Pendeford
Encyclopedia
Pendeford is a suburb of Wolverhampton
, West Midlands
, England. It is situated NNW of the city centre, adjacent to the border with Staffordshire
, within the Oxley
ward of Wolverhampton City Council.
of 1086, where it was recorded with the same spelling as today - a rarity for place names. The name is thought by many toponymists to mean 'Penda's Ford', possibly a crossing over the nearby River Penk
named after the Anglo-Saxon
King
, Penda of Mercia
who reigned in Mercia
from the year 626
.
Despite the origin of the name not being set in stone, the recording of the place name in the Domesday book tells us that Pendeford was in existence at the time of the Norman conquest, and that at the time, Pendeford was held by two Englishmen, Ulstan and Godwin. After the conquest, the land was confiscated and given to a Norman knight called William Fitz-Ansculf
, as a reward for serving William the Conqueror.
At this point in time, Pendeford would have been little more than a few scattered buildings amongst woodland, bordered on its eastern side by a lake known in more recent times as Alleycroft Lake (the lake no longer exists, having been drained upon the construction of the Staffordshire and Worcestershire canal
during the 18th century, though a marshy area remains on the site of the new I54 project
to the north of Wobaston Road).
Pendeford lay near the farthest south-west reaches of Cannock forest
, which was much larger than today in early medieval times.
.
Dovecotes
(Barnhurst) was also part of Pendeford, as was Aldersley
.
had established a factory there to build its aircraft including the Defiant
fighter (which had its first flight at Pendeford in August 1937, almost a year before the airfield was officially opened). During World War II the airfield was also used for training military pilots, with over 100 de Havilland Tiger Moth
s stationed there at one stage. No.28 Elementary Flying Training School commenced operations at Pendeford on 15 September 1941 and was operated for the Royal Air Force by Air Scools Ltd. It was renamed No.25 Reserve Flying School on 26 June 1947 and ceased to operate on 31 March 1953. Postwar the airfield was used for private and training aircraft, with limited scheduled services from 1953. By the end of the 1960s the airfield was losing money and there were safety concerns over the close proximity of houses to the airfield; as a result the airfield was closed on 31 December 1970. Remaining aircraft transferred to Halfpenny Green airport
to the southwest of Wolverhampton.
A memorial to the airfield can be seen on the walls of an estate within Pendeford. Shortly before the airfield's closure, on 9 April 1970, a de Havilland Dove
crashed onto a house in Redhurst Drive, Fordhouses
and caught fire. The crew of the aircraft (which was owned by Dowty Group
, by then the owner of Boulton Paul) were attempting to land at the airfield in poor weather; the accident investigation determined that the aircraft stalled
at a height too low for the crew to regain control. An occupant of the house and the two people on board the aircraft were killed in the accident, two more people escaped the burning house by jumping out of an upstairs window and were slightly injured.
area was hit by storms which included a twister
. This caused torrential flooding across Pendeford with water reaching depths of 5 feet (1.5 m) in places. Just as families were recovering from the "twister" storms, some faced second insurance claims for new damage to their properties when after a second storm hit on Sunday 1 August. Residents were ferried to safety on inflatable rafts by firemen as flood water up to 4 feet (1.2 m) deep from torrential rain swept into their homes. Temporary accommodation was made available at Pendeford High School.
held the 2008 National Festival in Pendeford. Over 300 boats, 300 tents and caravans attended the weekend accompanied by over 250 exhibitors who were present on site, which was attended over the weekend by some 24,000 people. The playing fields behind Halesworth Road and Emsworth Crescent were used for the exhibitions and car parking. Temporary Road surfaces were laid. However due to the bad rain leading up to the event this caused the fields to become extremely muddy and has since ruined the previously level grassy surface. Numbers of local residents complained about the noise and disruption generated by the event because of a late night fun fair, loud music and air horns.
, such as the 'Penwood' estate at Clewley Drive. The newest part of Pendeford, known as 'Richmond Park', was completed in the late 1990s with 'Pendeford Rise' being completed in the early 1990s. All of the estate has been built on the site of the former Wolverhampton Aerodrome, the Boulton Paul Ltd
aircraft factory and Barnhurst Farm.
(previously Safeway (UK)) supermarket which , several smaller shops which include the Elle Louise clothes store, Sally's Beauty Accessories, Home and Motorsave and Martins (previously Dillons and before that Preedy). Until recently, a Choices Movie Rental store sat next to Morrisons, but this has now closed & is now part of a small extension to Morrisons. Nearby, in Pendeford Squarem, there is the Priory Green Community Centre, Library, Health Centre, Oasis Cafe, Church/School, Nelson Mandela House Nursing Home and Cresswell Court Residential Home.
