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Burnley
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Burnley is a large market town in the borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a population of around 73,500. It lies east of Blackburn and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River Brun.
It began life in the early medieval period as a small market town, but its main period of expansion came during the Industrial Revolution, when it became the world's largest producer of cotton cloth. Today, Burnley has lost much of its industry, and is increasingly a dormitory town for Manchester, Leeds and the M65 corridor.
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Encyclopedia
Burnley is a large market town in the borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a population of around 73,500. It lies east of Blackburn and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River Brun.
It began life in the early medieval period as a small market town, but its main period of expansion came during the Industrial Revolution, when it became the world's largest producer of cotton cloth. Today, Burnley has lost much of its industry, and is increasingly a dormitory town for Manchester, Leeds and the M65 corridor. The public sector is now the town's largest employer.
History
Origins
Burnley's origins are prehistoric, as shown by Stone Age flint tools and weapons that found on the moors around the town. Local place names Padiham and Habergham show the influence of the Angles, suggesting that some had settled in the area by the early 7th century, but there is no definitive record of settlement until 1122, when a charter granted the church of Burnley to the monks of Pontefract Abbey. In its early days, Burnley was a small farming community, gaining a corn mill in 1290, a market in 1294, and a fulling mill in 1296. At this point, it was within the manor of Ightenhill, one of five that made up the Honour of Clitheroe, then a far more significant settlement, and consisted of no more than 50 families. Little survives of early Burnley – the name means ‘meadow by the River Brun’ – apart from the Market Cross, erected in 1295, which now stands in the grounds of an annexe of Burnley College.
Over the next three centuries, Burnley grew in size to about 1,200 inhabitants by 1550, still centred around the church, St Peter’s, in what is now known as "Top o’ th’ Town". Prosperous residents built larger houses, including Gawthorpe Hall in Padiham and Towneley Hall, and in 1532 St Peter's Church was largely rebuilt. Burnley’s grammar school was founded in 1559, and moved into its own schoolhouse next to the church in 1602 . Burnley began to develop in this period into a small market town. It is known that weaving was established in the town by the middle of the 17th century and in 1617 a new Market House was built. The town continued to be centred on St Peter’s Church until the market was moved to the bottom of what is today Manchester Road at the end of the 18th century.
Industrial Revolution and after
In the second half of the 18th century, the manufacture of cotton began to replace that of wool. Burnley’s earliest known factories – dating from the mid-century – stood on the banks of the River Calder close to where it is joined by the River Brun, and relied on water power to drive the spinning machines, but by 1830 there were 32 steam engines in cotton mills throughout the rapidly expanding town. By 1866, the town was the largest producer of cotton cloth in the world. The 18th century also saw the rapid development of coal mining: the drift mines and shallow bell-pits of earlier centuries were replaced by deeper shafts meeting industrial as well as domestic demand locally, and by 1800 there were over a dozen pits in the centre of the town alone. The first turnpike road through Burnley was begun in 1754, linking the town to Blackburn and Colne, and by the early 19th century there were daily stagecoach journeys to Blackburn, Skipton and Manchester, the last taking just over two hours.. For the transportation of goods in bulk, the Leeds and Liverpool Canal arrived in 1796, and in 1848 the East Lancashire Railway Company’s extension from Accrington linked the town to the nation’s nascent railway network for the first time. By 1851, the town’s population had reached almost 21,000.
Burnley became incorporated as a municipal borough in 1861, and became, under the Local Government Act 1888, a county borough outside the administrative county of Lancashire. But from a population of over 100,000 in 1911, the town's population has declined to today's figure, mirroring the decline in its traditional industries of textiles, mining and engineering. The Queen paid an official visit to the town in summer 1961, marking the 100th anniversary of Burnley's borough status. Under the Local Government Act 1972 Burnley's county borough status was abolished, and it was incorporated with neighbouring areas into the non-metropolitan district of Burnley.
In June 2001, the town received national attention following a series of violent disturbances arising from racial tension between elements of its white and immigrant communities.
Governance
Burnley has three tiers of government, Burnley Borough Council and Lancashire County Council ("local"), the United Kingdom parliament ("national") and the European Parliament ("Europe"). While the town itself is unparished, the rest of the borough has one further, bottom tier of government, the parish or town council.
Local
Burnley Borough Council has been governed since 2008 by the Liberal Democrats, led by Gordon Birtwistle. The mayor – a ceremonial post, which rotates annually – is currently Ida Carmichael (Conservative). The borough comprises 15 wards, 12 of which – Bank Hall, Briercliffe, Brunshaw, Coal Clough with Deerplay, Daneshouse with Stoneyholme, Gannow, Lanehead, Queensgate, Rosegrove with Lowerhouse, Rosehill with Burnley Wood, Trinity, and Whittlefield with Ightenhill – fall within the town itself.
