Belbroughton
Encyclopedia
Belbroughton is a village and civil parish
in the Bromsgrove District
of Worcestershire
, England
. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 2,380. It is about six miles north of Bromsgrove
, six miles east of Kidderminster
and four miles south of Stourbridge
, in Worcestershire
. The villages of Clent are nearby.
scythe
-making district. Many of the mills of the area were formerly blade mills used for sharpening them, after a scythesmith had forged them from iron, with a thin strip of steel along the cutting edge. From the late 18th century until about 1870, the Waldron family of Field House Clent
were the leading manufacturers. They were succeeded by Isaac Nash, whose business finally closed in about 1970. Scythes were formerly not just made in Belbroughton, but also several adjacent parishes, including Chaddesley Corbett
.
, in the nearby village of Hagley
.
a traditionally Conservative area with the current MP
being Sajid Javid
member of the Conservative Party (UK)
.
s and display them outside their homes. It has proved very popular over recent years with thousands of visitors, raising tens of thousands of pounds for local organisations and amenities.
ripple.
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
in the Bromsgrove District
Bromsgrove (district)
Bromsgrove is a local government district in Worcestershire, England. Its council is based in the town of Bromsgrove.It borders the built up area of Birmingham to the north...
of Worcestershire
Worcestershire
Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 2,380. It is about six miles north of Bromsgrove
Bromsgrove
Bromsgrove is a town in Worcestershire, England. The town is about north east of Worcester and south west of Birmingham city centre. It had a population of 29,237 in 2001 with a small ethnic minority and is in Bromsgrove District.- History :Bromsgrove is first documented in the early 9th century...
, six miles east of Kidderminster
Kidderminster
Kidderminster is a town, in the Wyre Forest district of Worcestershire, England. It is located approximately seventeen miles south-west of Birmingham city centre and approximately fifteen miles north of Worcester city centre. The 2001 census recorded a population of 55,182 in the town...
and four miles south of Stourbridge
Stourbridge
Stourbridge is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, in the West Midlands of England. Historically part of Worcestershire, Stourbridge was a centre of glass making, and today includes the suburbs of Amblecote, Lye, Norton, Oldswinford, Pedmore, Wollaston, Wollescote and Wordsley The...
, in Worcestershire
Worcestershire
Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
. The villages of Clent are nearby.
History
Belboughton was at the core of the North WorcestershireWorcestershire
Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
scythe
Scythe
A scythe is an agricultural hand tool for mowing grass, or reaping crops. It was largely replaced by horse-drawn and then tractor machinery, but is still used in some areas of Europe and Asia. The Grim Reaper is often depicted carrying or wielding a scythe...
-making district. Many of the mills of the area were formerly blade mills used for sharpening them, after a scythesmith had forged them from iron, with a thin strip of steel along the cutting edge. From the late 18th century until about 1870, the Waldron family of Field House Clent
Clent
Clent is a village and civil parish in the Bromsgrove District of Worcestershire, England, southwest of Birmingham and close to the edge of the West Midlands conurbation. At the 2001 census it had a population of 2,600...
were the leading manufacturers. They were succeeded by Isaac Nash, whose business finally closed in about 1970. Scythes were formerly not just made in Belbroughton, but also several adjacent parishes, including Chaddesley Corbett
Chaddesley Corbett
Chaddesley Corbett is a village and civil parish in the Wyre Forest District of Worcestershire, England. The civil parish also includes the settlements of Bluntington, Brockencote, Mustow Green, Cakebole, Outwood, Harvington, and Drayton....
.
Facilities
Facilities in the village include a village shop, a post office and recreational centre with tennis courts. The area also has a number of public houses in Belbroughton itself and in neighbouring villages.Education
Belbroughton Primary School is located in the village, after which students progress to Haybridge High SchoolHaybridge High School
Haybridge High School and Sixth Form is a 11–18 mixed comprehensive school with approximately 1,250 students in Hagley, serving North West Worcestershire. The school is a Technology College, with the two additional specialisms of Applied Learning and Sports...
, in the nearby village of Hagley
Hagley
Hagley is a village and civil parish on the northern boundary of Worcestershire, England, near to the towns of Kidderminster and Stourbridge. The parish had a population of 4,283 in 2001, but the whole village had a population of perhaps 5,600, including the part in Clent parish...
.
Politics
Belbroughton is in the constituency of BromsgroveBromsgrove
Bromsgrove is a town in Worcestershire, England. The town is about north east of Worcester and south west of Birmingham city centre. It had a population of 29,237 in 2001 with a small ethnic minority and is in Bromsgrove District.- History :Bromsgrove is first documented in the early 9th century...
a traditionally Conservative area with the current MP
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
being Sajid Javid
Sajid Javid
Sajid Javid is an English Conservative Party politician. At the 2010 general election he was elected to the House of Commons as Member of Parliament for the Bromsgrove constituency....
member of the Conservative Party (UK)
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
.
Local events
Since 1996 Belbroughton has hosted Scarecrow Weekend the last weekend of each September. Villagers create scarecrowScarecrow
A scarecrow is, essentially, a decoy, though traditionally, a human figure dressed in old clothes and placed in fields by farmers to discourage birds such as crows or sparrows from disturbing and feeding on recently cast seed and growing crops.-History:In Kojiki, the oldest surviving book in Japan...
s and display them outside their homes. It has proved very popular over recent years with thousands of visitors, raising tens of thousands of pounds for local organisations and amenities.
Flooding
On 7 September 2008 heavy rain caused Belne Brook, which runs through the village, to swell. The rising water was held back by a seven foot wall but the pressure of the water caused it to break. The surge of water tore through the village sweeping away cars and causing severe water damage (and in some cases structural damage) to many properties. The current was so strong, it made tarmacTarmac
Tarmac is a type of road surface. Tarmac refers to a material patented by Edgar Purnell Hooley in 1901...
ripple.
External links
- Belbroughton Net (This site utilizes Flash 8 Player)
- Belbroughton scarecrows come out to play BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
25 September 2003