Kempston
Encyclopedia
Kempston is a town and civil parish located in Bedfordshire
, England
. Once known as the largest village in England
, Kempston is now a town with its own town council
. It has a population of about 20,000, and together with Bedford
, it forms an urban area with around 100,000 inhabitants, which is the sole significant urban area in the Borough of Bedford
. Kempston serves principally as a dormitory town for Bedford and for Milton Keynes
, which is about ten miles away.
1,255 acres (5.1 km²) and the civil parish of Kempston Rural 3,770 acres (15 km²). The Urban District was based on East End, Up End and Kempston New Town all of which are in the north eastern part of the parish close to Bedford, and had 86.8% of the total population at the 1901 census. Kempston Rural
was three times larger, but remained sparsely populated. Church End, with its original parish church, remains a small hamlet in the rural part of Kempston.
The growth of Kempston's population levelled off in the early decades of the 20th century, with a rise of just 12% between 1901 and 1931, but it then began to expand rapidly. The 1951 population of just under 10,000 was 60% higher that that of 1931; in the second half of the 20th century, the population nearly doubled. In 1974 Kempston Urban District was abolished and Kempston reverted to being a civil parish, in the Borough of Bedford but with a separate town council with minor powers. For borough election purposes the town is divided into three wards called Kempston North
, Kempston East
and Kempston South
. Kempston Rural
remains a civil parish and is part of Turvey Ward for borough election purposes.
Note 1: 1981 figures are provisional (more up to date source needed).
Note 2: The 2001 Kempston Urban figure is the combined total for the three urban wards of Kempston East, Kempston North and Kempston South.
word "cambio" meaning bent or curved. Therefore, the name meant when coined "the enclosed settlement on the bend". The bend was that of the River Great Ouse
, noted for its sharp bends upstream of Bedford. It is, however, also possible that "cambita" (the curved one) was the name given to this stretch of the river by the Celtic-speaking population. In this case the name could have developed like that of the river Kembs in the French Department of Haut Rhin. Kempston is also a family name for many individuals from British Ancestry. Kempston was recorded as "camestone" in the Domesday Book
and had a 6th-century Anglo Saxon
burial site, now home to the Saxon Centre.
, was the only place of worship in Kempston. It is attractively situated in a green churchyard close to the river, and the location is still rural. William the Conqueror's niece Judith commissioned the west tower, nave and chancel in 1100. The tower arch and chancel arch remain from Norman times. The aisles were added in the 13th century. In the 15th century the windows were replaced, the tower was heightened and the nave walls were also heightened, forming a clerestory
. The font is 14th-century. Refurbishments were carried out in the 19th century, and the north and south galleries were added at that time to accommodate children.
In the 19th century two additional Church of England
churches were built to accommodate the rising population. The first was St John's in Up End, which was consecrated in 1868. It soon suffered from subsidence, possibly caused by an underground stream. The burgeoning population of Kempston New Town was served by St Stephen's, a temporary iron church in Spring Road which was built in 1888. After a member of the locally prominent Williamson family bequeathed £8,000 for the purpose in 1927 the Church of the Transfiguration (Transfiguration church, kempston) was built in Bedford Road to replace two unsatisfactory Victorian churches. It is a solid work in red brick and was consecrated in 1940. St John's was unused as a church after that and was eventually demolished in 1965. St Stephen's was sold to the Saunders' leather factory on nearby College St.
Methodism
has been prominent in Kempston since the mid 19th century. The first Methodist chapel in the parish was built in Bell End in 1839, and its capacity was expanded by adding a gallery in 1843. In 1860 a larger replacement was constructed in the High Street at a cost of £600. The modern Kempston West Methodist Church now stands on the site. Kempston East Methodist Church in Bedford Road was opened in 1904 to serve the new parts of Kempston in the direction of Bedford. Sir Frederick Howard donated the site and £1,000, the Twentieth Century Trust provided another £1,000 and a local appeal raised around £3,000. The church is an attractive Gothic building in pale rustic Weldon stone, and has a hammerbeam roof
. In addition to the two mainstream Methodist churches a small Primitive Methodist
chapel was built in Bedford Road in or soon after 1896, when a site was purchased for £65 2s. 6d. It became Newtown Methodist chapel after the merger of the various Methodist churches in the 1930s, but it was sold off in 1959 and used for business purposes.