Lancashire County Council has been governed since 1994 by Labour. The town is represented on the council in 6 divisions: Burnley Central East, Burnley Central West, Burnley North East, Burnley Rural, Burnley South West, and Padiham & Burnley West.
National
The Member of Parliament for Burnley since 2005 has been Kitty Ussher (Labour), who is currently Economic Secretary to the Treasury.
Europe
Burnley lies within the North West England European Parliament constituency, which elects 9 MEPs by proportional representation - currently 3 Conservative, 3 Labour, 2 Liberal Democrat and 1 UKIP.
Geography
The town lies in a natural three-forked valley at the confluence of the River Brun and the River Calder, surrounded by open fields which evolve into wild moorland at higher altitudes. There are several large parks in the town, including Towneley Park, once the deer park for the 15th century Towneley Hall and three winners of the Green Flag Award, including Queens Park, which hosts a summer season of brass band concerts each year, and Thompson Park, which has a boating lake and miniature railway. The landmark RIBA-award winning Panopticon Singing Ringing Tree, overlooking the town from the hills at Crown Point, was installed in 2006.
To the west of Burnley lie the towns of Padiham, Accrington and Blackburn, with Nelson and Colne to the north. To the north west of the town lies the imposing and visually dramatic Pendle Hill, home of the Pendle Witches, whose summit stands 1,827 feet (557 m) above sea level. To the east of the town lie the hills of the South Pennines, and to the south, the Forest of Rossendale.
The Pennine Way passes six miles east of Burnley; the Mary Towneley Loop, part of the Pennine Bridleway, and the Burnley Way offer riders and walkers clearly-signed routes through the countryside immediately surrounding the town.
The Leeds and Liverpool Canal passes through the town on a 60 foot high embankment known as the 'Straight Mile', built between 1796 and 1801 to avoid the need for locks and is today regarded as one of the seven wonders of the British waterways.
Demography
| Year | Population |
|---|
| 1911 | 106,322 | | 1921 | 103,157 | | 1931 | 98,258 | | 1939 | 85,400 | | 1951 | 84,987 | | 1961 | 80,559 | | 1971 | 76,489 | | 2001 | 73,021 |
The United Kingdom Census 2001 showed a total resident population for Burnley of 73,021. The town is the main population centre in the Burnley-Nelson urban area, which has an estimated population of 149,796; for comparison purposes, this is about the same size as Huddersfield, Oxford or Poole.
The racial composition of the borough is 91.77% White and 7.16% Asian or Asian British. The largest religious groups are Christian (74.46%) and Muslim (6.58%). 59.02% of adults between the ages of 16 and 74 are classed as economically active and in work.
Transport
Road
Burnley is served by Junctions 9, 10 and 11 of the M65 motorway, which runs west to Accrington, Blackburn and Preston, and northeast to Nelson and Colne. From the town centre, the A646 runs to Todmorden, the A679 to Accrington, the A671 to Clitheroe, and the A682 – Britain's most dangerous road – south to Rawtenstall and northeast to Nelson and the Yorkshire Dales.
Rail
Rail services to and from Burnley are provided by Northern Rail. The town has three railway stations, Burnley Manchester Road, Burnley Central and, on the western outskirts of the town centre, Burnley Barracks (A fourth station, Rose Grove, serves the Rose Grove district west of Burnley). Manchester Road station has an hourly semi-fast service west to Preston and Blackpool North and east to Leeds and York, whilst the Central and Barracks stations provide an hourly stopping service west to Blackpool South and Preston, and east to Nelson and Colne.
Bus and coach
The main bus operator in Burnley is Burnley & Pendle, although Northern Blue operate some local and coastal services and Tyrer Bus operate some tendered town services. Other services are provided by Coastlinks Express (X27 to Southport), First (589 to Rochdale, 592 to Halifax), Lancashire United (152 to Preston), Pennine (215 to Skipton), and Rossendale Transport (483 to Bury). National Express operates three coach services to London each day, and one to Birmingham.
The town has good bus links into Manchester, compensating for the lack of a direct rail link: the X43/X44 Witch Way service (operated by Burnley & Pendle) runs from Nelson to Manchester, via Burnley and Rawtenstall, using a fleet of specially-branded double-decker buses with leather seats. The fastest journeys take 59 minutes.
The town's futuristic bus station, designed by Manchester-based , won the UK Bus Award for Infrastructure in 2003.
