Corby

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For other uses, see Corby (disambiguation).
Corby
Shown in Northamptonshire
Shown in Northamptonshire
Corby (United Kingdom)
Corby
Corby
Location in the UK
Coordinates: 52°29′14.47″N 0°42′0.68″W / 52.4873528, -0.7001889
Country United Kingdom
Region East Midlands
County Northamptonshire
Status Borough
ONS code 34UB
Government
 - Leadership Alternative - Sec.31
 - Control Labour
 - MP Phil Hope
Area
 - Total 31 sq mi (80.28 km²)
Population (2005)
 - Total 53,500
 - Density 1,724.9/sq mi (666/km²)
Time zone GMT (UTC0)
 - Summer (DST) BST (UTC1)
Postcode NN17-NN18
Area code(s) 01536
Website: www.corby.gov.uk

Corby is an industrial town and a local government district located 13km north of Kettering in Northamptonshire, England. The district as a whole had a population of 53,174 at the 2001 Census; the town on its own accounted for 49,222 of this figure. Corby is in a triangle formed by Leicester, Peterborough and Northampton. The Borough of Corby borders onto the Borough of Kettering, the District of East Northamptonshire and the District of Harborough. The nearest towns are Kettering, Market Harborough, Desborough and Rothwell. Corby is about 24 miles north-east of the county town, Northampton.

Contents

[edit] History

[edit] Early history

Mesolithic and Neolithic artefacts have been found in the area surrounding Corby and human remains dating to the Bronze age were found in 1970 at Cowthick.[1] The first evidence of permanent settlement comes from the 8th century when Danish invaders arrived and the settlement became known as "Kori's by" – Kori's settlement. The settlement was recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as "Corbei". Corby's emblem, the raven, derives from an alternative meaning of this word. These Danish routes are still evident today by way of the entymology of the most Southern of the town's housing estates, Danesholme, around which one of the Danish settlements was located.

Corby was granted the right to hold two annual fairs and a market by Henry III in 1226. In 1568 Corby was granted a charter by Elizabeth I that exempted local landowners from tolls (the fee paid by travellers to use the long distance public roads), dues (an early form of income tax)[2] and gave all men the right to refuse to serve in the local militia.[3] A popular legend is that the Queen was hunting in Rockingham Forest when she (dependent on the legend) either fell from her horse or became trapped in a bog whilst riding. Upon being rescued by villagers from Corby she granted the charter in gratitude for her rescue. Another popular explanation is that it was granted as a favour to her alleged lover Sir Christopher Hatton.

The Corby Pole Fair is an event that has taken place every 20 years since 1862 in celebration of the charter.

[edit] From rural village to industrial town

The local area has been worked for iron ore since Roman times. An ironstone industry developed in the 19th century with the coming of the railways and the discovery of extensive ironstone beds. By 1910 an ironstone works had been established. In 1931 Corby was a small village with a population of around 1,500. It grew rapidly into a reasonably sized industrial town, when the owners of the ironstone works, the steel firm Stewarts and Lloyds, decided to build a large integrated ironstone and steel works on the site. The start of construction in 1934 drew workers from all over the country including many workers from the depressed West of Scotland and Irish labourers. The first steel was produced in October 1935 and for decades afterwards the steel works dominated the town. By 1939 the population had grown to around 12,000, at which time Corby was thought to be the largest "village" in the country, but it was at that point that Corby was re-designated an urban district (see the Local Government section below).

[edit] The 1940s and 1950s

During World War II the Corby steel works were expected to be a target for German bombers but in the event there were only a few bombs dropped by solitary planes and there were no casualties. This may be because the whole area was blanketed in huge dense black, low lying clouds created artificially by the intentional burning of oil and latex to hide the glowing Bessamer converter furnaces at the steel works from German bomber crews.[4] The only known remaining scars from German attacks can be found in the form of bullet holes visible on the front fascia of the old post office in Corby Village (now known as Maddisons Bar and Storm nightclub). Nobody really knows the exact circumstances under which the attack occurred, but a local apocryphal tale tells of a lone pilot making his way back to Germany after a successful raid on Coventry who spotted some lights so decided to finish off his already depleted stock of bullets. Sadly, the authenticity of this romanticised tale can neither be verified or denied, but it is certainly the most popular theory among locals. The Corby steel works made a notable contribution to the war effort by manufacturing the steel tubes used in Operation Pluto (Pipe Line Under the Ocean) to supply fuel to Allied forces on the European continent.

By 1950 the population of the town stood at 18,000. In that year Corby was designated a new town and the town underwent its second wave of expansion, mainly from Scotland, which resulted in a car-friendly layout with many areas of open space and woodland.