There's also a small 'shopping centre' on Dovecotes Estate named 'The Haymarket', with a Premier Store named Pendeford Superstore (previously Spar), a Chinese take-away, fish & chip shop (Pendeford Fish Bar) and a chicken shop selling to the public (Dovecote's Poultry), there was once a newsagent, bookmaker, bakery and more but these have long closed. .
The 'Fordhouses Cricket Club' (formerly Dowtys until the late 90's) is situated on the border of Pendeford & Wobaston / Fordhouses
, on the Wobaston Road. As the name would suggest, Fordhouses Cricket Club is located there. As well as the sports aspect, it is a social club which requires a yearly membership to gain access. On a Sunday night there is live entertainment in the form of a singer / band / disco / comedian, as well as a bingo session in the main room. There is also an adjacent bar room with snooker
tables.
Previously there was a pub in Dovecotes called 'The Dovecote' at Ryefield, though this closed in the early 2000s and is now a church.
, is Rakegate Primary School. There are also two high schools nearby on opposite borders of Pendeford - Alderlsey High School to the west and Pendeford Business and Enterprise College to the east.
. There are pupils from Pendeford who also attend this school. Dovecotes Infants School opened in 1978 with Dovecotes Junior School being built in 1979.
. Like Dovecotes Primary School there are pupils from Pendeford who attend this school. The original school was built in the 1950s but has since been redeveloped and is now a brand new 21st century modern primary school which opened in 2007 for the 2007/2008 academic year. Like Priory Green, Rakegate was originally an Infants and Junior school but became a new Primary School in 2003 for the 2003/2004 academic year.
area. Despite the name, Aldersley High School is not in Aldersley
, but straddles the Wolverhampton
/ South Staffordshire
border on the western edge of Pendeford, surrounded on two sides by countryside.
in September 1968. It was created by merger of two separate schools, Wobaston Secondary School and Wolverhampton Grammar Technical School. Wobaston Secondary School transferred to its new building in 1957 which was known as 'lower school'. It had however existed on this site since 1942. The school then went by the name of Fordhouses Senior Mixed School using the old huts between the two buildings and the buildings near the tennis courts which were used for woodwork and are now the Pendeford Youth Club. The air-raid shelters were kept for a time as a reminder of a different age. The Grammar Technical School, previously known as the Technical High School and before that the Intermediate School, transferred from its central Wolverhampton
site in Old Hall Street in 1963 to the building which was known as 'upper school'. Finally in 1968 the two buildings were merged together and renamed Pendeford High school. In a similar way to Aldersley High School, Pendeford Business and Enterprise College is actually situated just outside Pendeford, in the Wobaston / Fordhouses
area.
The sculpture near the front entrance of the lower school is made from Portland stone and sculptured by John Paddison, a former pupil of the Technical High School and a former lecturer in the Fine Art department of the Wolverhampton Polytechnic. It could have had a swimming pool instead of the sculpture and also a Fish pond was also installed in an inaccessable place in upper school
and Pendeford Business and Enterprise College will automatically transfer to the new Academy when it opens in September 2010. The Academy is set to open on the existing sites of The Northicote School and Pendeford Business and Enterprise College with a new building being placed on the Pendeford site, and is proposed to be completed by January 2014. More information can be found on the academy website.
and the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal
. These canals border Pendeford and other local areas including Oxley
, Fordhouses
, and Dovecotes
. Within 1 miles (1.6 km) of Pendeford there is access to the M54 motorway via Stafford Road (A449) at Junction 2. Pendeford also has good bus links with Wolverhampton
City Centre and other parts of the City. The routes that service Pendeford are 4,6 & 6A. Also on School week day mornings, school bus services 784 and 716 operate from Pendeford Bus Terminus(Morrisons
). The 784 terminates there at 8.15am and 16.10pm and the 716 terminates there at 8.05am and 16.15pm.
known as Pendeford Badgers (5–9 yrs) and Pendeford Quadrilateral (Cadets 10-15yrs, Youth(16-25yrs)\Adults) who teach First Aid and various other life saving skills to volunteer members. Details on this St John Ambulance in Pendeford can be found here. Pendeford Badgers were known as Woodland Badgers and Pendeford Quadrilateral was known as Priory Green Quadrilateral until the end of 2010. The name change was to remove its association from Priory Green Primary School following its demise in August
2010. Pendeford Quadrilateral also celebrated its 16th birthday in 2010 where as Pendeford Badgers is rumoured to have been running for around 25 years.
Work started in January 2009 on the green in front of the Haymarket/Dovecote/Church creating a New Playground for kids including swings, slide, sunken stepping logs. Along with various benches for local residents.
It was completed finished in March 2009 and is opposite Dovecotes Primary School.
A playground / park used to exist on a field alongside The Droveway, at the back of Clewley Drive, though this was dismantled c. 2000.
