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| Borough of Cheltenham | |
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 Shown within Gloucestershire |
| Geography | |
| Status: | Borough |
| Region: | South West England |
| Admin. County: | Gloucestershire |
| Area: - Total |
Ranked 304th 46.61 km² |
| Admin. HQ: | Cheltenham |
| Grid reference: | SO 9422 |
| ONS code: | 23UB |
| Demographics | |
| Population: - Total (2006 est.) - Density |
Ranked 190th 111,500 2392 / km² |
| Ethnicity: | 94.9% White 2.0% S.Asian 1.1% Mixed Race 0.7% Black 1.3% Chinese or other[1] |
| Politics | |
| Cheltenham Borough Council www.cheltenham.gov.uk |
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| Leadership: | Leader & Cabinet |
| Executive: | TBA (council NOC) |
| MPs: | Martin Horwood |
| Coat of arms | |
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Cheltenham (or Cheltenham Spa) is a large spa town and borough in Gloucestershire, England. The town has a population of 110,013 (2001 census). The people of the town are known as "Cheltonians". Its motto is: Salubritas et Eruditio ("Health and Education").
Cheltenham is located on the edge of the Cotswolds and has an image of being respectable and wealthy. Cheltenham has been a health and holiday spa town resort since the discovery of mineral springs there in 1716. The town is famous for its Regency architecture and is said to be "the most complete regency town in England".[2] The small River Chelt flows under and through the town and is subject to regular floods.[3]
Cheltenham is the home of the flagship race of British steeplechase horseracing. The town hosts several festivals of culture.
On 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, the borough of Cheltenham was merged with Charlton Kings urban district to form the modern non-metropolitan district of Cheltenham. Four parishes — Swindon Village, Up Hatherley, Leckhampton and Prestbury — were added to the borough of Cheltenham from the borough of Tewkesbury in 1991.[4]
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Education
In accordance with the "Eruditio" (Education) part of its motto, Cheltenham is a centre for education, including; Cheltenham College, Cheltenham Ladies' College and a campus of each of the University of Gloucestershire and Gloucestershire College.
See also List of schools in Gloucestershire.
Festivals
Every year, Cheltenham Festivals organises music, jazz, folk, literary, and science festivals in the town. Events take place at venues including the Town Hall, the Everyman Theatre, The Playhouse Theatre and the Pittville Pump Room. Cheltenham is also home to the amateur dramatics group, Gyst.
Additionally, Greenbelt, a Christian arts and music festival, is held at Cheltenham Racecourse.
Sport and leisure
Cheltenham is known for its horse racing. Cheltenham Racecourse, located in the suburb of Prestbury, is the home of National Hunt, or jumps, racing in the UK. Meetings are hosted from October to April. The highlight of the season is the Cheltenham Gold Cup, which is normally held in the middle of March, during the Cheltenham Festival. This co-incidence with Saint Patrick's Day ensures that the town swells with an influx of Irish horse racing devotees.
The local football teams are Cheltenham Town F.C., who have recently enjoyed success in The Football League and gained promotion to League One, and Cheltenham Saracens F.C., who are members of the Hellenic League Division One West.
Amateur rugby union clubs include Cheltenham Saracens RFC, Cheltenham North RFC, Old Patesians R.F.C., and Cheltenham Civil Service RFC.
The Cheltenham Rugby Festival is a rugby-league-nines event held in May.
The town has three golf courses, at Cleeve Hill, Cotswold Hills, and Lilley Brook.
Cheltenham is home to Steve Saunders, 10 times the British champion trials rider and runner-up in the World Championship in 1986.
Sandford Parks Lido is one of the largest outdoor pools in England. There is a 50 m (164 ft) main pool as well as a children's pool and paddling pool, both of which are set in landscaped gardens.
Shopping and nightlife
Cheltenham is a regional shopping centre, home to department stores, and centres including the Regent Arcade and the Beechwood Shopping Centre. It has a Michelin two-star restaurant, 'Le Champignon Sauvage'.
Major employers
Cheltenham has light industry employers, including food processing, aerospace, electronics and tourism businesses. The British government's electronic surveillance operation Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), renowned for its "doughnut-shape" building, is located in Cheltenham. GE-Aviation, Dowty Rotol, Chelsea Building Society, Endsleigh Insurance, UCAS (Universities & Colleges Admissions Service), Kohler Mira, Zurich Financial Services, Spirax Sarco and Kraft Foods' UK headquarters all have sites in and around Cheltenham.
