| Spencers Wood | |
  Spencers Wood shown within Berkshire |
|
| Parish | Shinfield |
|---|---|
| Unitary authority | Wokingham |
| Ceremonial county | Berkshire |
| Region | South East |
| Constituent country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Reading |
| Postcode district | RG7 |
| Dialling code | 0118 |
| Police | Thames Valley |
| Fire | Royal Berkshire |
| Ambulance | South Central |
| European Parliament | South East England |
| UK Parliament | Wokingham |
| List of places: UK • England • Berkshire | |
Spencers Wood is a village in the civil parish of Shinfield, Berkshire, England, 4 miles south of Reading. Berkshire (ˈbɑːkʃə or /ˈbɑːkʃɪə/ say Baak-shuh/-sheer sometimes abbreviated to Berks) is a Home County in the South A civil parish in the United Kingdom is a unit of local government. Shinfield is a Village and Civil parish in the English county of Berkshire, just south of Reading. The districts of England are a level of subnational division of England used for the purposes of local government The ceremonial counties are areas of England that are appointed a Lord-Lieutenant, and are defined by the government as the Counties for the purposes of the Lieutenancies Berkshire (ˈbɑːkʃə or /ˈbɑːkʃɪə/ say Baak-shuh/-sheer sometimes abbreviated to Berks) is a Home County in the South The region, also known as the government office region, is currently the highest tier of local government sub-national entity of England, with only one South East England is one of the nine official Regions of England. Constituent country is a phrase used often by official institutions in contexts in which a country makes up a part of a larger entity or grouping England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland This list of sovereign states, alphabetically arranged gives an overview of States around the world with information on the extent of their Sovereignty. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located A post town is a required part of all postal addresses in the United Kingdom, and a basic unit of the postal delivery system UK Postal codes are known as postcodes. UK postcodes are Alphanumeric. The, also known as the Reading postcode area, is a group of postal districts centered on Reading and Basingstoke in Southern England. The UK Telephone numbering plan, also known as the National Telephone Numbering Plan, is the system used for assigning Telephone numbers in the United There are a number of law enforcement agencies in the United Kingdom. Thames Valley Police is one of the largest Home Office Police services in England and the largest non- metropolitan one covering 2200 sq mi (5700 The fire service in the United Kingdom operates under separate legislative and administrative arrangements in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and The Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service is a statutory fire and rescue service covering the area of the Ceremonial county of Berkshire in The South Central Ambulance Service NHS Trust is the authority responsible for providing NHS Ambulance services in Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, South East England is a Constituency of the European Parliament. This is a list of the 646 constituencies currently represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, as at the 2005 general election A Gazetteer of place names in the United Kingdom showing each place's County, Unitary authority or council area and its geographical coordinates List of places --> List of cities in the United Kingdom List of towns in England Lists of places This is a list of settlements in Berkshire, England. See the List of places in England for places in other counties A geographic coordinate system enables every location on the Earth to be specified in three coordinates using mainly a spherical coordinate system. A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet, but smaller than a Town or City. A civil parish in the United Kingdom is a unit of local government. Shinfield is a Village and Civil parish in the English county of Berkshire, just south of Reading. Berkshire (ˈbɑːkʃə or /ˈbɑːkʃɪə/ say Baak-shuh/-sheer sometimes abbreviated to Berks) is a Home County in the South England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Reading (ˈrɛdɪŋ as Redding) is a town in England, located at the confluence of the River Thames and River Kennet, midway between An all-but defunct pronoun is Spencers Wooder, which was used by children to distinguish themselves from children of neighbouring villages, such as the Grazeleyites. Grazeley is a small Village and former Civil parish in the English county of Berkshire, about four miles south of Reading at.
Contents |
History
The village was named after the le Despencer family — a Norman family — in the 13th century. The title Baron le Despencer has been created several times by writ in the Peerage of England. The Anglo-Normans were mainly the descendants of the Normans who ruled England following the conquest by William of Normandy in 1066, although Until about 1300, the village was part of the Royal Forest (Windsor Forest). Windsor (ˈwɪnzə/ /ˈwɪndzə is a suburban town and tourist destination in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in Berkshire, England.