. This is how the youth club has gained its name. Details of Pendeford Youth Club can be found here.
player/legend Steve Bull
and Wolverhampton hockey professional Rachael Heyhoe-Flint
. In 2006 the site was fitted with flood lighting to allow the site to be used for recreation after dark.
after she and her family moved here from West Bromwich
.
Pendeford is also home To all the cast Featured In BBC's unknown Comedy Series 'School Mates' which was filmed at St. Pauls C of E Primary School which is sat in Pendeford Square.
, Canon, KJM Beauty Products, Mowlem, and Westbury Homes. The Park is adjacent to the 'i54
' major investment site.
site to the north west of the city seeks to attract a single high quality manufacturing facility along with a range of prestigious offices, research facilities and a hotel. The first tenant is expected to be Moog.
moved to its final location in Pendeford at Pendeford Airport. After moving here from 32 Merridale Street. Car production continued through until early 1966 at the site in Pendeford when the doors were closed.
, South Wales, but the operations from this office were moved to Pendeford to make way for a Halifax Building Society office. Since January 2011 it was renamed 'Lloyds Banking Group'.
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands, England. For Eurostat purposes Walsall and Wolverhampton is a NUTS 3 region and is one of five boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "West Midlands" NUTS 2 region...
, West Midlands
West Midlands (county)
The West Midlands is a metropolitan county in western central England with a 2009 estimated population of 2,638,700. It came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972, formed from parts of Staffordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire. The...
, England. It is situated NNW of the city centre, adjacent to the border with Staffordshire
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...
, within the Oxley
Oxley, Wolverhampton
Oxley is a suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, and a ward of Wolverhampton City Council. Its area code is WV10. It is situated in the north of the city, bordering South Staffordshire and the Bushbury North, Bushbury South and Low Hill, St Peter's and Tettenhall Regis wards...
ward of Wolverhampton City Council.
Name and origins
The first known written recording of the place name 'Pendeford', was in the Domesday BookDomesday 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, where it was recorded with the same spelling as today - a rarity for place names. The name is thought by many toponymists to mean 'Penda's Ford', possibly a crossing over the nearby River Penk
River Penk
The River Penk is a small river flowing though Staffordshire, England. Its course is mainly within South Staffordshire, and it drains most of the northern part of that district, together with some adjoining areas of Cannock Chase, Stafford, Wolverhampton, and Shropshire...
named after the Anglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxon may refer to:* Anglo-Saxons, a group that invaded Britain** Old English, their language** Anglo-Saxon England, their history, one of various ships* White Anglo-Saxon Protestant, an ethnicity* Anglo-Saxon economy, modern macroeconomic term...
King
King
- Centers of population :* King, Ontario, CanadaIn USA:* King, Indiana* King, North Carolina* King, Lincoln County, Wisconsin* King, Waupaca County, Wisconsin* King County, Washington- Moving-image works :Television:...
, Penda of Mercia
Penda of Mercia
Penda was a 7th-century King of Mercia, the Anglo-Saxon kingdom in what is today the English Midlands. A pagan at a time when Christianity was taking hold in many of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, Penda took over the Severn Valley in 628 following the Battle of Cirencester before participating in the...
who reigned in Mercia
Mercia
Mercia was one of the kingdoms of the Anglo-Saxon Heptarchy. It was centred on the valley of the River Trent and its tributaries in the region now known as the English Midlands...
from the year 626
626
Year 626 was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 626 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.- Byzantine Empire :* August 7 – The Byzantines...
.
Despite the origin of the name not being set in stone, the recording of the place name in the Domesday book tells us that Pendeford was in existence at the time of the Norman conquest, and that at the time, Pendeford was held by two Englishmen, Ulstan and Godwin. After the conquest, the land was confiscated and given to a Norman knight called William Fitz-Ansculf
William Fitz-Ansculf
William Fitz-Ansculf was a Norman-French landowner who suceeded his father, Ansculf de Picquigny.-Birth and early life:William's date of birth is not known, though it was likely in Picquigny, Somme, France in the mid 11th Century...
, as a reward for serving William the Conqueror.
At this point in time, Pendeford would have been little more than a few scattered buildings amongst woodland, bordered on its eastern side by a lake known in more recent times as Alleycroft Lake (the lake no longer exists, having been drained upon the construction of the Staffordshire and Worcestershire canal
Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal
The Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal is a narrow navigable canal in the English Midlands, passing through the counties of Staffordshire and Worcestershire....
during the 18th century, though a marshy area remains on the site of the new I54 project
I54
i54 is a 220 acre site at Wobaston Road, Pendeford, on the boundary of South Staffordshire and Wolverhampton which is under development for a technology-based business park....
to the north of Wobaston Road).
Pendeford lay near the farthest south-west reaches of Cannock forest
Cannock Wood
Cannock Wood is a village and civil parish in the Cannock Chase District of Staffordshire, England. Situated near Cannock and Lichfield and north of Burntwood. It is approximately north of Birmingham and 14 miles north-east of Wolverhampton...
