| Withington | |
|---|---|
 Withington village centre viewed fromWilmslow Road | |
  Withington Location withinGreater Manchester | |
| Area | 2.7 sq mi (7.0 km2) |
| Population | 13,422 (2011 Census) |
| • Density | 5,218/sq mi (2,015/km2) |
| OS grid reference | SJ848929 |
| • London | 160 miles (257 km) SE |
| Metropolitan borough | |
| Metropolitan county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | MANCHESTER |
| Postcode district | M20 |
| Dialling code | 0161 |
| Police | Greater Manchester |
| Fire | Greater Manchester |
| Ambulance | North West |
| UK Parliament | |
| |
Withington is asuburb ofManchester,Greater Manchester, England.Historically part ofLancashire, it lies 4 miles (6.4 km) fromManchester city centre, about 0.4 miles (0.6 km) south ofFallowfield, 0.5 miles (0.8 km) north-east ofDidsbury and also 1 mile (1.6 km) east ofChorlton-cum-Hardy. Withington has a population of just over 14,000 people, reducing at the2011 census to 13,422.[1]
In the early 13th century, Withington occupied afeudal estate that included the townships of Withington,Chorlton-cum-Hardy,Moss Side,Rusholme,Burnage,Denton andHaughton, held by the Hathersage, Longford and Tatton families,[2] and within the Manor of Manchester and Hundred of Salford inhistoric county boundaries ofLancashire.[3]
Withington was largely rural until the mid-19th century when it experienced rapidsocioeconomic development andurbanisation due to theIndustrial Revolution, and Manchester'sgrowing level ofindustrialisation. Withington becamepart of Manchester in 1904.[3][4]
Today, the residents of Withington comprise a mixture of families, university students and affluent "young professionals"—often themselves former students.[5] This is in a large part due to its education links—particularly the proximity to theUniversity of Manchester andManchester Metropolitan University. As a consequence, Withington is predominantly an area of mixed affluence. It is also a centre forclinical excellence with one of the largest cancer treatment centres in Europe—Christie Hospital—andWithington Community Hospital.
InAnglo-Saxon times the area was sparsely settled byMercians andDanes and Didsbury may have been established in King Edward the Elder's reign as a fortification against the Danes. Following theNorman Conquest the lands of south Lancashire were granted toRoger of Poitou and by the early 13th century the Manor of Withington appears to be a sub-manor of the Manor of Manchester.[6]The first recorded description of Withington referred to the area as a willow-copse farmstead, and giving rise to theAnglo-Saxon nameWīðign-tūn, withwithy meaning "willow branch used for bundling".[7] In the early 13th century, theManor of Withington covered a wide area including Withington,Didsbury,Chorlton-cum-Hardy,Moss Side,Rusholme,Burnage,Denton andHaughton. The first Lord of the Manor of Withington is thought to have been William, son of Wulfrith de Withington.[2]
Withington was one of thetownships of theancient parish of Manchester in theSalford Hundred ofLancashire, and a sub-manor of the Manor of Manchester. In the 13th century, Robert Grelle (sometimes Grelley),[9] Lord of the Manchester Manor, grantedfree warren in Withington to Matthew de Hathersage (or Haversage), son of William, in exchange for oneknight's fee.[2] Little is known of the Hathersage family, except that they descended to the Longford family, and are connected with the manors ofHathersage andLongford, both in Derbyshire.[10] The lordship of Withington remained in the Hathersage/Longford family for over 300 years.[10]
At the end of the 16th century, Nicholas Longford sold Withington to theMosleys (originally 'Moseley'), an influentialAnglo-Irish family of wool merchants who subsequently became wealthy landowners inStaffordshire:[10] Nicholas Mosley later became Lord of the Manor of Manchester.Hough End Hall was built by Sir Nicholas Mosley in 1596 as the new Withington manor house—the original medieval manor house was situatedsouth-east of the modern junction of Mauldeth Road West andPrincess Road, which was surrounded by amoat. In 1750 it was demolished to make way for a farm building, but some of the moat was left. AnOrdnance Survey map of 1845 shows it as "Withington Old Hall", and it later came to be known as "Chorlton's Farm" or "Old Hall Farm". Today, the site is occupied byEddisbury Avenue and no trace remains of the old house.[11] There are still today some remnants of this moat underneath Old Moat Primary School, on Old Moat Lane. In the early 18th century, the Withington Manor was once again sold, this time to the Egertons of Tatton.[12]
Withington as a village developed aroundWilmslow Road, a main road, connecting Manchester to Wilmslow which was the only direct route betweenManchester andWilmslow at the time. Farming still dominated the area, although there is evidence in maps of a substantial cotton house on Cotton Lane, which later appears to become Withington Hall. Some historians dispute the cotton house as there is little record of it, and claim"Cotton Lane" comes from land in the area which was jointly held by the townships of Withington,Didsbury andBurnage (a relic of themedieval open field system). This area was the old village centre however, although the only relic of its former importance is the small flower display on the corner ofWilmslow Road and Cotton Lane.