In the 13th Century, Spencers Wood was administered by William Longespée, Earl of Salisbury and his court in Amesbury. William de Longespée jure uxoris 3rd Earl of Salisbury (c 1176 &ndash March 7, 1226) was an English noble primarily remembered for his command Earl of Salisbury is a title in the that has been created several times in British history Amesbury is a Town and Civil parish in the English county of Wiltshire, eight miles north of Salisbury. Hence at that time Spencers Wood was part of Wiltshire (as was much of the surrounding area). Etymology The county formerly 'Wiltonshire' or 'Wiltunscir' (9th century is named after the former county town of Wilton (itself named after the River Wylye Nearby Swallowfield was split between Wiltshire and Berkshire, with Part Lane marking the partition. Swallowfield is a Village and Civil parish in the English County of Berkshire. In fact, it was only on 20 October 1844 that Spencers Wood and the surrounding areas became part of Berkshire. Events 1740 - Maria Theresa takes the throne of Austria. France, Prussia, Bavaria and Saxony The Counties (Detached Parts Act 1844 (7 & 8 Vict. c 61 which came to effect in 20 October 1844, was an act of Parliament of the United Kingdom In 1860, most of the land, which was hitherto common land, was enclosed and separately acquired by two local gentlemen; the local philanthropist Frederick Allfrey, and William Merry, who was a County magistrate and a visiting magistrate to Reading Gaol, as well as Secretary at War Lord Palmerston's private secretary from 1812 to 1828. Common land (a common) is a piece of land owned by one person but over which other people can exercise certain traditional rights such as allowing their livestock to graze Enclosure or inclosure (the latter is used in Legal documents and Place names is the term used in England and Wales Philanthropy is the act of donating money goods services time and/or effort to support a socially beneficial cause with a defined objective and with no financial or material HM Prison & YOI Reading is a British Prison. HM Prison Reading was built in 1844 as the Berkshire County gaol in the The Secretary at War was a political position in the British government with some responsibility over the administration and organization of the British army, but "Lord Palmerston" and "Henry Temple" redirect here
By 1880, Spencers Wood had become a thriving village with a population of 600, 200 of whom were children. Most of the working men worked in the fields or were in domestic service. Victorian and Edwardian style houses were built along the Basingstoke Road using bricks baked at the local Swain family kiln. Culture The Victorian fascination with novelty resulted in a deep interest in the relationship between modernity and cultural continuities Class and society Socially the Edwardian era was a period during which the British Class system was very rigid The Square became the heart of the village during this building period. Many of the houses still stand.
In spite of its growth, Spencers Wood was still split between the ecclesiastical parishes of Shinfield, Swallowfield and Grazeley. This changed in 1908 when the Church of St Michael and All Angels was consecrated. Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service usually religious The boundaries were finally officially changed five years later, although some parts of the village were still in the ecclesiastical parish of Grazeley. Also on 1908, the local school was opened, which ended the necessary walk to Swallowfield's Russell Hall, Shinfield or Grazeley School. [1]
World War Two
Spencers Wood, being a rural community, was not too badly affected by the Blitz. The Blitz was the sustained bombing of Britain by Nazi Germany between 7 September 1940 and 10 May 1941 in World War II. Few German bombs fell in the area, which was just as well as the village has no air-raid shelters. For the general article about fortified structures see Bunker. One German plane was shot down locally.
Rationing also had little affect on the village as the majority of villagers were too poor to notice a real reduction in goods. Food was grown and caught locally as part of the dig for victory programme and the black-market was able to supply all excess demand. Victory gardens, also called war gardens or food gardens for defense, were Vegetable, Fruit and Herb Gardens planted at
The main impact of the war was the influx of people. Two coaches of evacuees arrived in the village in September 1939. Evacuations of civilians in Britain during World War II were designed to save the population of urban or military areas from German aerial bombing Events in September It is the start of the academic year in many countries in the Northern Hemisphere. Evacuee children and local children were educated separately until Christmas 1939. Canadian forces were stationed in the village for a while, and a small POW camp was opened after the Canadians relocated. Some POWs helped on the local farms. The village hall served as the Local Defence Volunteers headquarters. The British Home Guard (initially "Local Defence Volunteers" or LDV, or in slang Look-Duck-Vanish, hence the name change was a defence Basingstoke Road was the main road to Aldershot, and frequent troop convoys ran through the village.
After the war, many soldiers, evacuees and POWs decided to settle in the village, in addition to this, a baby boom helped the population of the village to grow. A baby boom is any period of greatly increased birth rate during a certain period and usually within certain geographical bounds and when the birth rate exceeds 2% of the population
Recent History
The first street lighting in the village was installed after the war. A street light, lamppost, street lamp, light standard or lamp standard, is a raised source of Light on the edge of a Road
In 1954, Spencers Wood Women's Institute was formed. It was quite successful, with 60 members at its height. It closed in the mid-1980s.
In the 1960s, the M4 Motorway was built and became a natural barrier between the village and Reading. The 1960s decade refers to the years from the beginning of 1960 to the end of 1969 The M4 motorway is a Motorway in Great Britain linking London with Wales. In the 1980s, the A33 Swallowfield Bypass severed roads to the village of Grazeley. The 1980s was the decade spanning from January 1 1980 to December 31 1989. The A33 is a major Road in England. The road formerly ran from Reading to Southampton, but now consists of three disjoint sections A bypass is a Road or Highway that avoids or "bypasses" a built-up area town or village to let through Traffic flow without interference from
Despite local opposition, many new houses have been constructed in the village in recent years.
Village Services
- Double's Garage is a petrol station and car mechanic on the Basingstoke Road. It is a business that has been family owned for over 100 years, which started out as a blacksmith and farrier in The Square, the centre of the village. blacksmith is a person who creates objects from Iron or Steel by Forging the Metal; i A farrier is a specialist in Equine hoof care including the trimming and balancing of a horse's hoof and the placing of shoes to the horse's Their original site still stands, although it will soon be replaced by two modern houses.
