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Biddenham

Coordinates: 52°08′26″N 0°30′18″W / 52.14061°N 0.50511°W / 52.14061; -0.50511
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Biddenham
Pub with thatched roof in Biddenham
Biddenham is located in Bedfordshire
Biddenham
Biddenham
Location within Bedfordshire
Population2,620 [1]
1,634 (2011 Census)[2]
OS grid referenceTL024502
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townBEDFORD
Postcode districtMK40
Dialling code01234
PoliceBedfordshire
FireBedfordshire and Luton
AmbulanceEast of England
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Bedfordshire
52°08′26″N 0°30′18″W / 52.14061°N 0.50511°W / 52.14061; -0.50511

Biddenham is a large village and a civil parish in Bedfordshire, England, located to the west of Bedford near the A428 road.

The village largely serves as a dormitory settlement for Bedford, and also for commuters to London, being on the same side of the town centre as Bedford railway station. Biddenham is seen as a desirable location, with quaint thatched cottages in the older, southern end of the village, and a high proportion of large detached houses in the modern, northern end.

History

Biddenham is the location of the Manor Hospital, a BMI Healthcare private hospital. The village also contains St James Church, The Three Tuns pub, and a sports pavilion with a cricket pitch and a rugby field (interchangeable depending on the season).

Sometime before 1920, a short 2 ft (610 mm) gauge railway was operated by S.W. Jarvis & Son at the Biddenham Gravel Pit. The line was removed in the 1930s.[3]

Biddenham International School and Sports College is located on Biddenham Turn. It is a state secondary school for Biddenham and the western part of Bedford. The school was originally named John Howard Upper School, but was renamed after a merger with another school in 1988. St Joseph's and St Gregory's Catholic Primary School is also located on Biddenham Turn. The school was formed following the merger of St Joseph's Lower and St Gregory's Middle in September 2017. St. James' Primary School, located on Main Road, is the village's primary school.

A sundial was installed in the village in 2000, inscribed with the location (Latitude North 52° 08' 40", Longitude West 000° 30' 05") and the phrase "Times Change and We With Them."

See also

References

  1. ^ "Neighbourhood Statistics - Bidenham (CP) Parish". Office for National Statistics. Archived from the original on 25 May 2011. Retrieved 11 February 2008.
  2. ^ "Civil Parish population 2011". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
  3. ^ Warrington, A.J. (February 1968). "Biddenham Gravel Pit, Bedford". Industrial Railway Record. 17. Industrial Railway Society: 192–193.