, which was much larger than today in early medieval times.
History
Pendeford's history dates back to at least the 11th century, a record about it exists in William the Conqueror's Domesday BookDomesday 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...
.
Dovecotes
Dovecotes
Dovecotes is a housing estate at Barnhurst, Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is situated NNW of the city centre and neighbours Pendeford which is adjacent to the border with Staffordshire, within the Oxley ward of Wolverhampton City Council....
(Barnhurst) was also part of Pendeford, as was Aldersley
Aldersley
Aldersley is a small suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is north-west of Wolverhampton city centre, within the Tettenhall Regis ward...
.
The brook
The area also has a small brook running through it, but its original position has been moved and culverted. The majority of the brook now runs underground. It does come above ground next to the subway which goes underneath Blaydon Road. It then carries on for around quarter of a mile before disappearing back underground next to Marholm Close.Pendeford Airfield
In the 1930s Wolverhampton Council decided to establish an airfield at Pendeford, on 178 acre (0.72034108 km²) of land at Barnhurst formerly used for sewage disposal. The airfield was officially opened on 27 June 1938, by which time Boulton Paul AircraftBoulton Paul Aircraft
Boulton Paul Aircraft Ltd was a British aircraft manufacturer that was created in 1934, although its origins lay in 1914, and lasted until 1961...
had established a factory there to build its aircraft including the Defiant
Boulton Paul Defiant
The Boulton Paul Defiant was a British interceptor aircraft that served with the Royal Air Force early in the Second World War. The Defiant was designed and built by Boulton Paul Aircraft as a "turret fighter", without any forward-firing guns. It was a contemporary of the Royal Navy's Blackburn Roc...
fighter (which had its first flight at Pendeford in August 1937, almost a year before the airfield was officially opened). During World War II the airfield was also used for training military pilots, with over 100 de Havilland Tiger Moth
De Havilland Tiger Moth
The de Havilland DH 82 Tiger Moth is a 1930s biplane designed by Geoffrey de Havilland and was operated by the Royal Air Force and others as a primary trainer. The Tiger Moth remained in service with the RAF until replaced by the de Havilland Chipmunk in 1952, when many of the surplus aircraft...
s stationed there at one stage. No.28 Elementary Flying Training School commenced operations at Pendeford on 15 September 1941 and was operated for the Royal Air Force by Air Scools Ltd. It was renamed No.25 Reserve Flying School on 26 June 1947 and ceased to operate on 31 March 1953. Postwar the airfield was used for private and training aircraft, with limited scheduled services from 1953. By the end of the 1960s the airfield was losing money and there were safety concerns over the close proximity of houses to the airfield; as a result the airfield was closed on 31 December 1970. Remaining aircraft transferred to Halfpenny Green airport
Wolverhampton Airport
Wolverhampton Halfpenny Green Airport , formerly Halfpenny Green Airport and Wolverhampton Business Airport, locally Bobbington Airport, is a small, airport situated near the village of Bobbington, South Staffordshire...
to the southwest of Wolverhampton.
A memorial to the airfield can be seen on the walls of an estate within Pendeford. Shortly before the airfield's closure, on 9 April 1970, a de Havilland Dove
De Havilland Dove
The de Havilland DH.104 Dove was a British monoplane short-haul airliner from de Havilland, the successor to the biplane de Havilland Dragon Rapide and was one of Britain's most successful post-war civil designs...
crashed onto a house in Redhurst Drive, Fordhouses
Fordhouses
Fordhouses is a suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is situated to the north of the city centre, adjacent to the border with Staffordshire, within the Bushbury North ward of Wolverhampton City Council...
and caught fire. The crew of the aircraft (which was owned by Dowty Group
Dowty Group
Dowty Group was a leading British manufacturer of aircraft equipment. It was listed on the London Stock Exchange and was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index but was acquired by TI Group in 1992.-History:...
, by then the owner of Boulton Paul) were attempting to land at the airfield in poor weather; the accident investigation determined that the aircraft stalled
Stall (flight)
In fluid dynamics, a stall is a reduction in the lift coefficient generated by a foil as angle of attack increases. This occurs when the critical angle of attack of the foil is exceeded...
at a height too low for the crew to regain control. An occupant of the house and the two people on board the aircraft were killed in the accident, two more people escaped the burning house by jumping out of an upstairs window and were slightly injured.
Flooding of 1999
On Monday 5 July 1999 the WolverhamptonWolverhampton
Wolverhampton is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands, England. For Eurostat purposes Walsall and Wolverhampton is a NUTS 3 region and is one of five boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "West Midlands" NUTS 2 region...
area was hit by storms which included a twister
Tornado
A tornado is a violent, dangerous, rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. They are often referred to as a twister or a cyclone, although the word cyclone is used in meteorology in a wider...
