Nuneaton

Some ruins of Nuneaton Priory from which the town gained its name. Part of the church was reconstructed in the 19th and early 20th centuries

Nuneaton was originally an Anglo-Saxon settlement known as 'Etone' or 'Eaton', which translates literally as 'settlement by water'. 'Etone' was listed in the Domesday Book as a small hamlet. The settlement gained its current name of Nuneaton in the mid-12th-century when a Benedictine nunnery known as Nuneaton Priory (parts of which still exist) was established. A market was established in 1226, which is still held, and Nuneaton developed into a thriving market town. The nunnery was destroyed in 1539 during King Henry VIII's Dissolution of the Monasteries.[5][6]

King Edward VI School was established in 1552 by a royal charter by King Edward VI.[7] The school was originally a fee-paying school, although the county council provided some scholarships, and became non-fee paying as a result of the education act of 1944. The voluntary aided school had around 400 boys in the 1960s. In 1974 the grammar school closed and was re-established as a sixth form college.[8]

In 1543, Nuneaton was recorded as containing 169 houses, with a population of around 800, by 1670 this had grown to 415 households, with a population of 1,867, by 1740 this had risen further to 2,480.[9]

In the mid-17th century, a silk ribbon weaving industry became established in the local area which included Nuneaton, Bedworth, Coventry and much of North Warwickshire. This industry was enhanced by the arrival of French Hugenot immigrants in the latter part of the century, who brought with them new techniques. This industry operated as a cottage industry, with the weavers working from top-shops; a type of building which was specific to the local area, and had living space in the two lower floors, and a workshop with very large windows on the top floor. This industry flourished for nearly two centuries, albeit with periodic booms and slumps. However by the early 19th century the industry was struggling to compete against the factory produced textiles from northern manufacturers, and the local weavers strongly resisted adopting factory production methods as they valued their independence. Nevertheless, in 1851 46% of Nuneaton's workforce was still employed by the ribbon trade. The industry was finally wiped out after 1860 by cheap imports, following the Cobden–Chevalier Treaty, which removed duties on imported French silks.[10] This caused a slump in the local economy which lasted nearly two decades.[11]

Another major industry which grew in the local area was coal mining: as Nuneaton was located in the Warwickshire coalfield, mining was recorded locally as early as 1338, however the lack of efficient transport and primitive mining techniques kept the industry on a small scale.[12] The industry did not start to develop on a larger scale until the 17th century, with the dawn of the industrial revolution, which led to greater demand for fuel and technical advancement. A major problem was the drainage of water from coal pits as they were dug deeper. The use of a waterwheel to drive drainage pumps was recorded as early as 1683. The first recorded use of an atmospheric engine; a primitive form of steam engine to pump water from coal pits was recorded at Griff Colliery in 1714, this was the first recorded use of a steam engine in Warwickshire. Nevertheless, another major problem facing the industry was poor transport. Sir Roger Newdigate who owned several local coal mines developed a turnpike road to Coventry in the 1750s, which partially resolved this problem. Early on Newdigate recognised the potential of canals as a means for transporting bulk cargoes. He developed a system of private canals on his land on the Arbury Estate from 1764 to transport coal and helped promote the Coventry Canal, which opened from Coventry to Nuneaton in 1769, before being finally completed to Staffordshire in 1790. he also helped promote the Oxford Canal. Ironically, the new canal system led to a decline in the Warwickshire coal industry after 1800, as it was exploited by Staffordshire coal producers to capture the local market. It would not be until the development of the railway network in the 19th century that the coal industry would be exploited to its maximum potential.[13]

