Wembley
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Coordinates: 51°33′22″N 0°18′15″W / 51.5560°N 0.3042°W
| Wembley | |
  Wembley shown within Greater London |
|
| OS grid reference | |
|---|---|
| London borough | Brent |
| Ceremonial county | Greater London |
| Region | London |
| Constituent country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | WEMBLEY |
| Postcode district | HA0, HA9 |
| Dialling code | 020 |
| Police | Metropolitan |
| Fire | London |
| Ambulance | London |
| European Parliament | London |
| UK Parliament | Brent North |
| London Assembly | Brent and Harrow |
| List of places: UK • England • London | |
Wembley is an area of north-west London, England and part of the London Borough of Brent.
Notable buildings include Wembley Stadium, England's primary football stadium and a major sports and entertainment venue, and Wembley Arena, a concert venue.
It is one of the most ethnically diverse areas of London with South Asian, Afro-Caribbean, Irish, Somali and Polish communities. In recent years there has been considerable re-development which continues particularly around Wembley Stadium and in the town centre.
[edit] Boundaries
Wembley is bounded on the south and east by the River Brent and the A406 North Circular Road, separating it from Neasden, Willesden and Park Royal. To its west and northwest are Sudbury and Harrow. To the north it is separated from Kingsbury by Barn Hill Open Space and Fryent Country Park and to its east lies Hendon.
[edit] History
[edit] Derivation of the name of Wembley
Wembley is derived from the Old English proper name "Wemba" and the Old English name for meadow "Lea". Hence, Wembley means Wemba's lea, or Wemba's clearing. It was first mentioned in the charter of 825 of King Beornwulf. The village of Wemba Lea grew up on the hill by the clearing with the Harrow Road south of it. Much of the surrounding area remained wooded. By 1547 there were only six houses in Wembley but though small it was one of the richest parts of Harrow. There was a mill on Wembley Hill by 1673.
[edit] The British Empire Exhibition
The area around the current Wembley Stadium was the location of the famous Empire exhibition held from 1924-1925. Until very recently remnants of the many grand buildings including the old Wembley Stadium still remained but have been removed to make way for redevelopment.
[edit] Recent history
Wembley was at various times the sole or a major part of Wembley Urban District and then of the Municipal Borough of Wembley, which was merged by the London Government Act 1963 with the Municipal Borough of Willesden in 1965 to form the London Borough of Brent. Wembley was the centre of the municipal organisation of the area, with the Wembley Town Hall in Forty Lane now serving as Brent Town Hall. The former Middlesex County Council, abolished in 1965 when the Greater London Council was created, had its fire brigade headquarters in Harrow Road, Wembley. The fire station there still operates as part of the London Fire Brigade. The large Wembley Police Station is next door. Wembley, in common with much of North West London, had an extensive manufacturing industry, with most of it closing in the 1980s. Factories in the area included Glacier Metals (bearings), Wolf Power Tools, Sunbeam Electrical Appliances, Griffin & George (laboratory equipment) and GEC (whose research plant was one of the first of its type in the UK).
[edit] Wembley town centre
The retail centre of Wembley (the High Road and Ealing Road) has suffered from traffic congestion and the opening of neighbouring purpose built shopping centres, first Brent Cross in the early 1970s and later the Harrow and Ealing Broadway Shopping Centres. Many of the national shopping names closed their Wembley stores.
During the 1960s rebuilding of Wembley Central station, a block of flats and an open plan shopping plaza with associated car parking were constructed on a raft over the railway. The square fell into disuse but is now being redeveloped and may assist the regeneration of the town centre.
[edit] Bus Links
Bus routes serving central Wembley include the 18, 79, 83, 92, 182, 204, 223, 224, 297, H17 and N18. Other bus routes serving Wembley include the 245, 487 and PR2.
[edit] Road Transport
Wembley lies near to the M40 running toward Oxford (Westbound) or London (Eastbound), the North Circular A406 and the M1 motorway.
[edit] Recreation grounds and parkland
Up to the nineteenth century Wembley was rural and it has retained a number of green spaces. Managed spaces include Barham Park (10.5 hectares) in Sudbury Town, King Edward the VII Park (est. 1914, (10.5 hectares) behind the High Road, and Sudbury Green. Less manged spaces include Fryent Country Park, Barn Hill (19.87 hectares), Vale Farm sports ground (30 hectares). Brent River Park / Tokyngton Recreation Ground (20.26 hectares) has recently been restored returning the river to a more natural course. Nearby Sudbury Golf Course backs onto the Grand Union Canal with it towpath running into central London. Sudbury Squash and Tennis Club has outdoor tennis courts, an indoor squash court and a clubhouse. Wembley is a short distance away from the Welsh Harp reservoir and open space, created in the 19th century by damming the River Brent.
[edit] Places of note
The prime landmark is Wembley Stadium, rebuilt 2003-2007 at a cost of around £800m, which is approached via the White Horse Bridge designed by the London Eye architects. Nearby are Wembley Arena, a concert venue built in 1934 as the Empire Pool, a swimming pool for the Empire Games, and Fountain Studios, one of the country's largest purpose built television studios and host to "X Factor", "Bremner, Bird and Fortune" and "Britain's Got Talent".
[edit] Property
Most of the housing consists of interwar semi-detached houses and terraces and modern apartment blocks with a significant minority of detached housing. Prices are higher than the national average.
[edit] Shopping
The main shopping area is centred on Wembley High Road, Central Square which is undergoing redevelopment, and Ealing Road. The industrial and commercial estate close to Wembley Stadium includes warehouse-style outlets and retail sheds and in Brent Park there is a branch of Ikea. A large market is held on most Sundays in the car park in front of Wembley Stadium.
[edit] Places of worship
St Joseph's Church on the High Road is very close to Wembley Stadium and is a Roman Catholic Church. There are other churches, chapels, mosques and a Hindu temple in Neasden.
[edit] Future developments
The "Wembley City" development in the area of Wembley Stadium has a number of stakeholders, in particular Quintain Estates who own much of the proposed site. It is to include new leisure facilities (e.g. the first new swimming baths being built in the borough in 60 years and a multiplex cinema), residential and retail units and a new Civic Centre, incorporating council offices and assembly hall, a library and other community facilities and some retail space, to open in 2012-2013 [1][2]. Wembley Central Square is being redeveloped with new leisure and retail facilities and residential units.
[edit] Politics
Since the 2006 elections Brent Council has been controlled by a coalition of the Conservative and Liberal Democrat parties. Wembley falls within the UK Parliament constituency of Brent North, and the London Assembly constituency of Brent and Harrow.
[edit] Notable people
- Charlie Watts of The Rolling Stones
- Keith Moon of The Who
- Lady Sovereign
- Mark Worrall Chelsea author was born at 2A Carlton Parade Wembley on June 13 1961.
[edit] Nearby places
[edit] Tube and Railway stations
- National Rail
- Wembley Central Southern Railways
- Wembley Stadium, Chiltern Railways
- Sudbury & Harrow Road, Chiltern Railways
- Sudbury Hill Harrow, Chiltern Railways (This station is located in Harrow)
- London Underground
- Wembley Park, Metropolitan and Jubilee Lines
- Wembley Central, Bakerloo Line
- Stonebridge Park station, Bakerloo Line
- North Wembley, Bakerloo Line
- Sudbury Town, Piccadilly Line
- Sudbury Hill, Piccadilly Line (This station is located in Greenford and Harrow)
- Alperton, Piccadilly Line
- Northwick Park, Metropolitan Line
- Preston Road, Metropolitan Line
[edit] Education
[edit] Senior
- Alperton Community School
- Wembley High Technology College
- Preston Manor High School
- Preston Manor City Learning Centre
- Copland
[edit] Junior
- Wembley Manor Junior School
- Wembley Manor Infant School
- Park Lane Primary School
- St Joseph's R.C Infant School
- St Joseph's R.C Junior School
- Elsley Primary School
- Oakington Manor Primary School
- Preston Park Primary School
- Chalkhill Primary School
- Willow Children's Centre
- Wembley Primary school
- Byron Court Primary School
- Barham Primary School
- Sudbury Primary School
- Lyon Park Junior School
- Lyon Park Infant School
[edit] References
- ^ "Hopkins wins Brent civic centre competition". 2009-02-27. http://www.bdonline.co.uk/story.asp?storycode=3135019. Retrieved on 2009-05-31.
- ^ "Arch rivals: Hopkins Architects’ winning design for Brent civic centre". 2009-03-20. http://www.building.co.uk/story.asp?storycode=3136666. Retrieved on 2009-05-31.
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