Loughton, Milton Keynes
Encyclopedia
Loughton is an ancient village
, modern district and civil parish in Milton Keynes
, Buckinghamshire
, England
. The village spreads between Watling Street
and the modern A5 road, to the west of, and about 1 mile from, the city centre.
The village name is an Old English language
word, and means 'Luhha's estate'. In the Domesday Book
of 1086 the village was recorded as Lochintone. All Saints Church
is the oldest surviving building in Loughton the chancel
and nave
probably date from the first years of the 13th century, though all the original details have been removed during subsequent alterations.
, Great Holm/Loughton Lodge, Knowlhill. It is bordered by H4 Dansteed Way to the north, V4 Watling Street to the west, a tiny stretch of H8 Standing Way to the south, and the A5 to the east.
Today Loughton is a mainly residential area but is also home to a large Equestrian Centre, in the grounds of which the medieval field pattern and fish pond
can still be seen.
The district is bounded by the A5 to the east, H5 Portway to the north, V4 Watling Street to the west and H6 Childs Way to the south.
The Macintyre Charity which provides support for people with learning disabilities has a care home in Great Holm and a large centre providing a variety of day time activities. They also run a popular coffee shop and bakery which is open to the public but provides supported employment for people with learning disabilities.
Loughton Lodge
Loughton Lodge is a small area of Great Holm next to Loughton 'grid square' linked to Loughton by an underpass under which runs the old Bradwell
Road and separated from the bulk of Great Holm by Lodge Lake (a balancing lake
).
Loughton Lodge is home to the National Badminton Centre, health club, Girl Guides
site and a small gated development of luxury apartments.
This district is bordered by H4 Dansteed Way to the north, V4 Watling Street to the west, H5 Portway to the south and the A5 to the east.
, and contains the "Teardrop Lakes" — small balancing lakes.
In the late 1980s, Knowlhill was designated by Milton Keynes Development Corporation
as being the industrial part of the "Energy Park" - with the residential part across Watling Street
in Shenley Lodge, home to the 1986 Energy World
exhibition. All buildings were expected to meet higher than normal standards of energy efficiency
and five exemplar offices were built before 1990 including the then headquarters of Royal Mail Parcelforce
. Plans to attract the British Motor Industry Heritage Trust to operate a motor museum fell through when they chose a greenfield site at Gaydon
.
In 1990 the rest of the area was unsuccessfully marketed as a single large-scale development opportunity, intended to fund a National Energy Centre through development gain. Although this plan failed, the area retains a strong link with sustainable energy and hosts the main offices for the National Energy Foundation
(which occupies a low energy building on the intended site of the National Energy Centre), the Zero Carbon Hub, United Sustainable Energy Agency and the National Home Energy Rating
Scheme. The area also contains the head office of the National House Building Council
(NHBC) and a testing laboratory set up by the Consumers Association but now owned by Intertek
, as well as lawyers, graphic design companies and warehousing.
This district is bordered by H6 Childs Way to the north, V4 Watling Street to the west, H7 Chaffron Way to the south and the A5 to the east.
of Loughton is ˈ (the "ou" rhymes with "ouch", the "gh" is silent), in contrast to the similarly-spelt neighbouring areas of Broughton
(ˈ) and Woughton
(ˈ).
Archival photos and recorded interviews with long-term residents of Loughton are available in 'Living Memories of London Road' and 'The Story of Loughton National School'
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
, modern district and civil parish in 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...
, 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...
. The village spreads between Watling Street
Watling Street
Watling Street is the name given to an ancient trackway in England and Wales that was first used by the Britons mainly between the modern cities of Canterbury and St Albans. The Romans later paved the route, part of which is identified on the Antonine Itinerary as Iter III: "Item a Londinio ad...
and the modern A5 road, to the west of, and about 1 mile from, the city centre.
The village name is an Old English language
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...
word, and means 'Luhha's estate'. 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...
of 1086 the village was recorded as Lochintone. All Saints Church
All Saints Church, Loughton
All Saints' Church is an ecumenical church located in Loughton, Milton Keynes, England and is home to a thriving congregation with a particular family focus. On most Sundays there is a more traditional 8.00am service followed at 10.30am by an all-ages family service...
is the oldest surviving building in Loughton the chancel
Chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...
and nave
Nave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
probably date from the first years of the 13th century, though all the original details have been removed during subsequent alterations.
