Bottesford, Leicestershire
Encyclopedia
This page is about the English village of Bottesford near Grantham. For the Bottesford near Scunthorpe, see Bottesford, Lincolnshire
Bottesford is a village and civil parish within the Melton district of Leicestershire
, England
.
Bottesford lies about 20 miles (32 km) east of Nottingham
and 16 miles (26 km) north of Melton Mowbray
. The village is the largest in the Vale of Belvoir
and is near to Belvoir Castle
, home to the Duke and Duchess of Rutland
. It has a population
of around 3,000. It borders parishes in Lincolnshire
and Nottinghamshire
, nearby places being Sedgebrook (in Lincs), Elton
(in Notts), and Redmile
(in Leics). There is a post office, a railway station and a library in Bottesford.
seat. The current Member of Parliament
is Alan Duncan
. Bottesford is in the Melton borough of Leicestershire.
The civil parish includes the villages of Bottesford, Easthorpe, Muston
and Normanton. The parish council has nine members and normally meets on the second Monday of each month. Each year, in March, the Annual Parish Meeting takes places where parishioners can come and question the council and make comments. As well as this, in June 2003 the new Council swiftly introduced a "Public Participation Period" before the council meetings proper. This is a 15-minute period where parishioners can address the Council and air their views on matters that come within the Council's remit.
on the Nottingham to Grantham Line
.
There are also the Number 24 and 26 buses which run to Melton Mowbray at least every two hours, and other services to Grantham
and Bingham.
The town was bypassed by the A52 road
in February 1989 at a cost of £3m.
at the centre of the village. The village has a large medieval church, St. Mary's, which has the highest spire in Leicestershire
(at 212 feet) and is the burial place of the Dukes of Rutland
. One of the Rutland tombs is famous for its inscription, which attributes a death to witchcraft
by the Witches of Belvoir
. Most of the church is 15th century but the chancel was rebuilt in the 17th century to accommodate the Rutland monuments. The monuments completely fill the chancel and offer a fascinating view of changing aristocratic taste in the 16th and 17th centuries.
There is a local website that covers many sides of Bottesford's local history, including mounting evidence of occupation in Roman times and earlier. Bottesford was the venue of one of the country's early friendly societies
, thought to have been founded in the 1750s. It provided members with sickness and funeral benefits for over 200 years. Eleven contributors from the history group produced in 2009 a book on the local history since 1850.
During World War 2
, from December 1941, there was an RAF Bomber Command
airfield located to the north of the town, near Long Bennington
called RAF Bottesford
. Initially it belonged to No 3 Group, then after being used by USAAF's IX
Troop Carrier Command for D-Day
, was used by No. 5 Group from late 1944. It is no longer in use as an airfield, but the runways can still be seen.
Entertainers Laurel and Hardy
stayed for Christmas 1952 at the Bull Inn, where the landlady was Stan Laurel
's sister Olga. They were appearing at the Empire Theatre in Nottingham
. There is a plaque to this effect on the building.
There were two brickyards at Beckinthorpe in the 19th century, one of them also producing the unique Bottesford Blue pantiles still to be seen on some local buildings. Local employment declined in the 20th century. The four pubs, six restaurants, at least 16 retailers, and 20 odd small producers and service providers today are one-person or family concerns, whereas the building firm of William Roberts Ltd, founded by Joseph William Roberts (1898-2010) in Sutton-cum-Granby
and moved to Bottesford in 1937, employed over 500 people at one time.
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The Victory Commemoration (or VC) Hall is the local name for Bottesford Village Hall. The name came about because some of the funds used to purchase the original hall came from money raised by the village during WW2 to send parcels to those serving in the armed forces. After the war there was money left in that fund, and a decision had to be made whether it should be divided between those who had been on active service or donated to the Village Hall fund.
A new village hall was built in 2003, mainly funded by a grant from 'Awards for All' (Lottery) and contributions from the local people. For more information follow this link Bottesford VC Hall To mark the celebration of the Queen's Golden Jubilee in 2002, several large developments occurred in Bottesford, including the creation of a memorial green.
One of the 2010 Low Carbon Awards given by the Royal Institute of British Architects
went a house in Bottesford designed by architects Allan Mulcahy.
clubs, a bowling
club, a cricket
and social club, four football
clubs, several sections of the Scout and Guides
movement as well as many other clubs and events such as a youth club catering for 11–19 year olds and a skatepark. The village has several charity groups primarily raising funds to provide for new facilities for local groups. One group raising funds in Bottesford in particular is the Vale of Belvoir Lions.