. This caused torrential flooding across Pendeford with water reaching depths of 5 feet (1.5 m) in places. Just as families were recovering from the "twister" storms, some faced second insurance claims for new damage to their properties when after a second storm hit on Sunday 1 August. Residents were ferried to safety on inflatable rafts by firemen as flood water up to 4 feet (1.2 m) deep from torrential rain swept into their homes. Temporary accommodation was made available at Pendeford High School.
IWA National Festival 08
During August Bank Holiday 2008 (23–25 August 2008) The Inland Waterways AssociationInland Waterways Association
The Inland Waterways Association was formed in 1946 as a registered charity in the United Kingdom to campaign for the conservation, use, maintenance, restoration and sensitive development of British Canals and river navigations....
held the 2008 National Festival in Pendeford. Over 300 boats, 300 tents and caravans attended the weekend accompanied by over 250 exhibitors who were present on site, which was attended over the weekend by some 24,000 people. The playing fields behind Halesworth Road and Emsworth Crescent were used for the exhibitions and car parking. Temporary Road surfaces were laid. However due to the bad rain leading up to the event this caused the fields to become extremely muddy and has since ruined the previously level grassy surface. Numbers of local residents complained about the noise and disruption generated by the event because of a late night fun fair, loud music and air horns.
Housing
Today, most of the area is a housing estate built during the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. The first section to be built was the Barnhurst Estate, known as 'Dovecotes' because of the old dovecote that still stands to this day, on land that was previously Barnhurst Farm, followed by new housing on the north-east side of the Shropshire Union CanalShropshire Union Canal
The Shropshire Union Canal is a navigable canal in England; the Llangollen and Montgomery canals are the modern names of branches of the Shropshire Union system and lie partially in Wales....
, such as the 'Penwood' estate at Clewley Drive. The newest part of Pendeford, known as 'Richmond Park', was completed in the late 1990s with 'Pendeford Rise' being completed in the early 1990s. All of the estate has been built on the site of the former Wolverhampton Aerodrome, the Boulton Paul Ltd
Boulton Paul Aircraft
Boulton Paul Aircraft Ltd was a British aircraft manufacturer that was created in 1934, although its origins lay in 1914, and lasted until 1961...
aircraft factory and Barnhurst Farm.
Shopping and amenities
Pendeford also has a large MorrisonsMorrisons
Wm Morrison Supermarkets plc is the fourth largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom, headquartered in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. The company is usually referred to and is branded as Morrisons formerly Morrison's, and it is part of the FTSE 100 Index of companies...
(previously Safeway (UK)) supermarket which , several smaller shops which include the Elle Louise clothes store, Sally's Beauty Accessories, Home and Motorsave and Martins (previously Dillons and before that Preedy). Until recently, a Choices Movie Rental store sat next to Morrisons, but this has now closed & is now part of a small extension to Morrisons. Nearby, in Pendeford Squarem, there is the Priory Green Community Centre, Library, Health Centre, Oasis Cafe, Church/School, Nelson Mandela House Nursing Home and Cresswell Court Residential Home.
There's also a small 'shopping centre' on Dovecotes Estate named 'The Haymarket', with a Premier Store named Pendeford Superstore (previously Spar), a Chinese take-away, fish & chip shop (Pendeford Fish Bar) and a chicken shop selling to the public (Dovecote's Poultry), there was once a newsagent, bookmaker, bakery and more but these have long closed. .
Public Houses
There is currently only one pub in Pendeford, called 'The Pendulum'. This can be located near the entrance of the shopping centre car park on Blaydon Road. 'The Pendulum' has a bar & lounge area, as well as benches outside. It regularly shows sport, and also has a food menu.The 'Fordhouses Cricket Club' (formerly Dowtys until the late 90's) is situated on the border of Pendeford & Wobaston / Fordhouses
Fordhouses
Fordhouses is a suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is situated to the north of the city centre, adjacent to the border with Staffordshire, within the Bushbury North ward of Wolverhampton City Council...
, on the Wobaston Road. As the name would suggest, Fordhouses Cricket Club is located there. As well as the sports aspect, it is a social club which requires a yearly membership to gain access. On a Sunday night there is live entertainment in the form of a singer / band / disco / comedian, as well as a bingo session in the main room. There is also an adjacent bar room with snooker
Snooker
Snooker is a cue sport that is played on a green baize-covered table with pockets in each of the four corners and in the middle of each of the long side cushions. A regular table is . It is played using a cue and snooker balls: one white , 15 worth one point each, and six balls of different :...
tables.
Previously there was a pub in Dovecotes called 'The Dovecote' at Ryefield, though this closed in the early 2000s and is now a church.