The first railway to reach Nuneaton was the Trent Valley Railway which opened in 1847, linking Nuneaton to the growing national railway network at Rugby and Stafford. This was followed by a branch line to Coventry in 1850. In 1864 a line was opened from Birmingham to Leicester via Nuneaton, and this proved to be the most important for the local economy, as it linked Nuneaton with the rapidly growing town (later city) of Birmingham. Due largely to this, the local coal industry expanded rapidly in the latter half of the 19th century, with production from the Warwickshire coalfield expanding nearly tenfold between 1860 and 1913 from around 545,000 tons to over five million tons. The industry peaked in the early 20th century; in 1911 one third of the male workforce in Nuneaton were employed as miners.[14] The industry, however, declined rapidly in the 1950s and 1960s, with the last coal mine in Nuneaton closing in 1968, although Newdigate colliery at Bedworth lasted until 1982.[15] The last Warwickshire coal mine at nearby Daw Mill closed in 2013.[16]

A number of other industries developed locally in the late 19th century, these included brick and tile making, brewing, the production of hats and leather goods. and engineering.[5][17] At the time of the first national census in 1801 Nuneaton was one of the largest towns in Warwickshire, with a population of 5,135. By 1901 this had grown to 24,996.[18][6]

A local board of health had been set up in Nuneaton in 1848 to provide the town with necessary infrastructure such as paved roads, clean drinking water, street lighting and sewerage.[19] The old parish of Nuneaton included the settlements of Attleborough and Stockingford. The parish was joined with Chilvers Coton parish in 1894 to form an urban district. Nuneaton was upgraded to the status of a municipal borough in 1907, to which the parishes of Weddington and part of Caldecote were added in 1931.[5] In 1974, the Municipal Borough of Nuneaton was merged with Bedworth Urban District to create the Borough of Nuneaton and Bedworth.[20]

Nuneaton suffered heavy bombing damage during The Blitz in the Second World War between 1940 and 1942. The heaviest bombing raid on Nuneaton took place on 17 May 1941, when 130 people were killed, 380 houses were destroyed, and over 10,000 damaged.[21][22]

Nuneaton continued to expand in the latter 20th century. In the early postwar years the need arose for low-cost housing, and in response to this around 2,500 council houses were built during the 1950s, the largest such development was at Camp Hill, where 1,400 new houses were built by 1956, while around 1,100 new council houses were built at new estates at Hill Top, Caldwell and Marston Lane by 1958. Following this, Nuneaton's expansion was largely driven by private developments at Weddington, St Nicolas Park, Whitestone and Stockingford.[23]

During the 1960s much of the town centre was redeveloped, partly due to the bomb damage which had been sustained in the war, with the features typical of town planning from that era, including a new ringroad, indoor shopping centre, administrative centre and library.[23]

A map of Nuneaton

Within the borough boundaries:

• Abbey Green
• Arbury
• Attleborough (including Maple Park)
• Bermuda
• Caldwell
• Camp Hill
• Chapel End (including The Shires)
• Chilvers Coton
• Galley Common
• Griff
• Grove Farm
• Heath End
• Hill Top
• Horeston Grange
• Robinson's End
• St Nicolas Park
• Stockingford (including Glendale, Sunnyside, Black-a-Tree, Church Farm)
• Weddington
• Whitestone (including Crowhill)
• Whittleford (including Poplar Farm, Hawthorn Common)

Outside the borough boundaries but often considered to be part of the town:

• Ansley
• Ansley Common
• Arley
• Astley
• Bramcote
• Caldecote
• Hartshill
• Oldbury

Nuneaton is part of the constituency of the same name in the House of Commons. The constituency is currently represented by the Conservative Party Member of Parliament (MP), Marcus Jones, who was first elected in the 2010 general election. From 1935 to 1983, Nuneaton was a safe Labour seat, but it has become more marginal. Between 1983 and 1992, the Conservatives held the seat, until losing it back to Labour. For the next 18 years, the Labour Party (in the form of Bill Olner) was the local representative at Parliament, until his retirement.

Nuneaton Town Hall (1934) the headquarters of Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council.

