Stonebridge, Middlesex
| Stonebridge | |
| Middlesex | |
|---|---|
 Old and new developments: Stonebridge Estate, 2007 | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | TQ203839 |
| Location: | 51°32’28"N, 0°15’50"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 16,903 (2011) |
| Post town: | London |
| Postcode: | NW10 |
| Dialling code: | 020 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Brent |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Brent Central |
Stonebridge is an urban locality in Middlesex, that forms the western part of Harlesden. This is a heavily residential area, practical rather than attractive and which has suffered from severe social problems.
The town has majority of Afro-Caribbean heritage.
History
The area was named after a stone bridge built in the later 17th century (at a time when most bridges were of wood) over the River Brent to the north.
The exclusive Craven Park Estate of large houses was built in the 1860s and later, roughly at the same time as the Midland Railway constructed the Dudding Hill Line (now a freight line), which gave its new residents access to central London. However, the passenger service on the line closed for a second and final time in 1902, but only after a sustained protest campaign by local people.
In January 1928, over 200 homes on the Brentfield Estate in Stonebridge Park were flooded. The River Brent broke its banks near the Harrow Road.
Although other high-quality housing had grown up around the now-closed nearby Harlesden (Midland) railway station, the area failed to consolidate as an up-market suburb, because of the general expansion of London, increasing industry, and the building of low-quality, cheap housing, in the late nineteenth century. Sub-division of many of the large houses was carried out and Stonebridge became a low-income area, which continued after high-rise comprehensive redevelopment, mostly built in a single architectural style and called the 'Stonebridge Estate', in the 1960s and 1970s.[1][2]
Some parts of Stonebridge have always been in private ownership, and not been part of the Stonebridge Estate.
Although Stonebridge is geographically adjacent to the Park Royal industrial estate, it is almost entirely cut off from it because of the Bakerloo/Watford DC/West Coast Main Line railway tracks and a large Royal Mail distribution centre.
Built environment
During the 1950s the council planned a massive redevelopment covering almost 100 acres of Stonebridge. More than 2,000 units were built, mostly in high-rise blocks, the first of which opened in 1967..[3]
Some improvements in the street scene happened in the early 1990s, as a result of the 'Harlesden City Challenge' award of government money to the area, which was by now regarded as one of the most troubled parts of London. In April 1994, The Independent newspaper highlighted an unemployment rate of around 25% (compared to a national average of around 10% at the time), as well as widespread drug abuse, burglaries and violence.[4]
Most improvements, however, came after 2000, when comprehensive redevelopment of the 1960s and 1970s housing started. This is mainly complete by 2010, although some empty high-rise buildings were still being demolished.
A traditional street layout has been introduced, largely of two- and three-storey houses, often with four-story flats around street junctions.
New development on Hillside, part of the A404 Harrow Road through the area, includes private ownership of flats above offices, and a health centre. Redevelopment has gone hand-in-hand with training and sports initiatives for local people.
Outside links
References
- ↑ "BBC News Race Special, Turning away from crime". BBC News. http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/static/in_depth/uk/2002/race/turning_away_from_crime.stm. Retrieved 24 May 2010.
- ↑ "Stonebridge". Hidden London. http://www.hidden-london.com/stonebridge.html. Retrieved 2012-09-28.
- ↑ [1]
- ↑ No-go Britain: Where, what, why: The Independent, Saturday 16 April 1994