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| Aylesham | |
|---|---|
 Commemorative statue showing Aylesham's history of mining | |
  Aylesham Location withinKent | |
| Population | 6,411 (2021) |
| OS grid reference | TR237525 |
| Civil parish |
|
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | CANTERBURY |
| Postcode district | CT3 |
| Dialling code | 01304 |
| Police | Kent |
| Fire | Kent |
| Ambulance | South East Coast |
| UK Parliament | |
| 51°13′31″N1°12′06″E / 51.225278°N 1.201667°E /51.225278; 1.201667 | |
Aylesham/ˈeɪlʃəm/ is a village andcivil parish in theDover district ofKent, England. The village is 6.5 miles (10.5 km) south-east of the cathedral city ofCanterbury, and 8.5 miles (13.7 km) north-west of the town and port ofDover. According to the2001 Census, the parish had a population of 3,884 includingDrellingore andSnowdown; it increased to 3,999 at the2011 Census.[1]
The village was built in the 1920s to accommodate workers at nearby coal mines. The parish also includes the village ofSnowdown. Both villages are served by railway stations on the Dover branch of theChatham Main Line.
By British standards, Aylesham is a relatively new village. It was established in 1926 to house miners working in theKent coal mines. The heads of the first families to be housed there all worked at the nearby newly sunkSnowdown Colliery. It was planned to also accommodate future workers at two other proposed new pits atAdisham andWingham, but neither colliery was ever built.[2]
Aylesham was part of the parish ofNonington until the creation of a separate parish in 1951.[3]
Although it is still a village, it was originally intended by its masterplanner,Sir Patrick Abercrombie, to grow to be a town with a population of up to 30,000, but only 1,000 houses had been built by the 1960s.[4]
Miners from all parts of the UK (notablySouth Wales,Scotland and theNorth East) seeking better wages and safer conditions, travelled to theSouth East to work at Snowdown Colliery.[4] Due to this, the people of Aylesham have developed a unique dialect, which was the subject of a 2016 article in the Transactions of theYorkshire Dialect Society. Most residents use the short [a] inwords such asbath, as is common in the northern half of the country, and aschwa in words such asstrut, as in common in Wales. Some older residents also useglottal stops for the definite article, as in Yorkshire and Lancashire.[5]
The miners brought with them the traditional male voice choir, brass band and Rugby pastimes; all of which are still in evidence today and each of these organisations keep the colliery name as their identity.
During theSecond World War, the Aylesham coalminers formed aHome Guard contingent that took part in many rescue operations during the German bombings, especially in Canterbury and the surrounding areas. Oldpillboxes can be found in the fields and woods around the village.[6]
Whilst Aylesham could be considered a young village, the location of the village is steeped in history. Over recent years, there have been findings of Saxon skeletons, Bronze Age urns and Roman domestic items within the village. In addition, some of the older properties within the village are evidenced to have been home to Edward of Woodstock, The Black Prince. King Richard II, the son of the Black Prince, ruled England from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399.
Several footballers were sponsored by theLatrobe Soccer Club of Brisbane,Australia, to migrate in the early 1960s; both Henry Brown and Robert Yore came via this way. Brown played and coached at Latrobe, Polonia and Wynnum. Many of the 1960s emigrants settled in a suburb of Brisbane calledAcacia Ridge. The resettled families often affectionately referred to this suburb as "Little Aylesham".[citation needed]
Aylesham Fire Station was founded in 1955 and still remains active, despite the closure of other fire stations within the Kent Fire and Rescue Service. Aylesham currently provides emergency cover with the use of an Iveco Eurocargo fire appliance. This state-of-the-art vehicle possesses Compressed Air Foam System (CAFS), fire spike technology, and thermal imaging capabilities.
Aylesham has been identified by the Dover Local Plan as a location for expansion. A Housing Development, proposing 1,200 new homes in the village commenced work in 2014.
Kent County Council is the county authority for Aylesham. Aylesham is part of the Dover North Division of Kent County Council. Services provided include;libraries,social services, highways, education, school transport, byways, PROW and public health.
Dover District Council is the District Authority for Aylesham. Anelectoral ward in the same name exists. The Dover District Council Ward of Aylesham, includesNonington and had a total population of 4,905 at the 2011 census.[7] Services provided include: elections, housing, parks and open spaces, cemeteries, disabled facilities grants, planning, licensing, council tax collections, waste and recycling.
Aylesham Parish Council is the lowest tier oflocal government, responsible to thecivil parish of Aylesham. TheParish Council operates in a former doctors' surgery in Dorman Avenue South, which has over the years been satirically coinedThe White House due to it being a white building and the administrative office of the Parish Council. The official name of the building isAylesham House and also houses Aylesham Heritage Centre.