Education
There are three primary schools in Pendeford - St Paul's Church of England Aided Primary School and Priory Green Primary School, both situated in Pendeford Square near the local amenities, and Dovecotes Primary School on the Barnhurst Estate. Nearby in neighbouring OxleyOxley, Wolverhampton
Oxley is a suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, and a ward of Wolverhampton City Council. Its area code is WV10. It is situated in the north of the city, bordering South Staffordshire and the Bushbury North, Bushbury South and Low Hill, St Peter's and Tettenhall Regis wards...
, is Rakegate Primary School. There are also two high schools nearby on opposite borders of Pendeford - Alderlsey High School to the west and Pendeford Business and Enterprise College to the east.
St Paul's Church of England Aided Primary School
St Paul's School opened in Pendeford on January 25, 1982. The church was established within the school later that year. The church font, which dates back to Norman times, was placed in the chapel after being moved from St. Michael's Church in Tettenhall. In 1987 a new porch was built at the entrance to the church where a cross and bell were added at a cost of £7,000. Today the church is still located partially inside St Paul's Primary School however in 2005 a new chapel was built and it is now accessible during the daytime. The "Oasis" community café, built as an extension to the church/school building, was opened in September 2005.Priory Green Primary School
Priory Green was originally opened as Priory Green Infant School in 1981 and Priory Green Junior School in 1984. Following the departure of Mr Colin Edwards, the headmaster of Priory Green Primary School, a decision was made to merge the two schools and create a combined primary school under the former headmistress of the Infant school, Ms Pursehouse.. This happened in c.1997. Priory Green Primary School was placed under special measures in 2009 and it was proposed that the school would close at the end of the 2009/2010 academic year on 31 August 2010 which eventually happened, Allowing the neighbouring school some of the land.Dovecotes Primary School
Dovecotes Primary School is located within the neighbouring estate of DovecotesDovecotes
Dovecotes is a housing estate at Barnhurst, Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is situated NNW of the city centre and neighbours Pendeford which is adjacent to the border with Staffordshire, within the Oxley ward of Wolverhampton City Council....
. There are pupils from Pendeford who also attend this school. Dovecotes Infants School opened in 1978 with Dovecotes Junior School being built in 1979.
Rakegate Primary School
Rakegate Primary School is located within the adjoining estate of OxleyOxley, Wolverhampton
Oxley is a suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, and a ward of Wolverhampton City Council. Its area code is WV10. It is situated in the north of the city, bordering South Staffordshire and the Bushbury North, Bushbury South and Low Hill, St Peter's and Tettenhall Regis wards...
. Like Dovecotes Primary School there are pupils from Pendeford who attend this school. The original school was built in the 1950s but has since been redeveloped and is now a brand new 21st century modern primary school which opened in 2007 for the 2007/2008 academic year. Like Priory Green, Rakegate was originally an Infants and Junior school but became a new Primary School in 2003 for the 2003/2004 academic year.
Aldersley High School
Aldersley High School is situated on Barnhurst Lane, and is school of choice for the majority of children from the DovecotesDovecotes
Dovecotes is a housing estate at Barnhurst, Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is situated NNW of the city centre and neighbours Pendeford which is adjacent to the border with Staffordshire, within the Oxley ward of Wolverhampton City Council....
area. Despite the name, Aldersley High School is not in Aldersley
Aldersley
Aldersley is a small suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is north-west of Wolverhampton city centre, within the Tettenhall Regis ward...
, but straddles the Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands, England. For Eurostat purposes Walsall and Wolverhampton is a NUTS 3 region and is one of five boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "West Midlands" NUTS 2 region...
/ South Staffordshire
South Staffordshire
South Staffordshire is a local government district in Staffordshire, England. The district lies to the north and west of Wolverhampton and the West Midlands, bordering Shropshire to the west and Worcestershire to the south...
border on the western edge of Pendeford, surrounded on two sides by countryside.
Pendeford Business and Enterprise College
Previously known as 'Pendeford High School', it started life as a comprehensive schoolComprehensive school
A comprehensive school is a state school that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude. This is in contrast to the selective school system, where admission is restricted on the basis of a selection criteria. The term is commonly used in relation to the United...
in September 1968. It was created by merger of two separate schools, Wobaston Secondary School and Wolverhampton Grammar Technical School. Wobaston Secondary School transferred to its new building in 1957 which was known as 'lower school'. It had however existed on this site since 1942. The school then went by the name of Fordhouses Senior Mixed School using the old huts between the two buildings and the buildings near the tennis courts which were used for woodwork and are now the Pendeford Youth Club. The air-raid shelters were kept for a time as a reminder of a different age. The Grammar Technical School, previously known as the Technical High School and before that the Intermediate School, transferred from its central Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands, England. For Eurostat purposes Walsall and Wolverhampton is a NUTS 3 region and is one of five boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "West Midlands" NUTS 2 region...
site in Old Hall Street in 1963 to the building which was known as 'upper school'. Finally in 1968 the two buildings were merged together and renamed Pendeford High school. In a similar way to Aldersley High School, Pendeford Business and Enterprise College is actually situated just outside Pendeford, in the Wobaston / Fordhouses
Fordhouses
Fordhouses is a suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is situated to the north of the city centre, adjacent to the border with Staffordshire, within the Bushbury North ward of Wolverhampton City Council...
area.
