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Luton

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For other uses, see Luton (disambiguation).
Borough of Luton
Geography
Status: Unitary, Borough
Region: East of England
Ceremonial County: Bedfordshire
Area:
- Total		 Ranked 311th
43.35 km²
Admin. HQ: Luton
ONS code: 00KA
Demographics
Population:
- Total (2022)
- Density		 Ranked

/ km²
Ethnicity: 71.9% White
18.3% S.Asian
6.3% Afro-Carib.
Politics
Leadership: Leader & Cabinet
Executive:  
MPs: Kelvin Hopkins, Margaret Moran
File:LutonCrest.jpg
Town crest

Luton is a large town and local government district in the south of England, located 51 km (32 miles) north of London. Luton, Dunstable and Houghton Regis form a conurbation which had a population in excess of 230,000 in 2001.[1] Luton is home to Luton Town Football Club, London Luton Airport and the University of Bedfordshire. It was famous for hatmaking and was home to a large Vauxhall factory for many years.

Luton Town Hall, George Street, Luton

About Luton

Luton Town Football Club

For the main article see Luton Town

Luton is the home town of Luton Town Football Club who currently play in the Coca-Cola Football League Championship, the 2nd Flight of the English league structure. Their nickname, "The Hatters", dates back to when Luton had a substantial millinery industry.

Their only piece of major silverware to date is the League Cup, which they won in 1988 under the management of Ray Harford.

University of Bedfordshire

For the main article see University of Bedfordshire

The main campus of the University of Bedfordshire is in the town centre, a further campus is based on the edge of town in Putteridge Bury an old manor house.

Vauxhalls

From 1905 until 2002 the town had a Vauxhall Motors car plant, the first Vauxhall plant and the location that the company was founded. The M1 motorway runs between Luton and Dunstable: it does not form the boundary, as parts of Luton are to the west of it.

Parks

The town has several large parks, Wardown houses the museum and is located near the town centre. Stockwood houses a craft museum and the Mossman Collection. Wardown Park and the museum were a gift to the town from the then Mayor Asher Hucklesby. Luton has a Site of Special Scientific Interest at Warden Hills on its outskirts.

Luton Carnival

For the main article see Luton Carnival

Luton Carnival is the biggest one-day carnival in Europe, which usually takes place on the late May Bank Holiday. Crowds usually top 150,000[2] on each occasion, with it being a huge multicultural event attended by people from all over the country.

Luton Airport

For the main article see London Luton Airport

The town is famous for its airport, London Luton Airport, which is currently the fastest-growing airport in the United Kingdom[citation needed]. The airport is renowned for being a hub for budget airlines offering cheap flights. The England football team regularly fly from the airport[3] when playing matches abroad.

The airport was mentioned in a 1970s advert for Campari featuring Lorraine Chase[4] when asked "Were you truly wafted here from paradise?" she replied "Nah, Luton Airport!" which became a catchphase for her for many years.

History

Early History

Settlements have existed in the area since the Paleolithic era, most notably the henge monument now called Waulud's Bank, which dates from 3000 BC. The Roman settlement in the area was concentrated at Durocobrivis and Verulamium. The foundation of Luton is usually dated to the 6th century when a Saxon outpost was founded on the river Lea, Lea tun[5].

Luton is recorded in the Domesday Book as Loitone and also as Lintone; when the towns population was around 700-800. Agriculture dominated the local economy at this time.

St Marys Church, Luton town centre

In 1121 Robert, 1st Earl of Gloucester started work on St Mary's Church in the centre of the town, which was completed by 1137. A Castle which gives its name to 'Castle Street' was built in 1139. The castle was demolished in 1154. The site is now home to Matalan. During the middle ages Luton is recorded as being home to six water mills. Mill Street, in the town centre, takes its name from one of them.

King John (1166-1216) had hired a mercenary soldier, Falkes de Breauté, to act on his behalf. (Breauté is a small town near Le Havre in France.) When he married, he acquired his wife, Margaret's London house which came to be known as "Fawkes Hall", subsequently corrupted over the years to "Foxhall", then "Vauxhall". In return for his services, King John granted Falkes the manor of Luton. He was also granted the right to bear his own coat of arms and chose the mythical griffin as his heraldic emblem. The griffin thus became associated with both Vauxhall and Luton in the early 13th century. [1]

By 1240 the town is recorded as Leueton. The town had an annual market for surrounding villages in August each year, and with the growth of the town a second fair was granted each October from 1338.

In 1336, much of Luton was destroyed by a great fire, however the town was soon rebuilt.

The agriculture base of the town changed in the 16th century with a brickmaking industry developing around Luton, many of the older wooden houses were rebuilt in brick.

During the English Civil War of the 17th century there were two incidents in Luton. The first of which took place in 1645 when royalists entered the town and demanded money and goods. Parliamentary forces arrived and during the fighting four royalist soldiers were killed and a further 22 were captured. A second skirmish occurred three years later in 1648 when a royalist army passed through Luton. A small number of which were attacked by parliamentary soldiers at an inn on the corner of Bridge Street. Most of the group of royalists escaped but nine were killed.