Kempston abuts both John Bunyan
's home parish of Elstow
and Bedford, where he was imprisoned. The Bedford church now known as the Bunyan Meeting had members in Kempston from at least 1657, and ministers from the church sometimes preached in private houses in Kempston. The first Congregationalist
church building in Kempston was opened in the High Street in 1813. A replacement church was built in Kempston New town in 1871. It was extended in 1888 and a hall was added in 1907.
Up until the Second World War Roman Catholics who lived in Kempston were obliged to worship at a church in Bedford. A Roman Catholic chapel was established during the war at the Army
's Grange Camp, which was situated where Hillgrounds is now, and it retained after 1945. The first resident Catholic priest in Kempston was appointed in 1965 and the present small and plain Catholic church in Bedford Road was built at around this time.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was first introduced in Bedford
and Kempston by a missionary called Willard Richards
on the 1st August 1837. Bedfordshire was one of the first places in the British Isles to have an LDS Church organised: It was first introduced to the British Isles on the 20th July 1837. Between that time and Willard Richards
being called back to Preston on 7 March 1838 about 40 people were baptised members of the LDS Church in the Bedford area. Kempston still has Mormon missionaries and membership is steadily increasing. In 1986 the LDS Church completed the building of its Bedford Chapel/Meetinghouse. The Chapel stands near the north west corner of Addison Park close to The Grange
. The plot was previously the location of the Kempston Liberal Club. The LDS Church previously met at Silver Jubilee School off Acacia Road in Bedford for at least six years before and various other locations in Bedford before that.
, and two middle schools (9-13), Robert Bruce and Daubeney. There are four lower schools in the urban area: Balliol Road, Bedford Road, Camestone and Springfield. Church End Lower School serves Kempston Rural.
Grange School
, Ridgeway School
and St John’s School
are all located in Kempston. These are special requirements
schools for pupils from all over Bedford Borough.
Sir George Herbert Farrar
Bt and the current Earl of Lonsdale
) proprietors of the Britannia Iron Works in Bedford (opposite Bedford Hospital
, and also known as George Fisher Castings, before its closure and demolition in the late 20th century). Scions of the Howard family were also settled at the nearby estates of Clapham Park and Biddenham Manor. Grange House was later donated by the Kempston branch of the Howard family to the people of Kempston. There is an indoor swimming pool which opened in the 1980s. Kempston's Sainsbury's supermarket was the chain's largest branch when it opened in the 1970s. The headquarters of the Bedfordshire Police
are in Kempston.
Apart from All Saints' Church, the best-known historic buildings are the King William IV pub and Kempston Barracks. The King William is a timber-framed building in bold black and white. The exterior is 17th century, but it is believed to contain much medieval work. The barracks were built in 1874 to 1876. They were partially demolished in the early 1980s, but the remainder was reprieved after local protests. The Freemasons and a nursery school use the building now, and a Territorial Army centre has been built on part of the site housing 36 (Eastern) Signal Regiment
, 60 (RBH) Signal Squadron - B Troop.
, was constructed in the 1990s and links with the Kempston relief road, built in the 1980s. There is an out-of-town shopping centre called Kempston Interchange Retail Park alongside it, and Asda
, Argos
and Woolworths
distribution centres have opened at the Kempston end of it since the turn of the millennium. The Woolworths distribution centre was taken over by Sainsburys in 2010. In 2007 work began on the Bedford Western Bypass which opened in 2010. The road cuts through Kempston Rural, crossing the Great Ouse between the urban area and Church End. In 2011 preliminary work began on extending the Western Bypass to join the A6 to the North of Bedford. In 2003 Bedford Borough Council adopted a planning brief for the land close to the Western bypass that proposes the construction of 1,000 new homes. In December 2010 work finished on construction of a new stretch of the A421 from Kempston to Junction 13 of the M1 motorway
, this now provides a full dual carraigeway link road between the A1 and the M1. The new dual-carriageway runs parallel to the existing road, which will be retained for local use.