The sculpture near the front entrance of the lower school is made from Portland stone and sculptured by John Paddison, a former pupil of the Technical High School and a former lecturer in the Fine Art department of the Wolverhampton Polytechnic. It could have had a swimming pool instead of the sculpture and also a Fish pond was also installed in an inaccessable place in upper school
North Wolverhampton Academy
Students currently attending The Northicote School in nearby BushburyBushbury
Bushbury is a suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It lies two miles north-east of Wolverhampton city centre, divided between the Bushbury North and Bushbury South and Low Hill wards.- Place name and history :...
and Pendeford Business and Enterprise College will automatically transfer to the new Academy when it opens in September 2010. The Academy is set to open on the existing sites of The Northicote School and Pendeford Business and Enterprise College with a new building being placed on the Pendeford site, and is proposed to be completed by January 2014. More information can be found on the academy website.
Transport links
Autherley Junction to the south of Pendeford is the junction of the Shropshire Union CanalShropshire Union Canal
The Shropshire Union Canal is a navigable canal in England; the Llangollen and Montgomery canals are the modern names of branches of the Shropshire Union system and lie partially in Wales....
and the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal
Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal
The Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal is a narrow navigable canal in the English Midlands, passing through the counties of Staffordshire and Worcestershire....
. These canals border Pendeford and other local areas including Oxley
Oxley, Wolverhampton
Oxley is a suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, and a ward of Wolverhampton City Council. Its area code is WV10. It is situated in the north of the city, bordering South Staffordshire and the Bushbury North, Bushbury South and Low Hill, St Peter's and Tettenhall Regis wards...
, Fordhouses
Fordhouses
Fordhouses is a suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is situated to the north of the city centre, adjacent to the border with Staffordshire, within the Bushbury North ward of Wolverhampton City Council...
, and Dovecotes
Dovecotes
Dovecotes is a housing estate at Barnhurst, Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is situated NNW of the city centre and neighbours Pendeford which is adjacent to the border with Staffordshire, within the Oxley ward of Wolverhampton City Council....
. Within 1 miles (1.6 km) of Pendeford there is access to the M54 motorway via Stafford Road (A449) at Junction 2. Pendeford also has good bus links with Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands, England. For Eurostat purposes Walsall and Wolverhampton is a NUTS 3 region and is one of five boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "West Midlands" NUTS 2 region...
City Centre and other parts of the City. The routes that service Pendeford are 4,6 & 6A. Also on School week day mornings, school bus services 784 and 716 operate from Pendeford Bus Terminus(Morrisons
Morrisons
Wm Morrison Supermarkets plc is the fourth largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom, headquartered in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. The company is usually referred to and is branded as Morrisons formerly Morrison's, and it is part of the FTSE 100 Index of companies...
). The 784 terminates there at 8.15am and 16.10pm and the 716 terminates there at 8.05am and 16.15pm.
Recreation
Recreation has been a key part of Pendeford for many years and it is now developing further for the benefit of everyone in and around the area.St. John Ambulance
Pendeford is also home to a division of St. John AmbulanceSt. John Ambulance
St John Ambulance, branded as St John in some territories, is a common name used by a number of affiliated organisations in different countries dedicated to the teaching and practice of medical first aid and the provision of ambulance services, all of which derive their origins from the St John...
known as Pendeford Badgers (5–9 yrs) and Pendeford Quadrilateral (Cadets 10-15yrs, Youth(16-25yrs)\Adults) who teach First Aid and various other life saving skills to volunteer members. Details on this St John Ambulance in Pendeford can be found here. Pendeford Badgers were known as Woodland Badgers and Pendeford Quadrilateral was known as Priory Green Quadrilateral until the end of 2010. The name change was to remove its association from Priory Green Primary School following its demise in August
August
August is the eighth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian Calendars and one of seven months with a length of 31 days.This month was originally named Sextilis in Latin, because it was the sixth month in the original ten-month Roman calendar under Romulus in 753 BC, when March was the first...
2010. Pendeford Quadrilateral also celebrated its 16th birthday in 2010 where as Pendeford Badgers is rumoured to have been running for around 25 years.
Playgrounds
In Pendeford there are a number of small children's playgrounds, the oldest being the one at then end of Howland Close near to the Mirage Youth Centre. This park is known to many as the spider park as it has a large metal spider that is a climbing frame.Work started in January 2009 on the green in front of the Haymarket/Dovecote/Church creating a New Playground for kids including swings, slide, sunken stepping logs. Along with various benches for local residents.