It was in the 17th century when the hatmaking that became synonymous with the town began. By the 18th century the hatmaking industry, especially straw hat manufacture, dominated the town as its only significant industry. Hats are still produced in the town on a smaller scale.

Luton Hoo, a nearby large country house, little of the original house remains as much of it was rebuilt after a fire in 1843.

19th century

A map of Luton from 1888

The town grew strongly in the 19th century; in 1801 the population was 3,095 [6]. By 1850 it was over 10,000 and by 1901 it was almost 39,000. This rapid growth was fuelled by the arrival of the railway in 1858, which bypassed Dunstable, the nearby market town, which until then had overshadowed Luton.

Luton had a gas supply in 1834, and the gas street lights were erected and the first town hall opened in 1847.

Newspaper printing arrived in the town in 1854, co-incidentally the year the first public cemetry was opened. Following a cholera epidemic in 1848 Luton formed a water company and had a complete water and sewerage system by the late 1860s. The first covered market was built (the Plait Halls - now demolished) in 1869. Luton was made a borough in 1876[7] and the football club was founded in 1885.

20th century

File:Lutonmap1954.jpg
A map of Luton from 1954

In the 20th century, the hat trade severely declined and was replaced by more modern industries. In 1905, Vauxhall Motors opened the largest car plant in the United Kingdom in Luton. Electrolux built a household appliances plant which was followed by other light engineering businesses.

In 1904 councillors Asher Hucklesby and Edwin Oakley purchased the estate that became Wardown Park, and then donated the property to the people of Luton. Hucklesby went on to be Mayor of Luton. The main house in the park became Luton Museum.

The town had a tram system from 1908 until 1932 and the first cinema was opened in 1909. By 1914, the population reached had 50,000.

The original town hall was destroyed in 1919 during the Peace Day celebrations at the end of the First World War; local people including many ex-servicemen were unhappy with unemployement and had been refused the use of a local park to hold celebratory events, and so stormed the town hall setting it on fire. (See Luton Town Hall) A replacement town hall was completed in 1936. Luton Airport opened in 1938, owned and operated by the council.

In World War II, the town suffered a number of air raids, and although only 107 people died [8] there was extensive damage to the town and over 1,500 homes were damaged or destroyed. The Vauxhall Factory built Churchill tanks as part of the war effort and was heavily camaflaged, the SKF factory was producing ball bearings, which were a vital part of the war effort. Although a bomb landed at the SKF Factory[9] no major damage was inflicted.

Post-war, the slum clearance continued and a number of substantial estates of council housing were built, notably at Farley Hill, Stopsley, Limbury, Marsh Farm and Leagrave, (Hockwell Ring). The M1 passed just to the west of the town in 1959. In 1962 a new library (to replace the Carneige Library) was opened by the Queen in the corner of St Georges Square. In the late 1960's a large part of the town centre was cleared to build a large covered shopping centre, the Arndale Centre, which was opened in 1972[10]. The Arndale Centre has had a major refurbishment, including a new glass roof, which has transformed the area.

In 2000, Vauxhall announced the end of car production in Luton; the plant closed in March 2002[citation needed]. At its peak it had employed around in excess of 30,000 people.

The future

A major regeneration programme for the town centre is planned, which will include upgrades to the town's bus and train stations as well as general improvements the town's streetscape. St Georges square is currently undergoing a rebuild[11] which is due to be completed by the end of 2006. Planning applications for an extension to the existing Arndale Shopping Centre[12] and also for a new centre in Power Court[13] (near to St Marys Church) have been submitted. It is hoped this will breathe life into the town, which has been flagging with the decades of decline of the manufacturing industry in Great Britain, which Luton once thrived upon.

Places within Luton

For main article see List of places within Luton.

Former villages and hamlets: Biscot, Crawley Green, Leagrave, Limbury, Round Green, Stopsley

Early expansion of Luton: Bury Park, High Town, New Town

New estates: Bramingham, Bushmead, Farley Hill, Hockwell Ring, Lewsey, Marsh Farm, Sundon Park, Warden Hills, Wigmore

Parks and amenities: Kenilworth Road, Luton Museum, Stockwood Park, Wardown Park, Waulud's Bank

Transport

Luton is well connected by transport links and is less than 30 miles from the centre of London.

Air

Luton Airport

An airport was first opened on the current airport site on the 16 July 1938 by the Secretary of State for Air, Kingsley Wood. During the Second World War the airport was a base for Royal Air Force fighters.

Flights from the airport increased substantially from the 1960s as new charter airlines (e.g. Court Line) flew from there rather than the London airports. Despite problems in the 1970s, a new terminal was added in 1985[citation needed]. The airport was renamed London Luton Airport in 1990, just before Ryanair took its business to Stansted. The growth of new low-cost flights rejuvenated the airport and passenger numbers more than doubled from 1992 to 1998. In 1999, a new terminal was added and a new railway station, Luton Airport Parkway, opened.