The trade in Withington, and consequent traffic on Wilmslow Road, increased steadily as the city of Manchester flourished in the early 19th century.Turnpike roads subsequently became increasingly unpopular, and were abolished completely in 1881. Cheaper transport in and out of Manchester became an important factor in the growth of the area. TheWithington and West Didsbury railway station on theManchester South District Line, run by theMidland Railway, provided train services toManchester Central railway station. The railway station closed to passengers in 1961.[13]
Withington'sParish Church of St Paul was built in 1841; the architects of St Paul's Church were Hayley & Brown and it was extended in 1864.[14] Many other chapels and churches proliferated, includingMethodist,Presbyterian andRoman Catholic.
As the population increased, the need for schools grew. A day school was held in a schoolroom underneath the Wesleyan chapel on Old Hall Lane, until theChurch of England established a new church school with public donations next to its new parish church in 1844, St Paul's Primary School, on land donated bybenefactorWilbraham Egerton, 1st Earl Egerton.[15]
Withington had aHuguenot population with family and commercial ties to Germany. Among them was the Souchay family, who lived at Withington House on Wilmslow Road (the present site of the telephone exchange at Old Broadway). Charles (or Carl) Souchay and his wife Adelaide (or Adelheid) were benefactors of St Paul's church school, and the first wedding to take place at St Paul's was the marriage of the eldest Souchay daughter in 1850. The Souchays were related to Cécile Mendelssohn Bartholdy, wife of the German composerFelix Mendelssohn. In the 1840s, Mendelssohn made several visits to Britain, and stayed on occasion with friends in the Withington/Didsbury area. Mendelssohn wrote a number of letters to friends from Eltville House, the residence of another member of the Souchay family, John D. Souchay, which was situated on the south-east corner of Fog Lane and Wilmslow Road (later renamed Didsbury Priory).[16][17][18] An account exists of an occasion in April 1847 when Mendelssohn visited St Paul's Church to play the newly installedpipe organ. The composer was suffering from ill health, and this proved to be his last British tour; less than six months later, on 4 November, aged 38, Mendelssohn died inLeipzig. The Souchays are buried in St Paul's churchyard.[19][20][21]
In 1861, a public library and village hall were opened.[10] The library was rebuilt in 1927 with a neo-classical facade.[22]
On 28 April 1910, French pilotLouis Paulhan landed hisFarman biplane in Barcicroft Fields, Pytha Fold Farm on the borders of Withington, Burnage and Didsbury, at the end of the first powered flight from London to Manchester, with a six-hour overnight stop nearLichfield,Staffordshire. Paulhan beat the British contender,Claude Grahame-White, winning a £10,000 prize offered by theDaily Mail.[23] Two special trains were chartered toBurnage railway station to take spectators to the landing. Paulhan's progress was followed throughout by a special train carrying his wife,Henri Farman and his mechanics. A house in Paulhan Road is marked by ablue plaque to commemorate his achievement.
A large aerodrome was built in 1917–18 on the westerly edge of Withington, to the southwest of the junction of Mauldeth Road and Princess Road, on what is now the site of Houghend Playing Fields. The official name wasAlexandra Park Aerodrome, but it was also variously referred to as "Withington" and "Didsbury". Closure came in autumn 1924 whenLord Egerton of Tatton would not agree to the site's continued use for flying. The large hangars were then demolished and Princess Road extended southwards through the eastern edge of the site.[24]
Withington was anciently atownship andchapelry within the parish ofManchester[25] and hundred ofSalford. In 1866 Withington became a separatecivil parish. Following thePublic Health Act 1875,Withington Town Hall was built in 1881 on Lapwing Lane, originally to house WithingtonLocal Board of Health, then later occupied by the WithingtonUrban District Council, formed under theLocal Government Act 1894. In 1904 the urban district was abolished[26] and Withington became part of theCounty Borough of Manchester.[3][4] The old Town Hall building has been converted into private apartments with new-build apartments to the south (back) and east (side). On 1 October 1933 the parish was abolished and merged withSouth Manchester.[27] In 1901 the parish had a population of 16,050.[28]
Manchester Withington is a Parliamentary Constituency which encompasses Withington village,Chorlton-cum-Hardy,Burnage andDidsbury (East andWest). Manchester Withington became the first constituency in theCity of Manchester since 1929 to elect aLiberal (Democrat)MP uponJohn Leech's gain in the2005 General Election, when the constituency also experienced the largestswing of that election, taking the previously 11,524 majorityLaboursafe seat by 667 votes – a swing of 17%.[29] This was possibly attributable to the constituency's large student population.[30] The previous incumbent of the seat,Keith Bradley, had held the seat forLabour for 18 years;Lucy Powell was chosen as the successor candidate to Keith Bradley in March 2007,[31] to try to regain the seat at the next general election.[32] However, Leech retained the seat for the Liberal Democrats at the2010 General Election, with 44.6% of the vote (an increase of 2.4% over 2005); Powell came second with 40.5% of the vote (a decrease of 0.4%).[33]
Historically, Withington was a much larger area than today. Since the district was absorbed into the City of Manchester in 1904, the three citywards of Didsbury, Fallowfield, and Withington took on their own identities and are now seen as distinct areas. The Conservative Party could once regard this area as a heartland for them, with its largely middle class population and relatively suburban image. The 'flight of the middle classes' to rural Cheshire, however, led to many of Withington's larger homes being sold off for student flats. This resulted in a changing socio-economic structure that would ultimately favour Labour and more recently, for a time, the Liberal-Democrats.