There are two-tiers of local government covering Nuneaton; Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council as the lower tier and Warwickshire County Council as the upper tier. Nuneaton is an unparished area and so there is no tier of administration below the Borough council. Nuneaton and Bedworth council is currently under no overall control, although the Labour Party is the largest party.[24] Nuneaton and Bedworth council was controlled by the Labour Party from its creation in 1974, until the 2008 local elections, when the Conservatives gained control, ending 34 years of Labour rule. (Further reading: 2008 Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council election)[25][26] However, the period of Conservative control was relatively short lived. The Labour Party won two seats from the Conservative Party in the 2010 local elections, giving no party overall control of the council (but leaving the Labour Party as the largest grouping).[27] In 2012 Labour gained a further 8 seats to regain overall control. Which they lost again to no overall control in 2018 (see Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council elections).

Near the town centre, but unusually not a part of it and outside the ring road, lies the medieval church of St. Nicolas – a grade I listed building.[31] Chilvers Coton contains All Saints' Church, where Mary Ann Evans (George Eliot) worshipped and Justin Welby, now Archbishop of Canterbury, served as a curate.[32] This was badly damaged by bombing during the Second World War, and rebuilt largely by German prisoners of war. There are also Anglican churches in Weddington (St James's), Attleborough (Holy Trinity), Stockingford (St Paul's), Galley Common (St Peter's), Abbey Green (St Mary's), and more recently built (1954), in Camp Hill St Mary's and St John's.

There are two parishes in the town serving the Catholic community in Nuneaton. Our Lady of the Angels on Coton Road, was opened in 1838 (originally as St Mary's). The building, designed by Joseph Hansom, was extensively remodeled in 1936. The Parish of St Anne's, Chapel End, Nuneaton was created in 1949 out of the Parish of Our Lady of the Angels (which originally covered the whole town). The original church building was replaced with the existing church, which was opened in 2000.

In the town, Baptist, Methodist, Wesleyan Reform Union, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Pentecostal, the Salvation Army, United Reformed and Christadelphian churches serve their respective congregations.

A Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses is located in the Stockingford area and Christadelphians in Whitestone.

In addition to Christianity, there are also followers of Islam, Sikhism and Hinduism. There is a mosque on Frank Street, Chilvers Coton and two gurdwaras (Sikh temples): the Nuneaton Guru Nanak Gurdwara in Park Avenue, Attleborough, and the Shri Guru Tegh Bahadur Gurdwara in Marlborough Road, Chilvers Coton.

A number of Jewish families have settled in and around Nuneaton over the past two centuries as local industries have grown and ebbed. Historically, families would travel for important life events and holidays to worship at the mediaeval Spon Street Synagogue in Coventry, at the short lived Hinckley Synagogue in the early 20th century and most recently, in the modern Coventry Reform Synagogue. There has never been a formal, organised community in the area and most Jewish people are now elderly, with younger more observant people moving to larger communities in London and Manchester.

The Bahá'i Faith (see www.Bahá'i.org) has been represented in Nuneaton and Bedworth since 1980 and the first Local Spiritual Assembly was formed in April 1982. The growing Bahá'i community has been very supportive of educational and social issues and has encouraged multi faith events and organised 'Live Unity' concerts in Riversley Park and the BBC award winning 'Walk of Faith', which visited the main religious venues listed above to promote a sense of the unity of religions. The Bahá'is have been members of SACRE and visited schools at all levels to promote issues of equality and a global vision based on the spiritual teachings of the Founder of the Bahá'i Faith, Bahá'u'lláh. Members of the Bahá'i community also are involved in the Chaplaincy work at the George Eliot Hospital and the North Warks and South Leicestershire College.

The town is near the M6, the M42 and M69 motorways and the main A5 trunk road (Watling Street), which also acts as a border with Leicestershire and the neighbouring town of Hinckley. The A444 provides a high-speed dual-carriageway route into the town from the south and also acts as the often busy town centre ring road. The A47 links the town with neighbouring Hinckley and onwards to Leicester, and the A4254 – Eastern Relief Road – provides direct access from the east of Nuneaton to the south, avoiding the town centre.