It was completed finished in March 2009 and is opposite Dovecotes Primary School.
A playground / park used to exist on a field alongside The Droveway, at the back of Clewley Drive, though this was dismantled c. 2000.
Mirage Youth Centre
Also in Howland Close is The Mirage Youth Centre (Mirage). The Mirage opened in 1992 and has been helping develop young people in Pendeford since then. Details on the Mirage can be found here.Pendeford Youth Club
Like the Mirage, there is also Pendeford Youth Club. However this is not based in Pendeford. It is located within the ground of Pendeford Business and Enterprise College in FordhousesFordhouses
Fordhouses is a suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is situated to the north of the city centre, adjacent to the border with Staffordshire, within the Bushbury North ward of Wolverhampton City Council...
. This is how the youth club has gained its name. Details of Pendeford Youth Club can be found here.
Ball park
In the early 2000s there was a ball park/sports court opened by ex Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club that represents the city of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands region. They are members of the Premier League, the highest level of English football. The club was founded in 1877 and since 1889 has played at...
player/legend Steve Bull
Steve Bull
Stephen George "Steve" Bull, MBE, is an English former footballer who is best remembered for his 13-year spell at Wolverhampton Wanderers...
and Wolverhampton hockey professional Rachael Heyhoe-Flint
Rachael Heyhoe-Flint
Rachael Heyhoe Flint, Baroness Heyhoe-Flint, OBE, DL is probably the best known female cricketer in England. She was a member of the English women's cricket team from 1960 to 1982. She was captain of England from 1966 to 1978, and was unbeaten in six Test series...
. In 2006 the site was fitted with flood lighting to allow the site to be used for recreation after dark.
Pendeford Mill Nature Reserve
On the South Staffordshire side of Pendeford, there is a nature reserve which is known as Pendeford Mill Nature Reserve. The reserve dates back to the 13th century and provides a stable and protected habitat for wildlife. You can find details of Pendeford Mill by clicking here.Girlguiding UK - Rainbows
Within Pendeford there has been a Rainbows pack meeting at St. Pauls C of E School. They are known as 1st Pendeford Rainbows. Details on 1st Pendeford Rainbows can be found here.Claims to fame
Pendeford for many years has been the home to Olympic athlete Denise LewisDenise Lewis
Denise Lewis OBE is a retired British athlete who specialised in the heptathlon. She won the gold medal in the heptathlon at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.-2000 Olympics:...
after she and her family moved here from West Bromwich
West Bromwich
West Bromwich is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Sandwell, in the West Midlands, England. It is north west of Birmingham lying on the A41 London-to-Birkenhead road. West Bromwich is part of the Black Country...
.
Pendeford is also home To all the cast Featured In BBC's unknown Comedy Series 'School Mates' which was filmed at St. Pauls C of E Primary School which is sat in Pendeford Square.
Business links
Within Pendeford there is a Business Park which is accessible through The Overstrand from the Wobaston Road. Tenants include Birmingham MidshiresBirmingham Midshires
Birmingham Midshires is a commercial bank in the United Kingdom, a division of Bank of Scotland plc . It is headquartered at Pendeford Business Park, Wolverhampton, England and has 67 offices throughout England...
, Canon, KJM Beauty Products, Mowlem, and Westbury Homes. The Park is adjacent to the 'i54
I54
i54 is a 220 acre site at Wobaston Road, Pendeford, on the boundary of South Staffordshire and Wolverhampton which is under development for a technology-based business park....
' major investment site.
i54 Wobaston Road
The 90-hectare i54I54
i54 is a 220 acre site at Wobaston Road, Pendeford, on the boundary of South Staffordshire and Wolverhampton which is under development for a technology-based business park....
site to the north west of the city seeks to attract a single high quality manufacturing facility along with a range of prestigious offices, research facilities and a hotel. The first tenant is expected to be Moog.
Turner Sports Cars
In 1956 Turner Sports CarsTurner (car company)
The first Turner models were produced between 1951 and 1966 by Turner Sports Cars Ltd, a company established by Jack Turner near Wolverhampton, England. As well as complete cars, Turners were also available in kit form. The company closed in 1966 after the founder had a heart attack...
moved to its final location in Pendeford at Pendeford Airport. After moving here from 32 Merridale Street. Car production continued through until early 1966 at the site in Pendeford when the doors were closed.
Birmingham Midshires
Birmingham Midshires moved the headquarters to Pendeford Business Park in the mid 1990s. It previously had an office in CardiffCardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
, South Wales, but the operations from this office were moved to Pendeford to make way for a Halifax Building Society office. Since January 2011 it was renamed 'Lloyds Banking Group'.