Hayman. Graham Chapman , of Monty Python fame, lived (around 1951/52) in what
741-436: The sole proprietor . Pochin is noted for two important inventions. Firstly, he developed a process for the clarification of rosin , a brown substance used to make soap, by passing steam through it so that after distillation it came out white, thus enabling the production of white soap. He sold the rights to this process to raise money to exploit his second invention, which was a process using ammonium sulfate and alumina as
780-417: The B582, or Blaby Road is South Wigston , 1 mile (1.6 km). The Grand Union Canal runs along a southern route below Wigston from Newton Harcourt 2 miles (3.2 km), Kilby Bridge 1 mile (1.6 km), and for several miles through South Wigston , Glen Parva 2 miles (3.2 km), Blaby 3 miles (4.8 km) and on towards Leicester . Wigston's population of approximately 32,000 live in both
819-608: The Bodnant House and over 80 acres (32 ha) of garden where he lived in active retirement. At Bodnant, Pochin realised the superb qualities of the Dell through which the estate river ran and after first strengthening the banks to deter erosion he set about planting with great American and Oriental conifers. The development of the garden was continued by Pochin's daughter Laura McLaren, Baroness Aberconway , who married Charles McLaren, 1st Baron Aberconway . In 1949, Bodnant Garden
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#1732771745385858-579: The Brocks Hill offices in Oadby. It is composed of the areas of Oadby , Wigston , South Wigston and the hamlet of Kilby Bridge . It is predominantly urban, and borders Leicester directly to the north-west. There are no civil parishes in the district. The most northerly corner is near the junction of the A6030 and B582, and near the Bupa hospital it meets Harborough. It runs along the B582 then along
897-461: The area of two former districts, which were both abolished at the same time: The new district was named Oadby and Wigston, combining the towns' names. The new district was awarded borough status from its creation, allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor. Oadby and Wigston Borough Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by Leicestershire County Council . There are no civil parishes in
936-452: The borough, which is an unparished area . The council has been under Liberal Democrat majority control since 1991. The first election to the council was held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities before coming into its powers on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows: The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in Oadby and Wigston. Political leadership
975-592: The former Roman road (which runs to Corby), passing the playing fields of the University of Leicester . It passes along the north edge of Oadby Lodge, a farm owned by the Co-op . Towards the deserted village of Stretton Magna (outside the district), the boundary passes southwestwards. This area was proposed to be the site of the eco-town Pennbury . It crosses the A6 at Glen Gorse Golf Club . It crosses Newton Lane and
1014-465: The post-war private suburban housing estates surrounding the old town centre, and the 19th century buildings now sandwiched between modern housing developments. The oldest of the post-war developments is Wigston Fields north of Wigston towards Knighton and Leicester; the Meadows and Little Hill estates were developed in the 1970s and 1980s to the east and south of Wigston's old centre. Wigston Harcourt
1053-404: The town after the decline of hand process of framework knitting with manufacturing firms such as Two Steeples, George Deacon and sons, Wigston Co-Operative Hosiers, A H Broughton and William Holmes. In neighbouring South Wigston Henry Bates was the leading hosiery manufacturer. Since the 1980s Wigston's retail economy has become increasingly dependent on national retailers. Up to 50% of retail in
1092-821: The town belongs to supermarkets and chain stores. The share of local business has caused local and independent businesses to close. This followed the trend of the 1990s homogenisation of British high streets. There are also a number of independent stores including several charity shops, two car dealerships, hair and beauty salons, opticians, florists, fish and chip shop, newsagents, and public houses. In January 2022 W. H. Cox greengrocers located on Leicester Road (opposite Bell Street) announced it would be closing after trading for 134 years. There are numerous primary schools in Wigston including All Saints Primary School, Glenmere Primary School, Little Hill Primary School, The Meadow Community Primary School, Thythorn Field Community Primary School and Water Leys Primary School. Wigston Academy