Nuneaton railway station

The town has two railway stations: the main Nuneaton railway station near the town centre is an important railway junction, served by the West Coast Main Line running from London to the North West, the cross-country Birmingham to Peterborough Line and by a line to Coventry via Bedworth. A new railway station at Bermuda Park was opened south of the town centre in 2016 on the line towards Coventry,[34] as part of the NUCKLE (Nuneaton, Coventry, Kenilworth, and Leamington) rail upgrade scheme.

Historically Nuneaton was also served by Chilvers Coton station, Abbey Street station, and Stockingford station: Chilvers Coton station was located on the Coventry line, a short distance north of the new Bermuda Park station, and was closed in 1965, Abbey Street station, and Stockingford station were on the line towards Birmingham and were both closed in 1968. In January 2017, there were proposals to open a new station at Stockingford, at a different location from the former one, which could open by 2023.[35] Warwickshire County Council have also proposed a new Nuneaton Parkway station between Nuneaton and Hinckley which could open by 2034.[36]

The principal operator around Nuneaton is Stagecoach in Warwickshire and the depot is located next to the fire station on Newtown Road, just west from the bus station. Arriva Midlands also operate around Nuneaton with buses running to Tamworth, Hinckley, Barwell, Leicester. MIRA Routes 66. 67 also operate from the town centre to Hinckley town via the MIRA technology park.

In January 2020 NX Coventry announced an extension to Nuneaton on their 20 route from Coventry to Bedworth.[37]

The Coventry Canal passes through the Nuneaton, while the Ashby Canal skirts the town's south-eastern outskirts.

Statue of George Eliot on Newdegate Square

Many locations in George Eliot's works were based on places in or near her native Nuneaton, including:

• Milby (town and parish church, based on Nuneaton and St Nicolas parish church);[42]
• Shepperton (based on Chilvers Coton);[43]
• Paddiford Common (based on Stockingford, which at the time had a large area of common land including its parish Church of St Paul's);
• Knebley (based on Astley; Knebley Church is Astley Church, while Knebley Abbey is Astley Castle);[42]
• Red Deeps (based on Griff Hollows);
• Cheverel Manor (based on Arbury Hall);[44]
• Dorlcote Mill (based on Griff House);[44]
• The Red Lion (based on the Bull Hotel, now the George Eliot Hotel in Bridge Street, Nuneaton);
• Middlemarch (based on Coventry);
• Treby Magna (also thought to be based on Coventry);
• Little Treby (thought to be based on Stoneleigh);
• Transome Court (thought to be based on Stoneleigh Abbey).

• Etone College (ages 11–18)
• The George Eliot School (ages 11–16)
• Hartshill School (in nearby Hartshill; ages 11–16)
• Higham Lane School, Business and Enterprise Academy (ages 11–18)
• The Nuneaton Academy, resulting from the merger of Alderman Smith School and Manor Park School (ages 11–18)
• Oak Wood Secondary School (special school; ages 11–16)
• St Thomas More Catholic School (ages 11–18)

• King Edward VI College (ages 16–19)
• North Warwickshire and Hinckley College
• St Thomas More R.C. Sixth Form College
• Etone Sixth Form College
• Higham Lane Sixth Form College

• George Eliot (1819–1880), Victorian novelist[50]
• A. J. Quinnell (1940–2005), English thriller novelist

• John Barber (1734–1793), inventor of the gas turbine in 1791
• John Birch (1867–1945), motorcycle manufacturer and designer
• Richard K. Guy (1916-2020), British mathematician and author