Railway
Cheltenham Spa railway station is located on the main Bristol-Birmingham line, giving connections to Gloucester, Bristol, Swindon, London Paddington, Cardiff Central, Plymouth and the South West, Birmingham, Derby, the North West, the North East, and Scotland.
The Cheltenham Spa Express, once known as the "Cheltenham Flyer", is a named passenger train, connecting Cheltenham with London.
In addition, a restored station at Cheltenham Racecourse is the south terminus for the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway heritage railway.
Churches
- Anglican Churches (Diocese of Gloucester) (not a complete list)
- St. Mary's Church — the original church of the town and the only surviving medieval building.
- St. Matthew's Church (evangelical) — a 19th-century foundation, now a combined parish with St. Mary's.
- St. Philip and St. James Church, Leckhampton (liberal) — part of the South Cheltenham mission area.
- St. Barnabas — Part of the West Cheltenham Team Ministry
- St. Mark [1] (evangelical) — part of the West Cheltenham Team Ministry [2]
- All Saints' Church (Anglo-catholic) — Gustav Holst was a chorister at All Saints, his father, Adolph von Holst, being organist and Master of the Choristers.
- Christ Church (evangelical)
- St. Paul's Church (evangelical)
- St. Luke's Church
- Trinity Church (evangelical) — one of the largest Anglican congregations outside London.citation needed
- Non-Anglican Churches
- St. Gregory's — the principal Roman Catholic church.
- Bethesda Methodist Church
- Cambray Baptist Church
- Christian City Church - located at Rowanfield Primary School
- Elim Christian Centre of the Elim Pentecostal Church
- URC in Cheltenham — United Reformed Church (including St. Andrew's Montpellier).
- Cheltenham Evangelical Free Church
- St. Thomas More Catholic Church
The town features two notable rings of bells hung for change ringing. The first is at St. Christopher's (Warden Hill), these being the lightest ring of bells of church bells in the world.[5] The bells of St. Mark's [3] are renowned for their tonal excellence and ease of "handling". The product of John Taylor's Bell Foundry they were cast in 1885 and 2007 and have undergone a major refurbishment. There is also a ring of 12 bells dating mainly from the 19th century, hung in St. Mary's church. These are to be the venue in 2008 for the eliminators of the National 12 Bell Striking contest in which teams of Campanologists from around the world compete to win the Taylor Trophy.
Twin Towns
Cheltenham is twinned[6] with:
- Annecy, France
- Cheltenham, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.
- Göttingen, Germany
- Sochi, Russia
- Weihai, China
The town also has 'Friendship' status with:
- Stampersgat, Netherlands
- Kisumu, Kenya
Areas of Cheltenham
The districts of Cheltenham include Arle, Benhall, Charlton Kings, Fairview, Fiddlers Green, Hesters Way, Leckhampton, Montpellier, Pittville, Prestbury, The Reddings, Rowanfield, St. Marks, St. Paul's, St. Peter's, Springbank, Springfields, Swindon Village, Up Hatherley, Whaddon, and Wyman's Brook.
Lansdown Crescent
Lansdown Crescent is a Regency period terrace, designed by John Buonarotti Papworth for R.W. and C. Jearrad and constructed in the 1830s. The terrace is convex, and opposite the north-eastern part stands Lansdown Court, an Italianate villa possibly designed by Papworth but more probably by the Jearrads and built about 1830.
Notable residents
References
- David Verey, Gloucestershire: the Vale and the Forest of Dean, The Buildings of England edited by Nikolaus Pevsner, 2nd ed (1976) ISBN 0-14-071041-8
See also
- HMS Cheltenham, a Racecourse class minesweeper of 1916
- Acclaim Cheltenham, a game studio that made Extreme-G 3 and XGRA: Extreme-G Racing Association
- List of spa towns in the United Kingdom
External links
- Cheltenham Borough Council
- VisitCheltenham Cheltenham Borough Council - Official Tourism Information Centre website
- Cheltenham Art Gallery & Museum
- Gloucestershire Echo — Web site for the local newspaper
- Genealogical Web site including many relevant references on Cheltenham
- Cheltenham at the Open Directory Project
| Following the Cotswold Way | |
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| Towards Bath |
Towards Chipping Campden |
| 16 km (10 miles) to Leckhampton, from White's Barn |
13.5 km (8 miles) to Winchcombe, from White's Barn |
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