- Reading Busses and Hampshire company Countywide Travel both serve the village with a bus service. Wildlife Hampshire has wildlife typical of the island of Great Britain They are the latest of a plethora of bus companies to serve the village, which started with Cordery's Garage. The prices of the earliest return tickets to Reading were 11d (approx 5p), although for just over double (2 shilling, exactly 10p) a weekly ticket was available. £sd (pronounced and sometimes written Lsd) was the popular name for the pre-decimal currencies ( sterling) used in the United Kingdom and The shilling is a unit of Currency used in current and former Commonwealth countries and was continued to be used in countries that left the commonwealth As of May 2008, a return ticket is ₤4. 00, ₤1. 10 more expensive than the neighbouring villages of Ryeish Green and Three Mile Cross. Ryeish Green is a small hamlet in the Civil parish of Shinfield, Berkshire, England, 4 miles south of Reading. Three Mile Cross is a Village in the Civil parish of Shinfield, close to Reading, in the English County of Berkshire
- The Bakers, now Warings, has always been a bakers. Although it is now part of a chain, the bread is still baked locally. Originally, it was one of three bakers in the village.
- The local library is part of Wokingham Borough Council's Libraries. The building was originally an infants school.
- The local pub is called The Farriers' Arms, although it was briefly called The Cygnet when it was purchased by the owner of The Swan (a pub in neighbouring Three Mile Cross). Three Mile Cross is a Village in the Civil parish of Shinfield, close to Reading, in the English County of Berkshire Before the Swallowfield Bypass was built, it was a popular place for coaches to stop on their way to the south coast, so much so that reservations were required. It is a very old business, although originally only a beer house. A full licence was granted after the First World War. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All In recent times, it has expanded to incorporate two adjacent cottages, making it significantly larger than the original beer house. Originally there were many more pubs in Spencers Wood.
- The Hop Inn is the local off-licence. REDIRECT Licensing_laws_of_the_United_Kingdom#Off-licence The building was originally a pub called The Cricketers, although it was one of the village butchers for a while. A butcher is someone who prepares various Meats and other related goods for sale
- An Indian restaurant has recently arrived in the village. It is not the first Indian business to serve Spencers Wood, an Indian tablecloth and silk tie trader served the village before World War Two.
- A chemist now occupies the building that was Harrisons Grocery Store and Provision Shop. Pharmacists are Health professionals who practice the art and science of Pharmacy. During World War One, it was known as Farleys. The existence of this chemist prohibits the majority of the village population from making use of the chemist at Swallowfield Surgery. [2]
- The Grovelands Garden Centre was a family run business until 2006 when Dobbies Garden Centres took it over. Dobbies has since been bought by Tesco. Tesco plc is a British -based international grocery and general merchandising retail chain Tesco plc is a British -based international grocery and general merchandising retail chain
- The village Post Office is on the Basingstoke Road and is not threatened with closure as of 2008. A post office is a facility authorized by a Postal system for the posting receipt sorting handling transmission or delivery of Mail. It has been a post office since 1885, and was a manual telephone exchange until 1934. In the field of Telecommunications, a telephone exchange or telephone switch is a system of electronic components that connects telephone calls In November 1992 the post office was the scene of a bloodless armed robbery, no-one was arrested for the crime. Events in November All Saints' Day (formerly All Hallows Day a Christian holy day is celebrated on November 1, the day after Halloween Robbery is the Crime of seizing Property through Violence or Intimidation. The oldest surviving postbox in the village dates from King George V's reign.
- Two hairdressers serve the village. One used to be a Harness Maker. A horse harness is a type of Horse tack that allows a Horse or other Equine to pull various Horse-drawn vehicles such as a Carriage
- The village has two areas with allotments. Allotment gardens are characterised by a concentration in one place of a few or up to several hundreds of land parcels that are assigned to individual families
Famous Residents
English comedian Lenny Henry CBE and his comedienne wife, Dawn French, live in Spencers Wood with their family. A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience primarily by making them laugh Lenworth George Henry CBE, (born 29 August 1958 is a British Writer, Comedian and Actor. Dawn Roma French (born 11 October 1957 is a Welsh actress and Comedian.
References
| Settlements in Wokingham Borough |
|---|
| Towns: Earley | Wokingham | Woodley |
| Villages: Arborfield | Arborfield Cross | Arborfield Garrison | Barkham | Charvil | Cockpole Green | Crazies Hill | Farley Hill | Finchampstead | Gardeners Green | Grazeley | Hare Hatch | Holme Green | Hurst | Kiln Green | Ravenswood | Remenham | Riseley | Ruscombe | Ryeish Green | Shinfield | Sindlesham | Sonning | Spencers Wood | Swallowfield | Three Mile Cross | Twyford | Wargrave | Winnersh |
| Other civil parishes: Arborfield and Newland | St Nicholas Hurst | Wokingham Without |
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