[edit] The decline of the steel industry

In 1967 the British steel industry was nationalised and the Stewarts & Lloyds steel tube works at Corby became part of British Steel. In 1973 the government approved a strategy of consolidating steel making in five main areas: South Wales, Sheffield, Scunthorpe, Teesside and Scotland, several of which are coastal sites with access to economic supplies of iron rich imported ores, and in 1975 the government agreed a programme that would lead to the phasing-out of steel making in Corby.[5] In November 1979 the end of iron and steel making in Corby was formally announced. By the end of 1981 over 5,000 jobs had been lost from British Steel in Corby, and further job losses took the total loss to 11,000 jobs, leading to an unemployment rate of over 30%.[6][7] Steel tube making continued, initially being supplied with steel by rail from Teesside and now from South Wales.

New industry was subsequently attracted to the town and by 1991 unemployment had returned to the national average.[8] The recovery of Corby was explained in 1990 by John Redwood, then a junior minister in the Department of Trade and Industry, as being a result of the establishment of an Enterprise Zone, the promotion of Corby by the government, the work of private investors and the skills of the work force. Others believe the town's recovery was significantly assisted by its central location and substantial grants from the EU.[citation needed][9]

[edit] Redevelopment

To the north of Corby, on the industrial estates is a 350MW power station built in 1994, and the Rockingham Motor Speedway.

[edit] Politics

The current Member of Parliament for Corby is Phil Hope MP (Labour). The Corby constituency contains parts of traditionally Conservative East Northamptonshire that balance the traditionally Labour town of Corby leading to a marginal constituency that has gone to the party forming the national government in every general election since the creation of the constituency in 1979. In the 2005 General Election, Labour won Corby by a majority of just over 1,000. Corby Borough Council has been controlled by the Labour party since 1979. In 2007 the council had 16 Labour representatives, eight Conservatives and five Liberal Democrats.

[edit] Elections

[edit] Society and culture

Scottish migration, and the migration to Corby has created a unique population in the borough, evidenced most clearly in the 'Corby accent', referred to as 'Corbyite', which is often described as sounding Glaswegian. The link with Scotland is a strong feature of the area: according to the 2001 Census, there were 10,063 Scottish-born in the Corby Urban Area – 18.9 per cent of the population. A further 1.3 per cent were born in Northern Ireland. It has been estimated that a further third of the population are Scottish or of Scottish descent.[10]

The Scottish heritage is cherished by many inhabitants – there are Scottish social and sporting clubs and there are many fervent supporters of the Celtic and Rangers football clubs (indeed, Corby is home to the largest Rangers Supporters' Club outside of Glasgow and Northern Ireland). Many shops sell Scottish foods and a supermarket even introduced Gaelic signs[11] to their Corby store (but they have since removed them). An annual Highland Gathering featuring traditional Scottish music and dancing is held in the town.

According to the 2001 Census only 1.7% of the population are non-white and the average age of the population (37.2) is slightly lower than the average for England and Wales (38.6).

[edit] Transport

The town is located along the A43, A427, A6003 and is six miles from the A14 at Kettering. Corby lies within two hours’ drive of four international airports: Birmingham, Luton, Stansted and East Midlands.

Corby is served by the Corby Star bus service and there are direct bus and coach services to Northampton, Milton Keynes, Peterborough operated by |stagecoach and Glasgow by National Express. Plans to build a new bus station in Corby are being considered by the council following the closure of the old bus station in August 2002.

Corby is the largest town in Europe not to have a railway station. The nearest station is at Kettering, seven miles south of Corby. It is on the Midland Main Line between London and Nottingham. Corby once had its own rail station on the Midland Railway's "alternative route" between London and Nottingham, bypassing the present main line via Market Harborough, Leicester and Loughborough and passing through Corby, Oakham and Melton Mowbray instead. However, Corby station closed in April 1966 and much of the line lost its remaining passenger services in May 1967. (The Oakham to Melton Mowbray section remains open to passengers as part of the Peterborough to Leicester line.) The Kettering - Corby - Melton Mowbray section remains open for freight, passing through the 1,756 metre (1,920 yard) Corby Tunnel and crossing the River Welland on the colossal 82-arch Welland Viaduct). A new Corby rail station is due to open in late 2008 to replace the shuttle bus service that currently runs to Kettering railway station.

[edit] Employment and education

Since the 1980s the unemployment rate has returned to a level closer to the national average (2.7% in October 2005).[12] Employment is biased towards manufacturing (36.8% compared with a regional average of 18.5%) and against public administration, health and education (10.0% compared with the regional average of 25.9%).[13] Much of industry is concentrated in purpose-built industrial estates on the outskirts of the town.