----
Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire is a ceremonial county of historic origin in England that forms part of the East of England region.It borders Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Northamptonshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the west and Hertfordshire to the south-east....
, 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...
. Once known as the largest village in England
Largest village in England
Several places claim to be the largest village in England. This title is disputed as there is no standard definition of a village and size might be determined by population or area....
, Kempston is now a town with its own town council
Town council
A town council is a democratically elected form of government for small municipalities or civil parishes. A council may serve as both the representative and executive branch....
. It has a population of about 20,000, and together with Bedford
Bedford
Bedford is the county town of Bedfordshire, in the East of England. It is a large town and the administrative centre for the wider Borough of Bedford. According to the former Bedfordshire County Council's estimates, the town had a population of 79,190 in mid 2005, with 19,720 in the adjacent town...
, it forms an urban area with around 100,000 inhabitants, which is the sole significant urban area in the Borough of Bedford
Bedford (borough)
Bedford is a unitary authority with the status of a borough in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England. Its council is based at Bedford, which is also the county town of Bedfordshire. The borough contains a single urban area, the 69th largest in the United Kingdom that comprises Bedford and...
. Kempston serves principally as a dormitory town for Bedford and for Milton Keynes
Milton Keynes
Milton Keynes , sometimes abbreviated MK, is a large town in Buckinghamshire, in the south east of England, about north-west of London. It is the administrative centre of the Borough of Milton Keynes...
, which is about ten miles away.
History
Until the 19th century Kempston was a mainly rural parish. It was one of the largest in Bedfordshire with an area of 5,025 acres (20 km²) at the time of enclosure in 1804, and was in Redbournestoke Hundred. Historically there was no central village, but instead settlement was divided between a number of hamlets called "Ends", for example, Up End, Wood End and Box End. Kempston's parish church, All Saints, was in Church End, which was not the largest end but is fairly central. In the 19th century East End, Bell End and Up End began to coalesce into a larger settlement. In 1870 developers began to attempt to develop land on the road from Kempston to Bedford under the name "Kempston New Town". Construction was slow at first, but the new district soon began to expand steadily and Kempston acquired a more urban feel. In 1896 the parish was divided into Kempston Urban DistrictUrban district
In the England, Wales and Ireland, an urban district was a type of local government district that covered an urbanised area. Urban districts had an elected Urban District Council , which shared local government responsibilities with a county council....
1,255 acres (5.1 km²) and the civil parish of Kempston Rural 3,770 acres (15 km²). The Urban District was based on East End, Up End and Kempston New Town all of which are in the north eastern part of the parish close to Bedford, and had 86.8% of the total population at the 1901 census. Kempston Rural
Kempston Rural
Kempston Rural is a civil parish in the Bedford district of Bedfordshire, England.Kempston Rural was formed in 1896 when the old parish of Kempston was split into two parts - Kempston urban district , and Kempston Rural parish....
was three times larger, but remained sparsely populated. Church End, with its original parish church, remains a small hamlet in the rural part of Kempston.
The growth of Kempston's population levelled off in the early decades of the 20th century, with a rise of just 12% between 1901 and 1931, but it then began to expand rapidly. The 1951 population of just under 10,000 was 60% higher that that of 1931; in the second half of the 20th century, the population nearly doubled. In 1974 Kempston Urban District was abolished and Kempston reverted to being a civil parish, in the Borough of Bedford but with a separate town council with minor powers. For borough election purposes the town is divided into three wards called Kempston North
Kempston North
Kempston North is an electoral ward and area within the town of Kempston, Bedfordshire, England.The boundaries of Kempston North are approximately the River Great Ouse to the north west, with Kempston High Steet and Bedford Road to the south east....