• Paul Bradley, (born 1955) actor (born in Nuneaton)[50]
• Ben Daniels, (born 1964) actor (born in Nuneaton)[50]
• Gareth Edwards, (born 1975) film director, Monsters, Godzilla and the 2016 Star Wars standalone film, Rogue One.[50]
• Chris Emmett, (born 1938) comedian, notably appearing on 3-2-1
• Eyeless In Gaza, post-punk duo, formed 1980
• Fresh Maggots, early 1970s folk/psychedelic rock group
• Larry Grayson, (1923–1995) comedian, entertainer and television presenter, long term resident of Nuneaton.[50]
• Alan and Graham "Kidder" Hammonds, musicians, Incredible Kidda Band (grew up in Nuneaton and went to Alderman Smith and Manor Park Grammar School respectively)
• Jon Holmes, (born 1969) writer, comedian and broadcaster (grew up in Nuneaton)
• Conrad Keely, (born 1972) musician, born in Nuneaton[50]
• Ken Loach, (born 1936) film and television director[50]
• Justin Welch, (born 1972) drummer with Britpop band Elastica (1991–2001) and a drummer for Suede in their formative years
• Mary Whitehouse, (1910-2001) TV campaigner (born in Nuneaton)[50]
• Lithium Sour Dong, (formed 2018) electronic band formed in Nuneaton.[50]

• Ben Ackland, Irish cricketer (born in Nuneaton)
• Julian Alsop, footballer
• Stuart Attwell, Premier League referee
• Laura Bassett, Member of the 2015 WWC Bronze medal winning England Women's National Football team
• Paul Best, retired cricketer[51]
• John Curtis, footballer
• Matty Fryatt, footballer
• Andy Goode, Wasps RFC & England International Rugby Union Player
• Wally Holmes, England international rugby union player
• Trevor Peake, footballer, 1987 FA Cup winner with Coventry City (born in Nuneaton)
• Mick Price, snooker player
• George Reader, football referee; officiated in the final game of the 1950 FIFA World Cup
• Dean Richards, former England Rugby Union player and Rugby Union Coach (born in Nuneaton)
• Nicki Shaw, a former member of the England Women's Cricket team (born in Nuneaton)
• Andy Sullivan, golfer
• Adam Whitehead, Olympic swimmer
• Peter Whittingham, footballer (born in Whitestone, Nuneaton)
• Nigel Winterburn, retired footballer
• Jake Dennis, racing driver
• Jacob Blyth, football forward for Barrow (born in Nuneaton)

• Andrew Copson, Chief Executive of Humanists UK.
• Ian Corder, UK Military Representative to NATO and Lieutenant Governor of Guernsey.
• William Dorsey (1813-1878), doctor and Australian pioneer
• Richard Freeman, cryptozoologist (born in Nuneaton)
• William Gadsby, (1773–1844) an English Baptist pastor born in Attleborough who wrote many hymns.
• Jeffrey Green, historian
• Cecil Leonard Knox, soldier, recipient of the Victoria Cross (born in Nuneaton)

The local radio stations are:

• BBC Coventry & Warwickshire: 104.0FM
• The New 107 Oak FM (formerly Fosseway Radio): 107.9FM
• Free Radio Coventry and Warwickshire (formally known as Mercia Sound and Mercia FM): 97.0FM
• Anker Radio – which serves the George Eliot Hospital, but can be heard on 1386am.
• BBC Radio Leicester can be received in the town on 104.9FM.

The main local newspapers are:

• The Tribune (formerly the People's Tribune (1895), Midland Counties Tribune (1903) and Nuneaton Evening Tribune (1957)): It is owned by Trinity Mirror's Coventry Newspapers (publisher of the Coventry Telegraph). Covering 'northern Warwickshire' (particularly Nuneaton, Bedworth and Atherstone), the free paper is available weekly to collect at many newsagents in the area on a Thursday or Friday.
• The Nuneaton Telegraph; a localised sub-edition of the Coventry Telegraph, it was launched in 1992 (when the aforementioned Tribune switched from daily to weekly production).
• The Nuneaton News (originally known as the Evening News upon launch and then the Heartland Evening News): Owned by Local World, it is published on weekdays. The Wednesday edition is circulated free throughout the town, whereas the daily paper on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday are paid. It was founded in 1992, following the decision of the Tribune's publisher to switch to a weekly freesheet.

The Nuneaton area is covered on regional TV News by:

• BBC Midlands Today
• ITV News Central