Local community information has appeared since 2002 in the Village Voice newsletter, which is delivered free to every house in the parish.
as well as a Primary School (5–10), Bottesford Primary School, and a High School
(11–16), Belvoir High School. In 2008 Belvoir High School had its first ever group of year 10's, having changed from a Middle School
to a High School that year. This initially controversial change has been hailed as a success after Ofsted
rated the school as 'Outstanding' in their 2010 inspection report.
There is a public library in the Old School, Grantham Road.
It also has some youth clubs
Telephone numbers and times of services can be found in the online community listing service Village Guide.
Bottesford is a village and civil parish within the Melton district of Leicestershire
Leicestershire
Leicestershire is a landlocked county in the English Midlands. It takes its name from the heavily populated City of Leicester, traditionally its administrative centre, although the City of Leicester unitary authority is today administered separately from the rest of Leicestershire...
, 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...
.
Bottesford lies about 20 miles (32 km) east of Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
and 16 miles (26 km) north of Melton Mowbray
Melton Mowbray
Melton Mowbray is a town in the Melton borough of Leicestershire, England. It is to the northeast of Leicester, and southeast of Nottingham...
. The village is the largest in the Vale of Belvoir
Vale of Belvoir
The Vale of Belvoir is an area of natural beauty on the borders of Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire in England. Indeed, the name itself derives from the Norman-French for beautiful view.-Extent and geology:...
and is near to Belvoir Castle
Belvoir Castle
Belvoir Castle is a stately home in the English county of Leicestershire, overlooking the Vale of Belvoir . It is a Grade I listed building....
, home to the Duke and Duchess of Rutland
Duke of Rutland
Earl of Rutland and Duke of Rutland are titles in the peerage of England, derived from Rutland, a county in the East Midlands of England. The Earl of Rutland was elevated to the status of Duke in 1703 and the titles were merged....
. It has a population
Population
A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...
of around 3,000. It borders parishes in Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
and Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire is a county in the East Midlands of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west...
, nearby places being Sedgebrook (in Lincs), Elton
Elton on the Hill
For other uses of the name, see Elton .Elton on the Hill is a small Nottinghamshire village and civil parish in the Vale of Belvoir.-Situation and facilities:Elton lies about east of Nottingham, England, in the NG13 postcode district...
(in Notts), and Redmile
Redmile
Redmile is a village and civil parish in the Melton district of Leicestershire, England, about north of Melton Mowbray and west of Grantham, in the Vale of Belvoir....
(in Leics). There is a post office, a railway station and a library in Bottesford.
Governance
Bottesford is in the "Rutland and Melton" constituency which is a Conservative partyConservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
seat. The current Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
is Alan Duncan
Alan Duncan
Alan James Carter Duncan is a British Conservative Party politician. He is the Member of Parliament for Rutland and Melton, and a Minister of State in the Department for International Development....
. Bottesford is in the Melton borough of Leicestershire.
The civil parish includes the villages of Bottesford, Easthorpe, Muston
Muston, Leicestershire
Muston is a village in north Leicestershire, fifteen miles east of Nottingham, 12.5 miles north of Melton Mowbray and five miles west of Grantham on the A52....
and Normanton. The parish council has nine members and normally meets on the second Monday of each month. Each year, in March, the Annual Parish Meeting takes places where parishioners can come and question the council and make comments. As well as this, in June 2003 the new Council swiftly introduced a "Public Participation Period" before the council meetings proper. This is a 15-minute period where parishioners can address the Council and air their views on matters that come within the Council's remit.
Transport
Bottesford is served by a railway stationBottesford railway station
Bottesford railway station serves the village of Bottesford in Leicestershire, England. The station is on the Nottingham to Grantham line east of Nottingham railway station....
on the Nottingham to Grantham Line
Nottingham to Grantham Line
The Nottingham to Grantham Line is a branch line between the towns of Nottingham and Grantham in the East Midlands of England. It follows the A52.The following places are served by the line.* Nottingham* Netherfield* Radcliffe on Trent* Bingham...
.