Economy and industry
Burnley's traditional employment base has been in decline for several decades. The last deep coal mine, Hapton Valley Colliery, closed in February 1981 and the last steam-powered mill, Queen Street Mill, in 1982. Over the next two decades, Burnley's two largest manufacturers both closed their factories: Prestige in July 1997 and Michelin in April 2002. The town has struggled to recover: its employment growth between 1995 and 2004 placed it 55th of England's 56 largest towns and cities, and as of 2007 it was the 21st most deprived local authority (out of 354) in the United Kingdom. 13% of its working age population currently claims incapacity benefit (national average 7%).
The largest employment sector in the town is now public administration, education and health (31.2%), followed by manufacturing (21.9%). Key manufacturing employers today are in highly specialised fields: Gardner Aerospace, Safran Aircelle and Unison Engine Components (aerospace components) and TRW Automotive (automotive components). In 2004, the was established on land formerly occupied by the now-closed Michelin factory to provide support and incubation space for start-up technology companies.
The town's main shopping street is St James Street, onto which Charter Walk Shopping Centre opens. The town centre is home to a good number of major high street multiples, including Marks and Spencer, Next and W H Smith, and a healthy mix of other shops, including specialist food shops, independent record shops and an independent bookshop. A large council-run is open six days a week. On the edge of the town centre, three retail parks house big box stores, including Currys, Focus DIY and PC World; there are also a number of mill shops. A second town centre shopping centre, 'The Oval', housing 32 further units, is scheduled for construction in 2008-2010, but has yet to secure the anchor tenant needed for the project to proceed.
Sport
Burnley has good sporting facilities for a town of its size. The new £29m St Peter's Centre offers swimming, squash courts and a fitness suite, while the nearby Spirit of Sport complex includes a large sports hall, and several indoor courts and synthetic pitches. There is an outdoor athletics track at Barden Lane, where the meets. For golfers, there are both 9 hole and 18 hole municipal golf courses at Towneley Park, along with an 18-hole pitch and putt course. (The private also welcomes visiting players.) There are tennis courts at Towneley Park, as well as at the , eleven bowling greens around the town, and a £235,000 skate park at Queens Park, which opened in 2003. There are also , and clubs in the town.
The town's sporting scene is dominated by Burnley Football Club, which was founded in 1882, and has played its home matches at Turf Moor since 1883, where attendance currently averages 12,000. The club was one of the 12 founder members of the Football League in 1888, and is one of only four to have held continuous membership of that league. Nicknamed the Clarets, they currently play in the Championship and are one of the few English league clubs to have been champions of all four professional league divisions.
Other football clubs in the town include Burnley Belvedere and Burnley United, members of the West Lancashire Football League.
There are two members of the Lancashire Cricket League in the town. Burnley Cricket Club play their home matches at Turf Moor, on a field next to the football ground, while Lowerhouse Cricket Club play at Liverpool Road.
Culture and nightlife
Burnley is well-served for a town of its size. There is a modern 24 lane Ten pin bowling centre on Finsley Gate, operated by AMF Bowling. A 9-screen multiplex cinema in the town centre, operated by Apollo Cinemas, and a theatre named for the building's former use as the , which plays host to touring comedians and musical acts, as well as staging amateur dramatics. A second performance space, the purpose-built £1.5m , opened nearby in 2005. For art lovers, there is a small contemporary visual arts gallery, the , and - on the outskirts of Burnley - larger galleries in the town's two stately homes, Towneley Hall, which was bought by Burnley Corporation in 1901, and Gawthorpe Hall, bequeathed to the National Trust in 1970. There are also two local museums: the town's Historical Society operates the Museum of Local History in the historic surroundings of the , while the celebrates Burnley's weaving past.
Once a year, Burnley hosts the two-day , one of the largest Blues festivals in the country, drawing fans from all over Britain to venues spread across the town. In the 1970s, it was also an important venue for Northern Soul; several local pubs still hold regular Northern Soul nights. In recent years, the town has also hosted an annual balloon festival in the setting of Towneley Park.
Burnley has a lively nightlife, drawing clubbers from all over the north-west. The town is dominated by the club ; other major bars and nightclubs include , (electro, retro, ghetto, house and techno), Calamity Jane's (cowboy-themed), , , Pharaoh's, Posh, and . Burnley has a small gay scene, centred on the Guys as Dolls bar in St James Street. There are also chain-owned bars, such as Wetherspoons and Walkabout.
The local brewery, Moorhouse's, was founded in 1865, produces a range of award winning beers - including the very popular Pride of Pendle and Blond Witch - and currently operates six pubs in the area, while more Bénédictine is drunk in one local working men's club, the Burnley Miners' Club, than anywhere else in the world, after a local regiment stationed in Normandy during World War I brought back a taste for the drink.
Media
Local radio for Burnley and its surrounding area is currently provided by 2BR and BBC Radio Lancashire.