Services provided by the parish council include:allotments, grants, recreation grounds, parks, children's play areas, playing fields and youth provision. As the most local council in all the tiers of government, parish councils have the right to be consulted on planning and licensing matters. It was a major stakeholder in the Masterplan of the Aylesham Development. Monthly meetings are held every second Thursday of the month (excluding August) and the council has three committees; Finance, Audit & Personnel, Recreation & Facilities, Planning, and Environment & Transport.
Kay Sutcliffe, the wife of a striking miner at Aylesham, wrote the poem "Coal not Dole", which became popular with theWomen Against Pit Closures groups across the country and was later made into a song by Norma Waterson.[8]
The village is on theMiner's Way Trail. The 27-mile circular trail links up the coalfield parishes of East Kent, passing through or near the villages ofGoodnestone, Wingham,Ash,Eastry,Betteshanger,Tilmanstone,Elvington, Snowdown andNonington.[9]
Whilst not passing directly through Aylesham, the northern section of theNorth Downs Way passes directly by Aylesham Cemetery (1.2 miles south-west to the village) on the B2046 Adisham Road. This trail can be accessed from Aylesham by variousfootpaths, fields,byway (road) andbridleways. There is a bus stop at the cemetery, where the North Downs Way passes by.[10]
The village has a long sporting history, with a rugby club being present in the village since 1930; it has played a prominent role in community life. Before the professionalisation of rugby union, Snowdown Colliery Welfare Rugby Football Club (a name that dates back to whenSnowdown Colliery was open) would play teams such asBlackheath F.C.,Wasps RFC andCanterbury RFC. Snowdown Colliery Welfare RFC has since remained true to its roots and has not become a professional club, instead concentrating of community rugby provision. The club currently play in theLondon & SE Division Invicta 2 Premier - East.
In the 2015/2016 season, the rugby club achieved great success by gaining promotion in toShepherd Neame Kent 1. The club also won theKent Vase, beating Beccahamian RFC in the final at The Jack Williams Memorial Ground,Aylesford, Kent. The score was Snowdown Colliery 31 - 5 Beccahamian RFC, with the final being heavily attended by the community.[11]
In the 2016/2017 season, Snowdown Colliery Welfare RFC reached theKent Salver Final, which took place at The Marine Travel Ground in Canterbury. Snowdown Colliery lost 17-7 to Greenwich RFC.
Aylesham Welfare Leisure Centre opened in 2011. Owned by the Aylesham & Snowdown Social & Welfare Trust, West Faversham Community Association manages the operations of building on behalf of the Trust; it houses a gym, bar, function room, changing facilities and showers.
Records show the first carnival held in Aylesham in 1929 was aCoal Queen event.[12] Over the years, the Association has been repeatedly held in abeyance and revived until the late 1990s/early 2000s, when a period of stability emerged; the carnival is now an annual event.
The Aylesham Carnival, held every September, has carnival courts from all round the country take part. This is normally held in conjunction with a fete, fun fair and stalls in the Market Square before the carnival commences.
The Baptist Church is situated in Dorman Avenue South and was built in 1927. Regular services take place on a Sunday. The church has a newly erected hall to the rear of the building, which is used by the community for creches, a youth club, breakfast club, Sure Start, coffee mornings and other community events. The minister is Reverend Laura Moncaster.[13]
St Peter's is situated in Dorman Avenue North and was built in 1927; regular services take place on a Sunday. The church organises a sunbeams toddler group, coffee mornings,messy church, soft play café, luncheon club and a farmers' market on Fridays. The vicar is Reverend Nick Ratcliffe.[14]
St Finbarr's is situated in Market Place. It was built in 1956/1957; it was officially blessed and opened on 28 April 1957 by Canon de Laubenque. Mass takes place on a Sunday at 11.15am and on Wednesday at 10.00am. There is an activeSociety of Saint Vincent de Paul. The church is also used by the Snowdown Colliery Male Voice Choir for rehearsals. The Aylesham Sunshiners, a club for over-50s, use the church for their activities which include bingo, quizzes and live music.
In 2016, St Finbarr's amalgamated with the Catholic Church of St Paul, in Dover, to become the Catholic Parish of The Good Shepherd. As a result, St Finbarr's and St Paul's now share resources and priests; they work together for the benefit of the Catholic parish. The priests who serve the parish are: Father Jeff Cridland, Father Leo Agbene and Father Jamie Houghton. The parish is also served by permanent deacon, Deacon Barry Barton.[15]
Aylesham railway station provides an hourly service in each direction betweenLondon Victoria andDover Priory, viaChatham,Sittingbourne,Faversham andCanterbury East. Services are operated bySoutheastern.[16]
Stagecoach South East operates local bus services, including on route 89 to Canterbury.[17]
Aylesham istwinned with:
