Everything about Telford totally explained
Telford (; ) is a large
new town in the borough of
Telford and Wrekin and
ceremonial county of
Shropshire,
England, approximately east of
Shrewsbury, and west of
Birmingham. With a population of approximately 140,000 people, and a projected population growth within the next 20 years to over 200,000,
It is named after
Thomas Telford, a famous
civil engineer. The town was built in the 1960s and 1970s as a
new town on previously industrial and agricultural land. Similarly to other
planned towns of the era, Telford was created from the merger of other, smaller settlements, most notably the towns of
Wellington,
Oakengates,
Madeley and
Dawley.
Telford Shopping Centre, a modern shopping mall, was constructed at the new town's geographical centre, along with an extensive
Town Park. The
M54 motorway was completed in 1983, connecting the town with the
West Midlands conurbation, and vastly improving the transport infrastructure between Telford's component settlements.
Telford also incorporates the northern half of
Ironbridge Gorge, a scenic tourist destination and
UNESCO World Heritage Site. The town advertises itself as "The Birthplace of Industry", due to its proximity to
Coalbrookdale, and its own activity during the
Industrial Revolution as part of the Shropshire Coalfield. The
River Severn flows along its southern most boundary.
History
Early history
Early settlement in the area was thought to be on the land that sloped up from the Weald Moors (an area north of the town centre) towards the line along which the Roman
Watling Street was built. Farmland surrounded three large estates in the tenth century, namely
Wellington,
Wrockwardine and
Lilleshall.
Modern history
The New Town was first designated on
January 16,
1963 as
Dawley New Town, covering 9,100 acres (37 km²) of
Dawley,
Wenlock,
Oakengates,
Wellington Rural District and
Shifnal Rural District. Development started, guided by the Dawley New Town Development Corporation, with people moving into the new
Sutton Hill estate in 1967/1968.
The Minister proposed an extension of 12,000 acres (49 km²) in 1968 (taking in the historic area of
Ironbridge Gorge), which saw objections and a public inquiry take place. The
Dawley New Town (Designation) Amendment (Telford) Order was made on
November 29,
1968, extending the New Town area by 10,143 acres (41 km²) of "land lying within the urban districts of Oakengates and Wellington and the rural districts of Shifnal and Wellington". This Order also renamed the new town Telford, after the Scottish-born civil engineer
Thomas Telford who, in 1787, became Surveyor of Public Works for Shropshire. Other suggested names at the time were Dawelloak and Wrekin Forest City.
Most of the infrastructure was constructed from the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s with the major housing and commercial development occurring over three decades up to the early 1990s when the Development Corporation was wound up to be replaced by Commission for the New Towns, later English Partnerships, and most of the property was handed over to the then Wrekin District Council. In 1983, after fierce opposition and three public enquiries, the
M54 motorway was completed, connecting the town to the
M6 and thence the rest of the UK's motorway network. Other major roads are the
A5,
A518 and
A442, which is commonly known as the Eastern Primary or
EP, and is officially branded
Queensway.
Geography
Telford town centre lies approximately
east/south-east of
Shrewsbury and
north-west of
Wolverhampton. The town comprises 7,803 hectares and its southern and eastern parts, between the
Severn Gorge and
Donnington Wood, include the east Shropshire coalfield. North and north-west Telford lie beyond the coalfield's Boundary fault on
Sandstone beds which, along with other
Triassic formations, prevail over much of the
North Shropshire plain. The town centre stands on a watershed, with land to the south draining towards the
River Severn, and to the north the land slopes gently down towards the Weald Moors. The town is dominated by the
Wrekin, a broad but relatively small hill located south-west of Wellington, straddling the border with the borough of
Shrewsbury and Atcham. and so to grow to a town of 70,000 or more. By 1968 Telford was intended to take an additional 50,000 and grow to a town of 220,000 or more by 1991. By 1983, however, Telford's population was just under 108,000, and it was generally thought that it might not reach 120,000 by the late 1980s. The
Telford and Wrekin area is a popular commuter zone, containing some relatively rural areas in the North and West of the borough. These are popular with commuters to the
West Midlands conurbation, due to the good transport links provided by the
A5/
M54.
The town is largely
White ethnically, comprising 93.8% of the population, which is higher than the
West Midlands average (86.9%), and the England average (89.1%). The next largest ethnic group is those of
Asian descent, comprising 3.3% of the population, which is again less than the West Midlands at 8.0%, and England at 5.3%. However, the town and borough remains comparatively more ethnically diverse than the ceremonial county, with
South Shropshire for example being 97.8% white.
Economy
| Population and Employment |
| Date |
Population |
No. of Jobs |
% of Jobs on
Ind. Estates |
| 1968 |
74,750 |
35,671 |
1.4 |
| 1969 |
76,200 |
35,710 |
2.4 |
| 1970 |
78,200 |
35,948 |
5.1 |
| 1971 |
80,800 |
36,191 |
7.2 |
| 1972 |
84,200 |
36,743 |
9.3 |
| 1973 |
87,100 |
39,861 |
11.4 |
| 1974 |
89,000 |
40,928 |
13.2 |
| 1975 |
90,000 |
40,986 |
12.3 |
| 1976 |
93,980 |
42,036 |
14.9 |
| 1977 |
97,900 |
43,637 |
15.4 |
| 1978 |
100,300 |
44,681 |
16.8 |
| 1979 |
102,000 |
44,247 |
18.2 |
| 1980 |
104,200 |
42,397 |
18.3 |
| 1981 |
104,200 |
39,414 |
16.8 |
| 1982 |
106,600 |
38,852 |
18.2 |
| 1983 |
107,700 |
39,037 |
19.9 |
During the economic crisis of the late 1960s unemployment in the town was high. However, in 1967
Halesfield Industrial Estate was founded on the south-eastern edge of the town. Other large estates followed, in 1973 with
Stafford Park just east of the
town centre and in 1979 with
Hortonwood, to the north. In total, half a million square metres of factory space were provided between 1968 and 1983, making Telford an attractive investment area. By 1976, Telford had begun to recruit industry from the U.S.A., Europe, and Japan. The foreign firms required larger factories, and they began to be built at Stafford Park. By 1983 over 2,000 jobs in Telford were provided by around 40 (mostly American) foreign companies. In contrast to industry in the Black County at the time, these new companies focused on high-technology industries rather than the heavy and metal-finishing industries.
The new arrivals included the American company
Unimation and three firms from Japan:
Nikon U.K. Ltd., which opened a warehouse at Halesfield in 1983; video tape manufacturers
Hitachi Maxell at Apley Castle in 1983; and office equipment manufacturers
Ricoh, who took a 22 acre site for a factory at
Priorslee next to the
M54, and formed the first in Telford's new enterprise zone.
Consequently, from the later 1970s, Telford began to attract high-technology firms and to diversify its industry, and the promotion of the Service industry also began to prosper, in the
Telford Town Centre area. However, a deepening national recession meant that, despite the creation of new jobs, there were net job losses from 1979. Unemployment grew from 3.4 per cent in 1969 to over 8 per cent in 1972 and 22.3 per cent in 1983; long-term unemployment rose even faster. Nevertheless the rate of increase in unemployment was slowing down by 1983 and was making some progress against national and regional trends.
Telford has attracted several large IT services companies, including
EDS who support the MOD contract from the Euston Park site, as well as a vast array of clients across the world from the Plaza building. Also
Capgemini and
Fujitsu employ a significant number of staff in the area, mainly supporting their HM Revenue & Customs client.
In recent times there has been significant job losses, with the movement of 500 Defence Logistics Organisation (DLO) jobs at the MOD base at Sapphire House, Telford, to Bristol. The closure of the local sugar beet factory at
Allscott in 2007 is another recent example.
Landmarks
The commercial centre of the town is the aptly named Telford Town Centre, located off Junction 5 of the
M54 motorway. It is home to the administrative headquarters of Telford & Wrekin council, the large
Telford Shopping Centre (and the accompanying
Town Park), various office blocks, such as the blue office towers (
Telford Plaza), and the
Windsor Life building.
The Forge retail park and a large
Odeon Cinema are also located in the area, as well as
Thomas Telford School, which is within walking distance. Telford also houses one of the Midlands only ice skating rinks near the newly built Telford International Centre (TIC).
A major Telford landmark is
The Iron Bridge, located in
Ironbridge. It was the first bridge of its size in the world made out of
cast iron. In the same area is the
Ironbridge Gorge, a
UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Education
Telford has a number of primary and secondary schools. Of particular notability is
Thomas Telford School, a
City Technology College (CTC), which claims to have a 100% pass rate at GCSE level, with all students achieving at least 4 GCSE's grades A*-C, placing it at number one in the entire country for
Key Stage 4 attainment. The
Abraham Darby Specialist School For The Performing Arts provides specialist performing arts education and is home to one of the UK's best school concert bands which has performed at prestigous venues such as Birmingham Symphony Hall, Royal Festival Hall London, Royal Albert Hall and also Carnegie Hall, New York.
Further education is handled by Telford College of Arts and Technology (TCAT) and
Telford New College, a sixth-form college located in
Wellington.
Adams' Grammar School is a selective school located in nearby
Newport.
Telford is also home to The
University of Wolverhampton Business School (UWBS) campus and the School of the Built Environment.
Madeley Academy is a sport collage and a building will be built and opened for September 2009.
Transport
Telford is situated at the terminus of the
M54 motorway, a spur of the
M6 linking the town with
Wolverhampton and the
West Midlands, and on the
A5 road between
Shrewsbury and
Cannock. The town also has three railway stations:
Wellington,
Oakengates and
Telford Central, which are on the
Shrewsbury to Wolverhampton Line. In addition, there are two further stations, Spring Village and Horsehay & Dawley, at
Telford Steam Railway, situated at
Horsehay.
Telford's rapidly growing population still has a relatively low car ownership. In 2004 Telford & Wrekin council was awarded 'Beacon Status' for improving access to public transport. Being a new town with a planned transport infrastructure, the town features relatively few traffic problems, in comparison to the urban areas of
Birmingham or medieval streets of
Shrewsbury. The M54 removes all through-traffic from local roads, and the A442 Queensway acts as a north-south artery road.
Sport
Telford is home to a variety of established amateur, semi-pro and professional sports clubs.
AFC Telford United Football Club are currently playing in
Conference North, and their current manager is
Rob Smith. AFC Telford's achievements include Best Shropshire Senior Cup Performance: Final - 3 Times, and Promotion to
Conference North in 2007, after beating
Witton Albion in the play-offs 3-1. There have been many
American football teams in the town, although presently
Shropshire Revolution a
British American Football League, founded in
2006, is the ony club in the town and the county of Shropshire. Previous clubs include
Wrekin Giants (1985-1989),
Shropshire Giants (1989), and
Cannock Chase Giants (1989-1993/4). Hockey in the town is represented by the
Telford Tigers, an
EPL Premier Team, and
Telford Tigers ENL an
ENL Team. Rugby clubs include
Telford Raiders,
Telford Hornets, and the
Shropshire Scorpions.
Closest cities, towns and villages
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