Rail

Luton enjoys good rail connections via its three stations (Luton, Luton Airport Parkway and Leagrave) to London and through to Brighton and Sutton on First Capital Connect's Thameslink line and north to Derby, Leicester, Nottingham, Sheffield and other cities on the Midland Main Line, provided by Midland Mainline. There are plans to introduce 24-hour rail services to Luton and Luton Airport Parkway.[14]

Road

Luton is connected to the motorway network with two junctions onto the M1 motorway, (Junctions 10 and 11). The M1 was built on the west of the town in 1959, and provides access to London and the North. The A6 passes through the town heading north to Bedford and south to St Albans (although south of the town the road has been re-numbered as the A1081).

The A5 passes though nearby Dunstable, and the A505 provides a connection towards the East and the A1(M).

In 2006 work started on widening the M1 past Luton and to the South, and work also started on upgrading the access from the M1 to the Airport.

In 2003, an Office of Fair Trading study identified Luton Airport as having the highest daytime fare for a 2-mile taxi journey in the UK.[15]

Politics and demographics

Luton is represented by two Members of Parliament. The constituency of Luton North has been held by Kelvin Hopkins since 1997 and Luton South by Margaret Moran also since 1997. Luton is within the East of England (European Parliament constituency).


Historically Luton was part of the county of Bedfordshire, but since 1997 it has been an administratively independent unitary authority.

The local authority is Luton Borough Council (see www.luton.gov.uk local council website). The town is split into 19 wards, represented by 48 councilors. Elections are held for all seats every four years, with the next local elections due to be held in May 2007.

The town remains part of Bedfordshire for ceremonial purposes and is in the East of England region, but was formerly in South East England region, and in common usage is still often considered to be in the South East.

Trivia

In 2004, Luton was voted as the 'crappiest' town in the UK in the book Crap Towns II edited by Sam Jordison and Dan Kieran, beating previous winner in Crap Towns, Kingston upon Hull. The "award" was said to have won due to its abundance of abysmally ugly architecture, abundance of chain stores and lack of heart. However, given that fellow towns on this list were places such as Windsor, Oxford, Winchester, Liverpool (European Capital of Culture), and tiny London commuter belt villages, the list is of limited relevance.

This book deeply offended some people who see the town as a place which has had a significant impact on the history of the UK, however, other passed no notice to the publication.

The bell in the town hall is the heaviest in the county weighing in at two tonnes.[16]

Twin towns

Luton participates in international town twinning; its current partners are:

Economy

This is a chart of trend of regional gross value added of Luton at current basic prices published (pp.240-253) by Office for National Statistics with figures in millions of British Pounds Sterling.

Year Regional Gross Value Added[17] Agriculture[18] Industry[19] Services[20]
1995 2,067 1 902 1,165
2000 2,614 1 850 1,763
2003 3,090 1 811 2,278

Local attractions

Key
Abbey/Priory/Cathedral
Accessible open space Accessible open space
Amusement/Theme Park
Castle
Country Park Country Park
English Heritage
Forestry Commission
Heritage railway Heritage railway
Historic house Historic House
Places of Worship Places of Worship
Museum (free)
Museum		 Museum (free/not free)
National Trust National Trust
Theatre
Zoo

Images

Local media

Newspapers

Two weekly newspapers are delivered free to all the houses in Luton. They are:

There is also a weekly sister paper of the Herald and post which is not free.

Additionally once a month there is a council produced newspaper called LutonLine, usually delivered with the Luton on Sunday.

Radio

The local BBC station, Three Counties Radio broadcasts from its office in Hastings Street, Luton to Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire.

Chiltern Radio is the local independant station and broadcasts from Bedford.

The university's radio station, Luton FM, runs for 28 days during May In addition, Ramadan FM broadcasts during the month of Ramadan. Diverse FM, another local radio station, has recently been awarded a community radio license from Ofcom and hopes to start broadcasting full-time in April 2007.

Famous people from Luton

People born in or had a strong connection with Luton.

References

  1. ^ Luton Population
  2. ^ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/threecounties/do_that/2004/05/carnival/carnival_day.shtml Luton Carnival Coverage on the BBC
  3. ^ England players leaving from Luton
  4. ^ Lorraine Chase advert
  5. ^ Early history of Luton
  6. ^ Population figures for 1801, 1901 and 1901
  7. ^ Luton was made a borough
  8. ^ Deaths during WWII
  9. ^ See book Luton at War volume II
  10. ^ Arndale opened in 1972
  11. ^ St Georges Square on Luton Council Site
  12. ^ Luton Council website with Arndale plans
  13. ^ Website for the development of Power Court
  14. ^ First Capital plans
  15. ^ Office of Fair Trading Study
  16. ^ Discover Bedforshire article on Luton
  17. ^ Components may not sum to totals due to rounding
  18. ^ includes hunting and forestry
  19. ^ includes energy and construction
  20. ^ includes financial intermediation services indirectly measured

51°54′N 0°26′W / 51.900°N 0.433°W / 51.900; -0.433

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