Broughton, Aylesbury
Encyclopedia
Broughton is a hamlet to the east of Aylesbury
in Buckinghamshire
, England
and together with Bierton
and other neighbouring hamlets forms part of the civil parish of Bierton with Broughton. Broughton is also the name of a nearby housing estate
in Aylesbury
itself.
Broughton was first recorded as being part of the manor
of Bierton
in the late 13th century. The hamlet name is Anglo-Saxon
and means farm
by a brook. The brook in this case is the Bearbrook that rises near Bedgrove
, flows through Broughton then back into Aylesbury before joining the River Thame
near Quarrendon.
In the 1840s, a new branch railway was constructed linking Aylesbury to the Midlands
that crossed the road that linked Broughton with Bierton. A public house
and signalmen's cottages were constructed at the level crossing
and the area became known as Broughton Crossing. Today, this is considered a separate hamlet from Broughton itself.
In the 1960s British housing boom
, land that belonged to the parish
of Bierton was sold to developers who constructed the housing estate of Broughton. Many local people immediately think of the estate when they hear the word 'Broughton,' as it is a very popular estate on which to live. All that separates Broughton hamlet from Broughton estate today is the brook from which the hamlet first took its name.
In the 2001 census
, the population of Broughton housing estate was 5,802 people.
Broughton is served by Broughton Infant School, for children aged from three to seven, and Broughton Junior School, for children aged from seven to eleven. Both are community school
s, which each take approximately 200 pupils.
There is an Anglican (Church of England
) Church that meets in Broughton Junior School. The church was established in 1989. Originally it was a daughter church of Holy Trinity, Walton. In August 2009 the Church Commissioners
changed the parish boundaries in this part of Aylesbury
and Broughton Church became a parish in its own right.
Aylesbury
Aylesbury is the county town of Buckinghamshire in South East England. However the town also falls into a geographical region known as the South Midlands an area that ecompasses the north of the South East, and the southern extremities of the East Midlands...
in Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
, 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...
and together with Bierton
Bierton
Bierton is a village in Buckinghamshire, England, about half a mile northeast of the town of Aylesbury. It is a mainly farming parish, 10 km² in size....
and other neighbouring hamlets forms part of the civil parish of Bierton with Broughton. Broughton is also the name of a nearby housing estate
Housing estate
A housing estate is a group of buildings built together as a single development. The exact form may vary from country to country. Accordingly, a housing estate is usually built by a single contractor, with only a few styles of house or building design, so they tend to be uniform in appearance...
in Aylesbury
Aylesbury
Aylesbury is the county town of Buckinghamshire in South East England. However the town also falls into a geographical region known as the South Midlands an area that ecompasses the north of the South East, and the southern extremities of the East Midlands...
itself.
Broughton was first recorded as being part of the manor
Manorialism
Manorialism, an essential element of feudal society, was the organizing principle of rural economy that originated in the villa system of the Late Roman Empire, was widely practiced in medieval western and parts of central Europe, and was slowly replaced by the advent of a money-based market...
of Bierton
Bierton
Bierton is a village in Buckinghamshire, England, about half a mile northeast of the town of Aylesbury. It is a mainly farming parish, 10 km² in size....
in the late 13th century. The hamlet name is Anglo-Saxon
Old English language
Old English or Anglo-Saxon is an early form of the English language that was spoken and written by the Anglo-Saxons and their descendants in parts of what are now England and southeastern Scotland between at least the mid-5th century and the mid-12th century...
and means farm
Farm
A farm is an area of land, or, for aquaculture, lake, river or sea, including various structures, devoted primarily to the practice of producing and managing food , fibres and, increasingly, fuel. It is the basic production facility in food production. Farms may be owned and operated by a single...
by a brook. The brook in this case is the Bearbrook that rises near Bedgrove
Bedgrove
Bedgrove is one of the housing estates of the modern town of Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire, though it takes its name from a farm and hamlet that stood in the area until the area was cleared for building in the late 1950s. At the time it was built it was the largest housing estate of its kind in the...
, flows through Broughton then back into Aylesbury before joining the River Thame
River Thame
The River Thame is a river in Southern England. It is a tributary of the larger and better-known River Thames.The general course of the River Thame is north-east to south-west and the distance from its source to the River Thames is about 40 miles...
near Quarrendon.
In the 1840s, a new branch railway was constructed linking Aylesbury to the Midlands
English Midlands
The Midlands, or the English Midlands, is the traditional name for the area comprising central England that broadly corresponds to the early medieval Kingdom of Mercia. It borders Southern England, Northern England, East Anglia and Wales. Its largest city is Birmingham, and it was an important...
that crossed the road that linked Broughton with Bierton. A public house
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
and signalmen's cottages were constructed at the level crossing
Level crossing
A level crossing occurs where a railway line is intersected by a road or path onone level, without recourse to a bridge or tunnel. It is a type of at-grade intersection. The term also applies when a light rail line with separate right-of-way or reserved track crosses a road in the same fashion...
and the area became known as Broughton Crossing. Today, this is considered a separate hamlet from Broughton itself.
In the 1960s British housing boom
Boom and bust
A credit boom-bust cycle is an episode characterized by a sustained increase in several economics indicators followed by a sharp and rapid contraction. Commonly the boom is driven by a rapid expansion of credit to the private sector accompanied with rising prices of commodities and stock market index...
, land that belonged to the parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
of Bierton was sold to developers who constructed the housing estate of Broughton. Many local people immediately think of the estate when they hear the word 'Broughton,' as it is a very popular estate on which to live. All that separates Broughton hamlet from Broughton estate today is the brook from which the hamlet first took its name.
In the 2001 census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
, the population of Broughton housing estate was 5,802 people.
Broughton is served by Broughton Infant School, for children aged from three to seven, and Broughton Junior School, for children aged from seven to eleven. Both are community school
Community school
The term "community school" refers to types of publicly funded school in England, Wales, the Republic of Ireland, the United States, Australia, Canada and New Zealand to a school that serves as both an educational institution and a centre of community life. A community school is both a place and a...
s, which each take approximately 200 pupils.
There is an Anglican (Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
) Church that meets in Broughton Junior School. The church was established in 1989. Originally it was a daughter church of Holy Trinity, Walton. In August 2009 the Church Commissioners
Church Commissioners
The Church Commissioners is a body managing the historic property assets of the Church of England. It was set up in 1948 combining the assets of Queen Anne's Bounty, a fund dating from 1704 for the relief of poor clergy, and of the Ecclesiastical Commissioners formed in 1836...
changed the parish boundaries in this part of Aylesbury
Aylesbury
Aylesbury is the county town of Buckinghamshire in South East England. However the town also falls into a geographical region known as the South Midlands an area that ecompasses the north of the South East, and the southern extremities of the East Midlands...
and Broughton Church became a parish in its own right.