There are also the Number 24 and 26 buses which run to Melton Mowbray at least every two hours, and other services to Grantham
Grantham
Grantham is a market town within the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England. It bestrides the East Coast Main Line railway , the historic A1 main north-south road, and the River Witham. Grantham is located approximately south of the city of Lincoln, and approximately east of Nottingham...
and Bingham.
The town was bypassed by the A52 road
A52 road
The A52 is a major road in the East Midlands, England. It runs east from the junction with the A53 at Newcastle-under-Lyme near Stoke-on-Trent via Ashbourne, Derby, Stapleford, Nottingham, West Bridgford, Bingham, Grantham, Boston and Skegness before terminating on the east Lincolnshire coast at...
in February 1989 at a cost of £3m.
History
The village was built around the river Devon and was named because of the fordFord (crossing)
A ford is a shallow place with good footing where a river or stream may be crossed by wading or in a vehicle. A ford is mostly a natural phenomenon, in contrast to a low water crossing, which is an artificial bridge that allows crossing a river or stream when water is low.The names of many towns...
at the centre of the village. The village has a large medieval church, St. Mary's, which has the highest spire in Leicestershire
Leicestershire
Leicestershire is a landlocked county in the English Midlands. It takes its name from the heavily populated City of Leicester, traditionally its administrative centre, although the City of Leicester unitary authority is today administered separately from the rest of Leicestershire...
(at 212 feet) and is the burial place of the Dukes of Rutland
Duke of Rutland
Earl of Rutland and Duke of Rutland are titles in the peerage of England, derived from Rutland, a county in the East Midlands of England. The Earl of Rutland was elevated to the status of Duke in 1703 and the titles were merged....
. One of the Rutland tombs is famous for its inscription, which attributes a death to witchcraft
Witchcraft
Witchcraft, in historical, anthropological, religious, and mythological contexts, is the alleged use of supernatural or magical powers. A witch is a practitioner of witchcraft...
by the Witches of Belvoir
Witches of Belvoir
The Witches of Belvoir were three women, a mother and her two daughters, accused of witchcraft in England around 1619. The mother, Joan Flower, died while in prison, and the two daughters, Margaret and Philippa, were hanged at Lincoln....
. Most of the church is 15th century but the chancel was rebuilt in the 17th century to accommodate the Rutland monuments. The monuments completely fill the chancel and offer a fascinating view of changing aristocratic taste in the 16th and 17th centuries.
There is a local website that covers many sides of Bottesford's local history, including mounting evidence of occupation in Roman times and earlier. Bottesford was the venue of one of the country's early friendly societies
Friendly society
A friendly society is a mutual association for insurance, pensions or savings and loan-like purposes, or cooperative banking. It is a mutual organization or benefit society composed of a body of people who join together for a common financial or social purpose...
, thought to have been founded in the 1750s. It provided members with sickness and funeral benefits for over 200 years. Eleven contributors from the history group produced in 2009 a book on the local history since 1850.
During World War 2
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, from December 1941, there was an RAF Bomber Command
RAF Bomber Command
RAF Bomber Command controlled the RAF's bomber forces from 1936 to 1968. During World War II the command destroyed a significant proportion of Nazi Germany's industries and many German cities, and in the 1960s stood at the peak of its postwar military power with the V bombers and a supplemental...
airfield located to the north of the town, near Long Bennington
Long Bennington
Long Bennington is a village in South Kesteven, south Lincolnshire, England. It is equidistant from Newark-on-Trent and Grantham, and from the villages of Stubton and Orston. It has a population of 1,847.-Geography:...
called RAF Bottesford
RAF Bottesford
RAF Station Bottesford is a former World War II airfield on the Leicestershire-Lincolnshire county border in England. The airfield is located approximately east-northeast of Radcliffe on Trent; about north-northwest of London...
. Initially it belonged to No 3 Group, then after being used by USAAF's IX
Ninth Air Force
The Ninth Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force's Air Combat Command . It is headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina....
Troop Carrier Command for D-Day
D-Day
D-Day is a term often used in military parlance to denote the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. "D-Day" often represents a variable, designating the day upon which some significant event will occur or has occurred; see Military designation of days and hours for similar...
, was used by No. 5 Group from late 1944. It is no longer in use as an airfield, but the runways can still be seen.
