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Wickford

Wickford is a town in the south of the English county of Essex, with a population of more than 32,500. It has become a commuter town, serving the City of London through its direct connection to Liverpool Street through the Southend Victoria line. Wickford is approximately 30 miles (50 km) East of London and can be reached via the road network, or by train (taking about 40 minutes). Wickford falls within the District of Basildon along with Basildon,Billericay,Laindon, and Pitsea.

Wickford is a fairly small town with a main high street. It includes shops such as New Look, Choice, Somerfield, W.H. Smith, Adrians, 99p Store, and more. There is also a bakery and a coffee lounge.

History

The town has existed since before 975. There is evidence that the area itself was inhabited in prehistoric, Roman and Saxon times^{[citation needed]}. The name Wickford is of Saxon origin, Wick meaning a winding river and Ford being a shallow river crossing.

Wickford was referred to in the Domesday Book as both Wicfort and Wincfort[1]. Before the 20th century Wickford was an agricultural village.

American relations

It is believed that the Wickford in Washington County, Rhode Island, USA was named after this town, the English birthplace of Elizabeth Reade, step-daughter of Hugh Peters and wife of John Winthrop, Governor of Connecticut.

Naked Britain

Wickford became the birthplace of Naturism in the United Kingdom. In 1922 the English Gymnosophist Society was formed and had its home in the town.

The Second World War

During The Second World War the edge of town was hit by one of the German Doodlebugs. Around the town, in amongst the hedgerows and fields, there are numerous pillboxes constructed as a part of British anti-invasion preparations.

The flood of '58

In 1958 Wickford town centre was hit by a flood, which made national news headlines. The most striking image of the flood was a double decker bus, left stranded at Halls Corner overnight, partly submerged by the floodwater. A second bad flood in 1960 meant changes to the course of the River Crouch were made. This included turning the river into a concrete channel through the centre of the town, although this may be removed in the coming years, depending on the scale of the Wickford Masterplan (see below).

Geography

For the most part Wickford is flat and 10 metres above sea level. The highest point, on the outskirts of the town, is 74 metres above sea level. The River Crouch flows through the town, from the west to the east. The River Wick flows into the River Crouch from the South.

Wick Country Park

The Wick Country Park comprises 50 acres (200,000 m²) of former agricultural land. Over 2 km of easy access trails take you around the site. The trails lead you past old hedgerows, the 5-acre (20,000 m²) lake, ponds, World War II pillboxes and recent woodland plantings. Bridges and boardwalks allow the trails to continue over the North Benfleet brook.

Neighbouring Towns and villages

South Hanningfield

West Hanningfield

Rettendon

Runwell

Battlesbridge

Rawreth

Crays Hill

Ramsden Bellhouse

Ramsden Heath

Downham

Shotgate

South Woodham Ferrers

Billericay

Basildon

Rayleigh

The Master Plan

The Wickford Masterplan was published in November 2005 by DTZ Pieda Consulting.^[1] Ideas included:

High Street – a new meeting place. Creating new public space, enhancing the retail environment through the renewal of retail floor space and bringing the market into the street scene, and promoting urban living above shops and on the existing market site.

Station Gateway. Promoting the station entrances on both sides of the railway line as key gateways to Wickford, enhancing transport interchange facilities and bringing forward the car park site on Station Road for development as a new multi-storey car park and mixed-use development.

Town Centre Riverside Living. Promotion of high quality residential developments adjacent to the River Crouch. Revitalisation of the River Crouch as a public asset and promotion of new eating/drinking opportunities.

Public and Health Focus. Re-organisation of existing health, library and community services into a new ‘iconic’ building to the east of Market Avenue as an integrated community service facility. New residential development to the west of Market Avenue.

Eastern Extension. Creating a better presence and linkages to the east of the town centre by redeveloping the car park into a multi-storey development with residential and live-work uses and a new housing scheme to the east of Wickford Bypass.

Strengthened Southern Gateway. The area surrounding London Road and the southern end of the High Street to undergo a transition with a strong leisure and recreational theme, building on existing eating and drinking facilities and incorporating compatible residential uses.

Many residents of Wickford are opposed to the plans, mainly due to overall cost, and also the fear from some older residents that raising the level of the river could see repeats of the floods in 1958 and 1960.

Progress:

2006- Early development.

February 2007- Demolishment of buildings in Lower Southend Road.

December 2009- Currently some of the Lower Southend Road residential developments are complete. (Riverside Place phase 1 + Riverside Court). The compulsory purchase order of the post sorting office has been withdrawn so Riverside Place Phase 2 is in doubt. The whole masterplan is facing serious delays and construction has halted due to the global credit crisis.^[2]

Notable people

Alvin Stardust's mother used to own and run a café just outside of Wickford railway station (a common misconception is that it was indeed Billy Ocean's mother who used to own and run the café, but this is false). Alvin, himself, worked on a building site in Wickford before he was famous.

Chantelle Houghton, winner of Celebrity Big Brother 2006 lives in Wickford.

Capital Radio Afternoon DJ Chris Brooks lives in Wickford.

Southend United's manager Steve Tilson.

Comedy Actors/writers Rhys Thomas and Tony Way are both from Wickford

Surviving World War 2 D-Day veteran Kenneth R. Ward (b. 1922) has lived much of his life in Wickford, after originally arriving in Britain from Germany as a Jewish refugee on the last Kindertransport out of Frankfurt in 1939, before changing his name and joining the 1st Royal Tank Regiment. In June 2009 he was [pictured [2] by the BBC meeting Prince Charles at the 65th anniversary of the D-Day Landings in Normandy. His autobiography, ["...And Then The Music Stopped Playing" [3] is available online.

Chris Moore, Leading greyhound trainer. His best dog, Apples and Pears, won the 2007, 2008 and 2009 Romford Puppy Cup.

Richard Wise one of the executors of Captain Cook's will owned property in Wickford from about 1760 until his death in 1783.^[3]