According to the 2001 Census the proportion of the working age population with degree-level qualifications (8.5%) is the lowest of all areas in England and Wales. 39.3% have no GCSE-equivalent qualifications at all.[14]

The Corby campus of Tresham Institute of Further and Higher Education provides a range of vocational courses for post-16 students and adult learners. The nearest universities are the University of Northampton, 37km (23 miles) to the south and both the University of Leicester and De Montfort University in Leicester, 40km (25 miles) to the west.

Lodge Park Technology College on Shetland Way
Lodge Park Technology College on Shetland Way

Brooke Weston College, one of only 15 CTCs in England, opened in 1990. Brooke Weston CTC has consistently achieved examination results in the top 5% of English state schools, and will change to a City Academy in September 2008. [15]

Since 1990 several of Corby's other secondary schools have fared less well with a series of poor examination results and critical inspection reports leading to mergers and closures, the most recent being the closure of Our Lady and Pope John School in 2005. Currently there are four secondary schools in Corby: Brooke Weston CTC, Lodge Park Technology College, Corby Community College and The Kingswood School. Corby Community College has a special unit for children with severe special educational needs. All four schools have sixth forms for post-16 students. As part of the regeneration programme it is planned to close Corby Community College and open an academy situated on one of the new developments.

Corby has 17 primary schools, of which two are Church of England schools, three are Roman Catholic and one for children with severe behavioural and emotional difficulties.

[edit] Regeneration and redevelopment

Land Securities (Corby town centre owners) and Corby Borough Council is currently working with Urban Regeneration Company North Northants Development Company (NNDC) (formerly Catalyst Corby), the East Midlands Development Agency (EMDA), the Government Office for the East Midlands (GOEM), English Partnerships and the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) to regenerate the town centre as part of the masterplan for the whole town. The population of Corby town is expected to double in the next 30 years through low cost housing on large estates such as Priors Hall, Little Stanion and Oakley Vale. Corby house prices are much lower than the national average, whilst Corby has the highest percentage of local authority housing in the UK.

In October 2007, Corby's new shopping precinct, Willow Place, opened. The owners, Land Securities expect to submit plans for further development soon.[16] In addition, Parkland Gateway the Borough's £50m investment situated adjacent to Willow Place and comprised of a new Olympic-sized swimming pool and Civic Hub will be built in the town centre within the next three years following their approval in January 2007. Work has begun on the project in October 2007.

Stephen Fry is currently doing the voice-over work for a campaign running in London to entice people to move to Corby. The campaign is centred around advertisements in newspapers, on the London Underground and on local radio. An example of one of the posters in the 'More for your Money' campaign (photographed on the London Underground) can be found here (willj.net).

Corby does not have a passenger rail service. Midland Mainline, the train operating company (TOC), once ran bus services from Kettering, providing a half-hourly shuttle to Corby Town Centre, but the service was taken over by the Corby Star brand of the Stagecoach Group. Although this service is under-utilised Midland Mainline are conducted a feasibility study to see if a passenger rail service to Corby would be viable. On 22 June 2007 it was announced that Corby is to have a railway station, which will be located at the old bus depot adjacent to The White Hart public house.[citation needed] A petition with some 10,000 signatures was handed in to Whitehall as part of a public campaign to show support for the creation of a new train station. By December 2008, Corby will have an hourly service which will run to Kettering and then on to London. The service will not go north of Corby, with residents wishing to travel north having to change at Kettering station. Although successful in securing a southbound service, residents are nevertheless calling for northbound services, preferably to Glasgow or Edinburgh, reflecting the town's strong Scottish links.

[edit] References

  1. ^ An Archaeological Resource Assessment of the Neolithic and Bronze Age in Northamptonshire
  2. ^ Corby Borough Council - The History of Corby
  3. ^ Corby Pole Fair Charter
  4. ^ Memories of the Second World War
  5. ^ History of British Steel
  6. ^ Memorandum by Corby Borough Council (NT 50)
  7. ^ The State of the Regions, Local Government Information Unit
  8. ^ Corby Northamptonshire through time - Historical Statistics on Work and Poverty
  9. ^ [1]Corby is already recognised as a prime location for distribution and logistics
  10. ^ The English town that's truly Scottish
  11. ^ Gaelic welcome in store
  12. ^ Geographical Statistical Information - Unemployment
  13. ^ Geographical Statistical Information
  14. ^ Census 2001
  15. ^ Full list of academies
  16. ^ Mayor declares Willow Place officially open

[edit] External links