In the 2011, 2012 and 2014 local government elections however the Liberal-Democrats lost every Council seat in Withington Constituency and in the City of Manchester as a whole that they contested, leaving Labour with 95 out of 96 Council seats.[34]
Withington and Old Moat wards are currently represented onManchester City Council by three councillors each: Becky Chambers (Labour Party), Chris Wills (Labour and Co-operative Party), and Rebecca Moore (Labour) in Withington;[35] Gavin White (Labour), Suzannah Reeves (Labour) and Garry Bridges (Labour) in Old Moat.[36] Council elections took place on the 2 May 2019 with each ward returning one councillor, Becky Chambers and Garry Bridges respectively in Withington and Old Moat wards.
| Withington compared[37][38] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| UK Census 2001 | Withington | Manchester | England |
| Total population | 14,134 | 392,819 | 49,138,831 |
| Foreign born | 11% | 10% | 6% |
| Over 75 years old | 5% | 6% | 8% |
| Unemployed | 44%* | 9% | 5% |
| *Disproportionate figures explained by full-time student population | |||
According to the2001 census[39]
According to the2021 census[40]
Neighbouring towns, villages and places. | |
|---|---|
At53°25′59″N2°13′44″W / 53.433°N 2.229°W /53.433; -2.229, Withington is located immediately below the midpoint of theGreater Manchester Urban Area, 4 miles (6.4 km) south of Manchester city centre.
Withington today retains some grade II listed buildings, including
Other places of historical interest in Withington include:
Withington has bus links into the Manchester city centre, partly because of its position on theWilmslow Road bus corridor which is served by very frequent buses and has been said by some analysts to be the busiest in Europe.[41] The majority of services are operated byStagecoach Manchester andFirst Greater Manchester. Other bus routes run along Burton Road and Old Moat Lane to the city centre; there are also bus routes crossing Withington East-West.
Until the 1960s, Withington had arailway station on Palatine Road,Withington and West Didsbury, on theMidland Railway'sManchester South District Railway. This station was closed in 1961 byBritish Rail; today the nearest railway station to Withington isMauldeth Road, located to the east inLadybarn.
In 2013, the old Midland Railway line was reopened as alight rail line as part of theManchester Metrolink network. Today, Metrolink trams provide a direct tram link toManchester city centre on theSouth Manchester Line, servingWest Didsbury,Burton Road andWithington tram stops.[42] The name of Withington tram stop has been called into question as it is located on Princess Road, approximately 1 mile (1.6 km) from the centre of Withington.[43]
The Metrolink line through Withington was first proposed in the early 1980s[44] but funding was not secured until the 21st century. The project was then put on hold due to escalating costs;[45] new funding was sought through theManchester Congestion Charge,[46]but this was rejected in a public referendum in 2008. The project was revived in May 2009 with a new funding package from local and national government. Clearance work began on the line in 2011 and it was completed in 2013.[47]
_Withington_17_07_59_173000.jpeg)
Withington Girls' School was established in 1890 and provides private education for girls aged 7 to 18. Notable alumni includeJudith Chalmers.
In the 1930s, theManchester Grammar School moved to new premises inFallowfield, from its original position near the site of the presentManchester Cathedral. Although seen to be inFallowfield, its location is also within the boundaries of the Withington locality. The school has been attended by actors such asBen Kingsley andRobert Powell, cricketerMike Atherton, and writer and broadcasterMartin Sixsmith.
Withington is served by the following local primary schools:
There are nearest secondary schools, includingThe Barlow RC High School, Didsbury High School andParrs Wood High School.
Withington is covered by the South Manchester Division ofGreater Manchester Police.
.jpg)
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Geographic | |