Civil parish
The civil parish of Loughton also includes the National BowlNational Bowl
The National Bowl is an entertainment venue in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. The site was a former clay-pit , filled in and raised to form an amphitheatre using sub-soil excavated by the many new developments in the area and it has a current maximum capacity of 65,000...
, Great Holm/Loughton Lodge, Knowlhill. It is bordered by H4 Dansteed Way to the north, V4 Watling Street to the west, a tiny stretch of H8 Standing Way to the south, and the A5 to the east.
Modern Loughton district
The original village has now been incorporated into the modern 'grid square' of Loughton. However much of the character of the old village remains; to the north-east of Bradwell Road the area bounded by School Lane and Church Lane contains the Church and remnants of the original parish of Great Loughton. To the south-west of Bradwell Road, around The Green there is a cluster of several sixteenth century buildings (Manor Farm, Manor Farm Cottages and Cell Farm) which constitute the remains of the original parish of Little Loughton.Today Loughton is a mainly residential area but is also home to a large Equestrian Centre, in the grounds of which the medieval field pattern and fish pond
Fish pond
A fish pond, or fishpond, is a controlled pond, artificial lake, or reservoir that is stocked with fish and is used in aquaculture for fish farming, or is used for recreational fishing or for ornamental purposes...
can still be seen.
The district is bounded by the A5 to the east, H5 Portway to the north, V4 Watling Street to the west and H6 Childs Way to the south.
Great Holm
Great Holm is primarily a residential district and contains a high point overlooking much of the central area of Milton Keynes.The Macintyre Charity which provides support for people with learning disabilities has a care home in Great Holm and a large centre providing a variety of day time activities. They also run a popular coffee shop and bakery which is open to the public but provides supported employment for people with learning disabilities.
Loughton Lodge
Loughton Lodge is a small area of Great Holm next to Loughton 'grid square' linked to Loughton by an underpass under which runs the old Bradwell
Bradwell, Milton Keynes
Bradwell is an ancient village and modern civil parish that is part of Milton Keynes . For a time, although it predates it, Bradwell was the supporting village for Bradwell Abbey, a Benedictine priory, founded in 1155 and dissolved in about 1540.The village name is an Old English language word...
Road and separated from the bulk of Great Holm by Lodge Lake (a balancing lake
Balancing lake
A balancing lake is a term used in the U.K. describing an element of an urban drainage system used to control flooding by temporarily storing flood waters...
).
Loughton Lodge is home to the National Badminton Centre, health club, Girl Guides
Girlguiding UK
Girlguiding UK is the national Guiding organisation of the United Kingdom. Guiding began in the UK in 1910 after Robert Baden-Powell asked his sister Agnes to start a group especially for girls that would be run along similar lines to Scouting for Boys. The Guide Association was a founder member of...
site and a small gated development of luxury apartments.
This district is bordered by H4 Dansteed Way to the north, V4 Watling Street to the west, H5 Portway to the south and the A5 to the east.
Knowlhill
Knowlhill is primarily an employment area with a large parkland alongside the A5. Much of this area is a flood plain of the Shenley BrookShenley Brook End
Shenley Brook End is a village, district and civil parish in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. Together with its neighbouring parish, Shenley Church End and the districts of Shenley Wood and Shenley Lodge, the districts are collectively known as "The Shenleys".The name 'Shenley' is an Old...
, and contains the "Teardrop Lakes" — small balancing lakes.