1131-511: The train operators developed a novel solution that involved jamming a piece of timber between the spokes of the wheels while the train was in motion. Between 1863 and 1867, Alderman Pochin led a consortium of Manchester business men in the formation of a number of companies in the iron, steel and coal industries. The first of these, the Staveley Coal and Iron Company Limited, was also the first to be formed by David Chadwick (1821–1885)
1170-407: The western edge of the University of Leicester 's Oadby Student Village , west of the University of Leicester Botanic Garden (in the district). Both Beauchamp College , in the south of Oadby, and Wigston College , on the B582 in Wigston, are former grammar schools . Both were upper schools, as the three tier system operated in the district's schools. Also near the council offices on the B582
1209-406: The wharf in crude three plank wagons. Upon reaching the wharf, the clay would be loaded into standard gauge wagons. Coal for firing the kilns was transferred from standard gauge wagons into the narrow gauge tramway wagons for the return journey, the wagons were then cleaned of coal dust at Gothers before being loaded with clay for another trip. Because the crude tramway wagons had no braking mechanism,
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1248-520: Was a British industrial chemist . He invented a process that enabled white soap to be made and a means of using china clay to create better quality paper. He owned several china clay pits in Cornwall , and a mine at Tredegar in South Wales, and was briefly a Liberal Member of Parliament. His wife was Agnes Pochin who was a leading suffragist. Pochin was born on 25 May 1824 in Wigston . He
1287-608: Was a director of the Tredegar Iron and Coal Company, that sunk two shafts (North and South) at Pochin Colliery, Tredegar , in 1876 to a depth of 340 yards (310 m); the first coal was brought to the surface in 1881. The mine was named after Pochin's daughter, Laura , who later married Charles McLaren , the Tredegar Company chairman later created first Baron Aberconway . Between 1871 and 1876 Henry Pochin had
1326-411: Was educated at Guthlaxton school. The music hall star Gertie Gitana is buried in Wigston cemetery, having been married for many years to local theatrical impresario Don Ross , who was born in the town. She died in the 1950s, having been a showbiz celebrity in the early years of the 20th century. Another Guthlaxton pupil was prominent policeman Geoffrey Barrett, who received a Governor's commendation as
1365-469: Was originally a c. 1850 house which was extended c. 1880. The interior decoration of the house and the design of most of the furniture (and possibly the design of the extension) was carried out by Christopher Dresser for the owner, his solicitor, Hiram Abiff Owston (1830–1905). There is a Framework Knitting Museum here, as it was an important occupation in this area from the 17th to 19th centuries. Hosiery manufacture continued to be an important industry in
1404-688: Was the Gothers drying complex, near Roche, Cornwall . This consisted of a number of kilns, each served by a narrow gauge tramway, and was considered to be an extensive works in its day. The tramway was known simply as Pochin's Tramway, and ran from the Gothers works, across the Goss Moor to a loading wharf on the St Dennis Branch . The tramway was operated by a small fleet of steam locomotives known as "Pochin's Puffing Billies", carrying clay to
1443-628: Was the son of a yeoman farmer of Leicestershire who served an apprenticeship to James Woolley (1811–1858), a manufacturing chemist in Manchester . In 1852 he married Agnes Heap (the sister of Woolley's wife) at the Unitarian Church in Manchester. In time Pochin became James Woolley's partner. Woolley died in 1858 and Pochin kept a manuscript diary of the illness, treatment and death of his partner. On Woolley's death Pochin became
1482-429: Was then Wigston police station, (the building on the corner of Pullman Road – opposite the swimming baths) during the time that his father was the inspector there. He attended South Wigston Junior School. Author and journalist John Marquis was born in Wigston and educated at Abington and Guthlaxton schools. The Leicester City footballer Howard Riley was also Wigston born and bred. Composer and piano virtuoso Michael Garrett
1521-505: Was then moved to Evesham . All Saints' (illustrated above right) a fine medieval building in the Transitional style has a western steeple (one of the finest in the county); from the tower three monster arches lead into the nave; benath a sepulchral arch is a coffin lid surmounted by a headless figure. Wigston was the subject of W. G. Hoskins 's pioneering historical study, The Midland Peasant (London: Macmillan, 1965), which traced
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