, Kempston East
Kempston East
Kempston East is an electoral ward and area within Kempston, Bedfordshire, England.The boundaries of Kempston East are approximately Bedford Road to the north, the Midland Main Line railway line to the east, with Elstow Road to south....
and Kempston South
Kempston South
Kempston South is an electoral ward and area within the town of Kempston, Bedfordshire, England.The boundaries of Kempston South are approximately Kempston High Street and Elstow Road to the north, Ampthill Road to the east, with the A421 road to the south....
. Kempston Rural
Kempston Rural
Kempston Rural is a civil parish in the Bedford district of Bedfordshire, England.Kempston Rural was formed in 1896 when the old parish of Kempston was split into two parts - Kempston urban district , and Kempston Rural parish....
remains a civil parish and is part of Turvey Ward for borough election purposes.
Population table
| Year | Kempston Urban | Kempston Rural | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1671 | - | - | 752(est) |
| 1801 | - | - | 1,035 |
| 1811 | - | - | 1,161 |
| 1821 | - | - | 1,419 |
| 1831 | - | - | 1,571 |
| 1841 | - | - | 1,699 |
| 1851 | - | - | 1,962 |
| 1861 | - | - | 2,191 |
| 1871 | - | - | 2,706 |
| 1881 | - | - | 3,432 |
| 1891 | - | - | 4,736 |
| 1901 | 4,729 | 719 | 5,448 |
| 1911 | 5,459 | 648 | 5,997 |
| 1921 | 5,218 | 656 | 5,874 |
| 1931 | 5,390 | 730 | 6,120 |
| 1941 | N/A | N/A | No census |
| 1951 | 8,645 | 1,171 | 9,816 |
| 1961 | 9,190 | 1,289 | 10,479 |
| 1971 | 12,826 | 1,306 | 14,132 |
| 1981 | 15,500 | 1,280 | 16,780 (note 1) |
| 1991 | 17,938 | 1,163 | 19,101 |
| 2001 | 19,440 | ? | see note 2 |
Note 1: 1981 figures are provisional (more up to date source needed).
Note 2: The 2001 Kempston Urban figure is the combined total for the three urban wards of Kempston East, Kempston North and Kempston South.
Etymology
The name in its old form is "kemestun" which includes the BrittonicBrythonic languages
The Brythonic or Brittonic languages form one of the two branches of the Insular Celtic language family, the other being Goidelic. The name Brythonic was derived by Welsh Celticist John Rhys from the Welsh word Brython, meaning an indigenous Briton as opposed to an Anglo-Saxon or Gael...
word "cambio" meaning bent or curved. Therefore, the name meant when coined "the enclosed settlement on the bend". The bend was that of the River Great Ouse
River Great Ouse
The Great Ouse is a river in the east of England. At long, it is the fourth-longest river in the United Kingdom. The river has been important for navigation, and for draining the low-lying region through which it flows. Its course has been modified several times, with the first recorded being in...
, noted for its sharp bends upstream of Bedford. It is, however, also possible that "cambita" (the curved one) was the name given to this stretch of the river by the Celtic-speaking population. In this case the name could have developed like that of the river Kembs in the French Department of Haut Rhin. Kempston is also a family name for many individuals from British Ancestry. Kempston was recorded as "camestone" in the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
and had a 6th-century Anglo Saxon
Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxon is a term used by historians to designate the Germanic tribes who invaded and settled the south and east of Great Britain beginning in the early 5th century AD, and the period from their creation of the English nation to the Norman conquest. The Anglo-Saxon Era denotes the period of...
burial site, now home to the Saxon Centre.
Churches
For many centuries, All Saints' Church in Church End, which was first Catholic and later AnglicanChurch 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...
