Hellesdon
St Paul's Church
Hellesdon Location withinNorfolk
Area	2.02 sq mi (5.2 km2)
Population	11,126 (2021 census)
• Density	5,508/sq mi (2,127/km2)
OS grid reference	TG200105
District	Broadland
Shire county	Norfolk
Region	East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	NORWICH
Postcode district	NR6
Dialling code	01603
Police	Norfolk
Fire	Norfolk
Ambulance	East of England
UK Parliament	Norwich North
List of places UK England Norfolk 52°38′55″N1°15′03″E / 52.6485°N 1.2509°E /52.6485; 1.2509

Hellesdon is a village andcivil parish in thedistrict of Broadland inNorfolk, England.

Hellesdon is located four miles (6 km) north-west ofNorwich and 9.6 miles (15.4 km) south ofAylsham.

"Helsdun"^[1];

Hellesdon has signs of very early settlement. A variety of flint instruments have been unearthed in and around the suburb, thought to date back at least 4,000 years. A collection of bronze axe heads were found near Hellesdon Hall and a skeleton dating from around 600 AD was discovered next to Hellesdon Lodge, in Low Road.^[2][3]

Hellesdon's name is ofAnglo-Saxon origin and derives from theOld English for the hill ofHaegal.^[4] Hellesdon is recorded in tradition asthe location whereKing Edmund was killed by Viking invaders in 869, although there is no consensus on the location of this event.^[5]

In theDomesday Book, Hellesdon is listed as a settlement of 29 householdshundred of Taverham. In 1086, the village was part of theEast Anglian estates of Godwin Healfdene.^[6]

A medieval stone cross stands in St. Mary's Churchyard to mark the boundary of the City of Norwich, the cross was restored in 1902.^[7]

Hellesdon was one of several manors owned in the fifteenth century by SirJohn Fastolf, the original of Shakespeare'sFalstaff, and as with other of his properties; his death in 1459 led to something close to a private war between thePaston family andJohn de la Pole, 2nd Duke of Suffolk for its possession.

In the 1880s, what became theMidland and Great Northern Joint Railway reachedHellesdon, linking the area with nearbyNorwich andMelton Constable; the station closed in 1952 and the line followed in its fate in 1959.

In the Eighteenth Century, aworkhouse was built in Hellesdon.^[8]

In 1915,Mann Egerton established an aircraft factory in Hellesdon which builtShort Bombers andSopwith Camels for theFirst World War. The factory closed in 1919 and was demolished in 1984.^[9]

During theSecond World War, anti-tank and anti-aircraft defences were built in Hellesdon to defend Norwich against a possibleGerman invasion.^[10][11]

From 1930 to 1964,motorcycle speedway team theNorwich Stars raced at the old Firs raceway.Ove Fundin was World Speedway Champion on a number of occasions in the early 1960s. The stadium was sold for housing in 1964, bringing the Norwich Stars speedway team to an end.

In 1959, a post was built for theRoyal Observer Corps in the parish which was eventually closed in 1991.^[12]

The area has now developed into a major suburb of Norwich.

According to the2021 census, Hellesdon has a population of 11,126 people which shows a decrease from the 10,957 people recorded in the2011 census.^[13]

TheA1067, betweenFakenham andNorwich, passes through Hellesdon.

Hellesdon parish church is dedicated toSaint Mary and dates from the Fifteenth Century. St. Mary's is located on Low Road and has been Grade II listed since 1984.^[14] The church holds regular Sunday services.^[15]

St. Mary's was restored in theVictorian era and features a stained-glass window installed by A.L. Wilkinson to replace bomb damage from theNorwich Blitz.^[16]

Church services are also held at St. Paul's Church which is an ironNissen Hut featuring a stained-glass window installed by William Morris.^[17]

Hellesdon has a number of small independent shops, along with some large retailers including aB&Q and a largeAsda superstore, which was opened in 1983 and a filling station was added to the site in 1990.

There are six schools: one high, two junior and three infant schools.Hellesdon High School is a leading-edge academy.

There is a library and a community centre for use by local clubs, such as Hellesdon Horticultural Association and the Hellesdon Community Choir. The local football team, Hellesdon FC, play at the community centre which also was used to hold the WorldCycle speedway championships in 1987.^[18]

There are two pubs in Hellesdon:The Whiffler andThe Bull (whose original name was restored in 2022 after local opposition to its brief renaming asThe Chestnut Tree).^[19] Former pubs includeThe Man On The Moon, which is now Hellesdon's doctor's surgery;The Bignold Arms is now a fish restaurant and takeaway;The Firs became aTesco Express; andThe Falcon became aCo-op, but this closed in 2019 and the building is now an office location.

There are several other leisure destinations including Funky's roller skating club and a snooker hall. There are also several parks and green spaces although the golf course has been sold for further residential housing developments, potentially increasing the village's population significantly.

Hellesdon has a large psychiatric hospital,Hellesdon Hospital, but many of the former ward buildings are no longer occupied and the upper level of the site is destined to be sold for housing development. Situated next to the hospital is theEast of England Ambulance Service's Norwich office, which includes its AOC (Ambulance Operations Centre), Hellesdon Response Post and a training centre, along with a vehicle workshop.

Hellesdon was one of the places in Norfolk depicted by theNorfolk School artist,John Middleton.

Norwich International Airport is located adjacent to Hellesdon, providing flights to many destinations in theBritish Isles andEurope.

After the closure ofHellesdon railway station in 1952, the nearestNational Rail station isNorwich; it provides direct trains to locations throughoutEast Anglia and toLondon, operated byGreater Anglia.

Bus services in the area are provided primarily byFirst Eastern Counties andSanders Coaches; destinations include the city centre,Aylsham,Cromer,Fakenham,Mulbarton andSheringham.^[20]

Hellesdon is split into multipleelectoral wards for local elections and is part of thedistrict ofBroadland.

The village's national constituency isNorwich North which has been represented by theLabour Party'sAlice Macdonald MP since 2024.

Hellesdon War Memorial is a wheel-headed granite cross in St. Mary's Churchyard.^[21] The memorial lists the following names for theFirst World War:^[22]

The following names were added after theSecond World War:

Wikimedia Commons has media related toHellesdon.

• Villages in Norfolk
• Broadland
• Civil parishes in Norfolk

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