In the late 1980s, Knowlhill was designated by Milton Keynes Development Corporation
Milton Keynes Development Corporation
Milton Keynes Development Corporation was established on 23 January 1967 to provide the vision and execution of a "new city", Milton Keynes, that would be the modern interpretation of the Garden city movement concepts first expressed by Ebenezer Howard 60 years earlier...
as being the industrial part of the "Energy Park" - with the residential part across Watling Street
Watling Street
Watling Street is the name given to an ancient trackway in England and Wales that was first used by the Britons mainly between the modern cities of Canterbury and St Albans. The Romans later paved the route, part of which is identified on the Antonine Itinerary as Iter III: "Item a Londinio ad...
in Shenley Lodge, home to the 1986 Energy World
Energy World
Energy World was a demonstration project of 51 low-energy houses constructed in the Shenley Lodge area of Milton Keynes, United Kingdom. The project was promoted by the Milton Keynes Development Corporation and culminated in a public exhibition in August and October 1986 that attracted...
exhibition. All buildings were expected to meet higher than normal standards of energy efficiency
Efficient energy use
Efficient energy use, sometimes simply called energy efficiency, is the goal of efforts to reduce the amount of energy required to provide products and services. For example, insulating a home allows a building to use less heating and cooling energy to achieve and maintain a comfortable temperature...
and five exemplar offices were built before 1990 including the then headquarters of Royal Mail Parcelforce
Parcelforce
Parcelforce Worldwide is a courier and logistics service in the United Kingdom. Parcelforce Worldwide is a trading name of Royal Mail Group Ltd.Its international partner network allows it to extend its delivery reach worldwide...
. Plans to attract the British Motor Industry Heritage Trust to operate a motor museum fell through when they chose a greenfield site at Gaydon
Gaydon
Gaydon is a parish and village in Warwickshire, England, close to Leamington Spa. In the 2001 census, the parish had a population of 376.The village is at the junction of the B4100 and B4451 roads, a mile from Junction 12 of the M40 motorway, and is two miles north-east of Kineton.-Motor...
.
In 1990 the rest of the area was unsuccessfully marketed as a single large-scale development opportunity, intended to fund a National Energy Centre through development gain. Although this plan failed, the area retains a strong link with sustainable energy and hosts the main offices for the National Energy Foundation
National Energy Foundation
The National Energy Foundation is an independent British charity, established to encourage the more sustainable use and generation of energy.- Aims :...
(which occupies a low energy building on the intended site of the National Energy Centre), the Zero Carbon Hub, United Sustainable Energy Agency and the National Home Energy Rating
National Home Energy Rating
The National Home Energy Rating Scheme is both a UK accreditation scheme for energy assessors and a rating scale for the energy efficiency of housing.The NHER is owned and operated by National Energy Services...
Scheme. The area also contains the head office of the National House Building Council
National House Building Council
The National House Building Council was originally set up as the National House Builders Registration Council in the United Kingdom in 1936...
(NHBC) and a testing laboratory set up by the Consumers Association but now owned by Intertek
Intertek Group
Intertek Group plc is a global inspection, product testing and certification company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the largest tester of consumer goods in the world and has a network of more than 1,000 laboratories in over 100 countries....
, as well as lawyers, graphic design companies and warehousing.
This district is bordered by H6 Childs Way to the north, V4 Watling Street to the west, H7 Chaffron Way to the south and the A5 to the east.
National Bowl
This district is almost triangular, bordered by H7 Chaffron Way to the north, V4 Watling Street to the west, a tiny stretch of H8 Standing Way to the south, and the A5 to the east.Pronunciation
The Received PronunciationReceived Pronunciation
Received Pronunciation , also called the Queen's English, Oxford English or BBC English, is the accent of Standard English in England, with a relationship to regional accents similar to the relationship in other European languages between their standard varieties and their regional forms...
of Loughton is ˈ (the "ou" rhymes with "ouch", the "gh" is silent), in contrast to the similarly-spelt neighbouring areas of Broughton
Broughton, Milton Keynes
Broughton is a historic village in North Buckinghamshire that has been a constituent element of Milton Keynes since the latter's designation in 1967; a civil parish; and modernly a suburb and new district of the 'city'.-History and Location:...
(ˈ) and Woughton
Woughton
Woughton is a civil parish in south central Milton Keynes, ceremonial county of Buckinghamshire, England. It takes its name from the original ecclesiastic parish of Woughton and its original village, Woughton on the Green....
(ˈ).
External links
Archival photos and recorded interviews with long-term residents of Loughton are available in 'Living Memories of London Road' and 'The Story of Loughton National School'