, was the only place of worship in Kempston. It is attractively situated in a green churchyard close to the river, and the location is still rural. William the Conqueror's niece Judith commissioned the west tower, nave and chancel in 1100. The tower arch and chancel arch remain from Norman times. The aisles were added in the 13th century. In the 15th century the windows were replaced, the tower was heightened and the nave walls were also heightened, forming a clerestory
Clerestory
Clerestory is an architectural term that historically denoted an upper level of a Roman basilica or of the nave of a Romanesque or Gothic church, the walls of which rise above the rooflines of the lower aisles and are pierced with windows. In modern usage, clerestory refers to any high windows...
. The font is 14th-century. Refurbishments were carried out in the 19th century, and the north and south galleries were added at that time to accommodate children.
In the 19th century two additional 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...
churches were built to accommodate the rising population. The first was St John's in Up End, which was consecrated in 1868. It soon suffered from subsidence, possibly caused by an underground stream. The burgeoning population of Kempston New Town was served by St Stephen's, a temporary iron church in Spring Road which was built in 1888. After a member of the locally prominent Williamson family bequeathed £8,000 for the purpose in 1927 the Church of the Transfiguration (Transfiguration church, kempston) was built in Bedford Road to replace two unsatisfactory Victorian churches. It is a solid work in red brick and was consecrated in 1940. St John's was unused as a church after that and was eventually demolished in 1965. St Stephen's was sold to the Saunders' leather factory on nearby College St.
Methodism
Methodism
Methodism is a movement of Protestant Christianity represented by a number of denominations and organizations, claiming a total of approximately seventy million adherents worldwide. The movement traces its roots to John Wesley's evangelistic revival movement within Anglicanism. His younger brother...
has been prominent in Kempston since the mid 19th century. The first Methodist chapel in the parish was built in Bell End in 1839, and its capacity was expanded by adding a gallery in 1843. In 1860 a larger replacement was constructed in the High Street at a cost of £600. The modern Kempston West Methodist Church now stands on the site. Kempston East Methodist Church in Bedford Road was opened in 1904 to serve the new parts of Kempston in the direction of Bedford. Sir Frederick Howard donated the site and £1,000, the Twentieth Century Trust provided another £1,000 and a local appeal raised around £3,000. The church is an attractive Gothic building in pale rustic Weldon stone, and has a hammerbeam roof
Hammerbeam roof
Hammerbeam roof, in architecture, is the name given to an open timber roof, typical of English Gothic architecture, using short beams projecting from the wall.- Design :...
. In addition to the two mainstream Methodist churches a small Primitive Methodist
Primitive Methodism
Primitive Methodism was a major movement in English Methodism from about 1810 until the Methodist Union in 1932. The Primitive Methodist Church still exists in the United States.-Origins:...
chapel was built in Bedford Road in or soon after 1896, when a site was purchased for £65 2s. 6d. It became Newtown Methodist chapel after the merger of the various Methodist churches in the 1930s, but it was sold off in 1959 and used for business purposes.
Kempston abuts both John Bunyan
John Bunyan
John Bunyan was an English Christian writer and preacher, famous for writing The Pilgrim's Progress. Though he was a Reformed Baptist, in the Church of England he is remembered with a Lesser Festival on 30 August, and on the liturgical calendar of the Episcopal Church on 29 August.-Life:In 1628,...
's home parish of Elstow
Elstow
Elstow is a village and civil parish in the English county of Bedfordshire. John Bunyan, was born here - at Bunyan's End, which lay approximately halfway between the hamlet of Harrowden and Elstow's High Street.-History:...
and Bedford, where he was imprisoned. The Bedford church now known as the Bunyan Meeting had members in Kempston from at least 1657, and ministers from the church sometimes preached in private houses in Kempston. The first Congregationalist
Congregational church
Congregational churches are Protestant Christian churches practicing Congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its own affairs....
church building in Kempston was opened in the High Street in 1813. A replacement church was built in Kempston New town in 1871. It was extended in 1888 and a hall was added in 1907.