There are two local newspapers: the Burnley Express, published on Tuesdays and Fridays, and the daily Lancashire Telegraph, which publishes a local edition for Burnley and Pendle.
Filmography
Parts of the film Whistle Down the Wind (1961) and the television series All Quiet on the Preston Front and Juliet Bravo were filmed in the town. (For example, Burnley Fire Station was the location of Social Services in the first series of Juliet Bravo, and was used for exterior shots of the magistrates' court in the same series.)
Education
A boys' grammar school was first founded in St Peter's Church in 1559, its first headmaster a former chantry priest, Gilbert Fairbank. In 1602, one of the governors, John Towneley, paid for a new schoolhouse to be built in the churchyard; the school moved again in 1876 to a new building on Bank Parade, which can still be seen today.
The equivalent school for girls, Burnley Girls' High School, was established in 1909 on a site in Ormerod Road, and moved on Kiddrow Lane in the 1960s.
The borough moved to comprehensive education in 1981, and today has five 11-16 secondary schools:
These opened in September 2006 as part of the first wave of a nationwide 10-15 year programme of capital investment funded by the Department for Education and Skills called . Shuttleworth College moved into new buildings in September 2008; the remaining schools, which currently occupy the buildings of five former secondary schools in the town, are to be completely rebuilt over the next three years. Thomas Whitham Sixth Form, which forms a sixth element of the BSF programme, offers sixth form provision on a newly-built campus on Barden Lane.
is the borough's main tertiary education provider, offering vocational and professional training, adult education, and a small number of degree courses, as well as some GCSE courses and a full range of A levels. It is scheduled to move to a new £70million campus off Princess Way in September 2009.
Attainment
The town's educational attainment is significantly below the national average at all levels. In 2007, 72% of children at the end of Key Stage 2 achieved at least Level 4 in English (national average 80%), and 70% in Mathematics (national average 77%). At the end of Key Stage 3, the figures achieving at least Level 5 were 66% in English (national average 74%), and 66% in Mathematics (national average 76%). 41.1% of students at the end of Key Stage 4 achieved at least 5 A*-C grades at GCSE (national average 62.0%). Three of the town's five secondary schools are currently in the bottom 5% nationally for adding value between the end of Key Stage 2 and the end of Key Stage 4; two of the five schools are currently in special measures.
Twin towns
Burnley is twinned with:
People
Entertainment
Probably the best-known Burnley figure in the field of entertainment is actor and gay rights activist Sir Ian McKellen, who was born in the town in 1939. Other actors born in the town include Julia Haworth (Coronation Street), Richard Moore and Lisa Riley (Emmerdale), Alice Barry and Jody Latham (Shameless), Hannah Hobley (Benidorm) and film actor Lee Ingleby. Paul Abbott, creator of Shameless, is another native of the town. Television producer and executive Peter Salmon was also born in Burnley.
Musicians born in the town include Danbert Nobacon, Alice Nutter, Lou Watts and Boff Whalley (Chumbawamba), as well as classical composer John Pickard.
The 19th century author and clergyman Silas Hocking wrote his most famous work, Her Benny (1879), while living in Burnley. Crime writer Stephen Booth is another native of the town.
Politics and the church
Shahid Malik, Labour MP for Dewsbury, Phil Willis, Liberal Democrat MP for Harrogate & Knaresborough, and Sir Vincent Fean, HM ambassador to Libya, were born in Burnley, as were James Yorke Scarlett, commander of the Heavy Brigade at the Battle of Balaclava, and the 16th century Catholic martyr Robert Nutter. Suffragette Ada Nield Chew died in Burnley in 1945.
Science and industry
Engineer Willis Jackson was born and educated in the town.
Sport
Burnley's sporting figures include England and Lancashire cricketer James Anderson, England and Everton Women's goalkeeper Rachel Brown, Pakistan and Tranmere Rovers midfielder Adnan Ahmed, Ex-Bury FC manager Chris Casper, Commonwealth Games Gold Medal-winning gymnast Craig Heap, and Neil Hodgson, 2003 World Superbike champion. Ron Greenwood, former manager of the England football team, was born in nearby Worsthorne.
Further reading
- Walter Bennett, The History of Burnley, 4 vols., Burnley Corporation, 1946-1951
- Ken Bolton & Roger Frost, Burnley, Francis Frith, 2006 ISBN 1-84589-131-7
- Mike Townend, Burnley, Tempus Publishing, 2004 ISBN 0-7524-1566-2
- Mike Townend, Burnley Revisited, Tempus Publishing, 2006 ISBN 0-7524-3996-0
External links
General information
- Official council site
- Official tourism site
Maps and photographs
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