Entertainers Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy were one of the most popular and critically acclaimed comedy double acts of the early Classical Hollywood era of American cinema...
stayed for Christmas 1952 at the Bull Inn, where the landlady was Stan Laurel
Stan Laurel
Arthur Stanley "Stan" Jefferson , better known as Stan Laurel, was an English comic actor, writer and film director, famous as the first half of the comedy team Laurel and Hardy. His film acting career stretched between 1917 and 1951 and included a starring role in the Academy Award winning film...
's sister Olga. They were appearing at the Empire Theatre in Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
. There is a plaque to this effect on the building.
There were two brickyards at Beckinthorpe in the 19th century, one of them also producing the unique Bottesford Blue pantiles still to be seen on some local buildings. Local employment declined in the 20th century. The four pubs, six restaurants, at least 16 retailers, and 20 odd small producers and service providers today are one-person or family concerns, whereas the building firm of William Roberts Ltd, founded by Joseph William Roberts (1898-2010) in Sutton-cum-Granby
Sutton-cum-Granby
Sutton-cum-Granby is a small Nottinghamshire hamlet in the Vale of Belvoir.-Location and facilities:Sutton is approximately midway between Elton on the Hill and Granby, 14 miles from Nottingham, 14 miles from Melton Mowbray, 12 miles from Grantham, and 118 miles from London. It lies in the parish...
and moved to Bottesford in 1937, employed over 500 people at one time.
Landmarks
A new village hall was built in 2003, mainly funded by a grant from 'Awards for All' (Lottery) and contributions from the local people. For more information follow this link Bottesford VC Hall To mark the celebration of the Queen's Golden Jubilee in 2002, several large developments occurred in Bottesford, including the creation of a memorial green.
One of the 2010 Low Carbon Awards given by the Royal Institute of British Architects
Royal Institute of British Architects
The Royal Institute of British Architects is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally.-History:...
went a house in Bottesford designed by architects Allan Mulcahy.
Clubs and groups
The village has several clubs, including two badmintonBadminton
Badminton is a racquet sport played by either two opposing players or two opposing pairs , who take positions on opposite halves of a rectangular court that is divided by a net. Players score points by striking a shuttlecock with their racquet so that it passes over the net and lands in their...
clubs, a bowling
Bowling
Bowling Bowling Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule...
club, a cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
and social club, four football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
clubs, several sections of the Scout and 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...
movement as well as many other clubs and events such as a youth club catering for 11–19 year olds and a skatepark. The village has several charity groups primarily raising funds to provide for new facilities for local groups. One group raising funds in Bottesford in particular is the Vale of Belvoir Lions.
Local community information has appeared since 2002 in the Village Voice newsletter, which is delivered free to every house in the parish.
Education
Bottesford has a PlaygroupPre-school playgroup
A pre-school playgroup, or in everyday usage just a playgroup, is an organised group providing care and socialisation for children under five. The term is widely used in the United Kingdom. Playgroups are less formal than the pre-school education of nursery schools...
as well as a Primary School (5–10), Bottesford Primary School, and a High School
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
(11–16), Belvoir High School. In 2008 Belvoir High School had its first ever group of year 10's, having changed from a Middle School
Middle school
Middle School and Junior High School are levels of schooling between elementary and high schools. Most school systems use one term or the other, not both. The terms are not interchangeable...
to a High School that year. This initially controversial change has been hailed as a success after Ofsted
Ofsted
The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills is the non-ministerial government department of Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Schools In England ....
rated the school as 'Outstanding' in their 2010 inspection report.
There is a public library in the Old School, Grantham Road.
It also has some youth clubs
Places of worship
- There are Church of EnglandChurch of EnglandThe 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 in Bottesford (St Mary's)St Mary the Virgin's Church, BottesfordSt Mary the Virgin's Church, Bottesford, is in the village of Bottesford, Leicestershire, England. It is an active Anglican parish church in the deanery of Framland, the archdeaconry of Leicester, and the diocese of Leicester. Its benefice is united with those of eight local parishes. The church...
and Muston (St John the Baptist). - Bottesford's Methodist ChurchMethodist Church of Great BritainThe Methodist Church of Great Britain is the largest Wesleyan Methodist body in the United Kingdom, with congregations across Great Britain . It is the United Kingdom's fourth largest Christian denomination, with around 300,000 members and 6,000 churches...
is in Devon Lane. - Bottesford Baptist Church is in Queens Street.
Telephone numbers and times of services can be found in the online community listing service Village Guide.