Up until the Second World War Roman Catholics who lived in Kempston were obliged to worship at a church in Bedford. A Roman Catholic chapel was established during the war at the Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
's Grange Camp, which was situated where Hillgrounds is now, and it retained after 1945. The first resident Catholic priest in Kempston was appointed in 1965 and the present small and plain Catholic church in Bedford Road was built at around this time.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was first introduced in Bedford
Bedford
Bedford is the county town of Bedfordshire, in the East of England. It is a large town and the administrative centre for the wider Borough of Bedford. According to the former Bedfordshire County Council's estimates, the town had a population of 79,190 in mid 2005, with 19,720 in the adjacent town...
and Kempston by a missionary called Willard Richards
Willard Richards
Willard Richards was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and served as Second Counselor in the First Presidency to church president Brigham Young in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death.Willard Richards was born in Hopkinton, Massachusetts, to...
on the 1st August 1837. Bedfordshire was one of the first places in the British Isles to have an LDS Church organised: It was first introduced to the British Isles on the 20th July 1837. Between that time and Willard Richards
Willard Richards
Willard Richards was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and served as Second Counselor in the First Presidency to church president Brigham Young in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death.Willard Richards was born in Hopkinton, Massachusetts, to...
being called back to Preston on 7 March 1838 about 40 people were baptised members of the LDS Church in the Bedford area. Kempston still has Mormon missionaries and membership is steadily increasing. In 1986 the LDS Church completed the building of its Bedford Chapel/Meetinghouse. The Chapel stands near the north west corner of Addison Park close to The Grange
The Grange
-Organizations and movements:*The National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry, usually referred to as "The Grange", an agricultural organization in the United States of America....
. The plot was previously the location of the Kempston Liberal Club. The LDS Church previously met at Silver Jubilee School off Acacia Road in Bedford for at least six years before and various other locations in Bedford before that.
Education
There is one upper school (13-18) in Kempston, Hastingsbury Upper School and Community CollegeHastingsbury Upper School and Community College
Hastingsbury Business & Enterprise College is a coeducational upper school for 13-18 year olds, located on Hill Rise in Kempston, Bedfordshire, England...
, and two middle schools (9-13), Robert Bruce and Daubeney. There are four lower schools in the urban area: Balliol Road, Bedford Road, Camestone and Springfield. Church End Lower School serves Kempston Rural.
Grange School
Grange School (Kempston)
Grange School is a coeducational special school, located in Kempston, Bedfordshire, England. The school accepts pupils between the ages of 5 and 16 years with Moderate Learning Difficulties from all over the Borough of Bedford....
, Ridgeway School
Ridgeway School, Kempston
Ridgeway School is a coeducational special school for pupils with physical disabilities, located in Kempston, Bedfordshire, England. The school accepts pupils from all over the Borough of Bedford....
and St John’s School
St John’s School (Kempston)
St John’s School is a coeducational special school, located in Kempston, Bedfordshire, England. The school accepts pupils from all over the Borough of Bedford....
are all located in Kempston. These are special requirements
Special needs
In the USA, special needs is a term used in clinical diagnostic and functional development to describe individuals who require assistance for disabilities that may be medical, mental, or psychological. For instance, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and the International...
schools for pupils from all over Bedford Borough.
Estates
Kempston's main park is Addison Howard Park, which is part of the grounds of Grange House, once one of the principal residences in the parish, which survives as flats. This estate was owned in the 1880s by the Howard family (ancestors of the randlordRandlord
Randlord is a term used to denote the entrepreneurs who controlled the diamond and gold mining industries in South Africa in its pioneer phase from the 1870s up to World War I....
Sir George Herbert Farrar
George Herbert Farrar
Sir George Herbert Farrar, 1st Baronet, DSO Sir George Herbert Farrar, 1st Baronet, DSO Sir George Herbert Farrar, 1st Baronet, DSO (17 June 1859 Chatteris, Cambridgeshire – 20 May 1915 Kuibis, South West Africa, was a South African mining magnate, politician and soldier - Colonel and assistant...
Bt and the current Earl of Lonsdale
Earl of Lonsdale
Earl of Lonsdale is a title that has been created twice in British history, firstly in the Peerage of Great Britain in 1784 , and then in the Peerage of the United Kingdom in 1807, both times for members of the Lowther family....
) proprietors of the Britannia Iron Works in Bedford (opposite Bedford Hospital
Bedford Hospital
Bedford Hospital is a District General Hospital located in the English town of Bedford, serving north and mid Bedfordshire. It is run by Bedford Hospital NHS Trust.-Main site :...
, and also known as George Fisher Castings, before its closure and demolition in the late 20th century). Scions of the Howard family were also settled at the nearby estates of Clapham Park and Biddenham Manor. Grange House was later donated by the Kempston branch of the Howard family to the people of Kempston. There is an indoor swimming pool which opened in the 1980s. Kempston's Sainsbury's supermarket was the chain's largest branch when it opened in the 1970s. The headquarters of the Bedfordshire Police
Bedfordshire Police
Bedfordshire Police, is the territorial police force responsible for policing the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire in England, which includes the unitary authorities of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Luton. Its headquarters are in Kempston. The county had an estimated population of 602,500 in...
are in Kempston.
Apart from All Saints' Church, the best-known historic buildings are the King William IV pub and Kempston Barracks. The King William is a timber-framed building in bold black and white. The exterior is 17th century, but it is believed to contain much medieval work. The barracks were built in 1874 to 1876. They were partially demolished in the early 1980s, but the remainder was reprieved after local protests. The Freemasons and a nursery school use the building now, and a Territorial Army centre has been built on part of the site housing 36 (Eastern) Signal Regiment
36 (Eastern) Signal Regiment
36 Signal Regiment was a Territorial Army regiment in the Royal Corps of Signals in the British Army. The regiment formed part of 2 Signal Brigade, providing military communications for national operations...
, 60 (RBH) Signal Squadron - B Troop.
Transport
The Bedford Southern Bypass on the A421A421 road
The A421 is an important road for east/west journeys across England. Together with the A428, the A43 and A34, it forms the route from Cambridge through Milton Keynes to Oxford...
, was constructed in the 1990s and links with the Kempston relief road, built in the 1980s. There is an out-of-town shopping centre called Kempston Interchange Retail Park alongside it, and Asda
Asda
Asda Stores Ltd is a British supermarket chain which retails food, clothing, general merchandise, toys and financial services. It also has a mobile telephone network, , Asda Mobile...
, Argos
Argos (retailer)
Argos is the largest general-goods retailer in the United Kingdom and Ireland with over 800 stores. It is unique amongst major retailers in the UK in that it is a catalogue merchant...
and Woolworths
Woolworths Group
Woolworths Group plc was a listed British company that owned the high-street retail chain, Woolworths, as well as other brands such as the entertainment distributor Entertainment UK and book and resource distributor Bertram Books...
distribution centres have opened at the Kempston end of it since the turn of the millennium. The Woolworths distribution centre was taken over by Sainsburys in 2010. In 2007 work began on the Bedford Western Bypass which opened in 2010. The road cuts through Kempston Rural, crossing the Great Ouse between the urban area and Church End. In 2011 preliminary work began on extending the Western Bypass to join the A6 to the North of Bedford. In 2003 Bedford Borough Council adopted a planning brief for the land close to the Western bypass that proposes the construction of 1,000 new homes. In December 2010 work finished on construction of a new stretch of the A421 from Kempston to Junction 13 of the M1 motorway
M1 motorway
The M1 is a north–south motorway in England primarily connecting London to Leeds, where it joins the A1 near Aberford. While the M1 is considered to be the first inter-urban motorway to be completed in the United Kingdom, the first road to be built to motorway standard in the country was the...
, this now provides a full dual carraigeway link road between the A1 and the M1. The new dual-carriageway runs parallel to the existing road, which will be retained for local use.
External links
- Kempston section of the Victoria County History of Bedfordshire online
- 36 (Eastern) Signal Regiment - Territorial Army - official
- 60 (RBH) Signal Squadron - Territorial Army - official
- Map from multimap.com
- Aerial photo from multimap.com
- Kempston Men Who Served in World War 1 - Database
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