The first settlement formed in theIron Age where a prehistoric track crossed theRiver Slea. It was likely home to a mint for theCorieltauvi in the 1st centuries BC and AD. Evidence ofRoman andAnglo-Saxon settlement has been found. Medieval records differentiate between Old and New Sleaford, the latter emerging by the 12th century around the present-day market place andSt Denys' Church;Sleaford Castle was also built at that time for theBishops of Lincoln, who owned the manor. Granted the right to hold a market in the mid-12th century, New Sleaford developed into a market town and became locally important in the wool trade, while Old Sleaford (based near the site of the prehistoric settlement) declined.
From the 16th century, the landowning Carre family kept tight control over the town – it grew little in the early modern period. The manor passed by marriage to the Hervey family (Earls and later Marquesses of Bristol) in 1688. The town'scommon lands wereenclosed by 1794, giving ownership mostly to the Herveys. This coincided withcanalisation of the Slea, which brought economic growth until it was superseded by the railways in the mid-1850s. These new transport links supported the development of light industries and expanded the town's role in the trade in agricultural goods. Long a centre for justice and administration in northKesteven, Sleaford became anurban district in 1894 and was home toKesteven County Council's offices from 1925 to 1974. After a period of stagnation, in the late 20th and early 21st centuries the sale of farmland around Sleaford led to the development of large housing estates, causing the population to rapidly expand and the urban area to engulf Quarrington and Holdingham.
Though its traditional market has declined in the 21st century (and its cattle and corn markets shut in the 20th century) and much of its heavier manufacturing has departed, Sleaford's economy has diversified. The town remains an important administrative, service and commercial centre for the surrounding district. It houses supermarkets, shops and a largebusiness park with offices and light manufacturing; the headquarters ofNorth Kesteven District Council; three secondary schools (two of which are selective); four primary schools; three newspapers; police, fire and ambulance stations; several places of worship; many sports clubs; a leisure centre; and several medical and dental practices and care homes. Regeneration has transformed some earlier industrial areas, including through the construction ofThe Hub. The town is one of the largest employment centres in the district; the commonest employers in 2021 were the public sector, retail and, to a much lesser degree, manufacturing.
Sleaford's urban area includes the town centre, focused on themarketplace (fronted bySt Denys' Church), where Eastgate, Northgate, Southgate and Westgate meet. Though some parts have been redeveloped in the 20th century, including the Riverside Shopping Precinct and Flaxwell House, the area follows a medieval street layout and is home to many of the town's oldest buildings; it is also the retail and commercial hub.[3][4] Carre Street (running parallel to Southgate to the east), once home to industry and wharves,[5] has beenregenerated in the late 20th and early 21st centuries.[6][7]
To the north-west of the centre, housing developments along Northgate (which becomes Lincoln Road north of the railway line), mostly built in the 20th and early 21st centuries, have brought the hamlet ofHoldingham into Sleaford's urban area, which extends as far north as theA17 andA15 junction at Holdingham Roundabout.[8][9] To the town's north-east, the built-up area has expanded along Eastgate, where 19th-century housing closer to the town centre gives way to modernbusiness parks; theRiver Slea forms the southern boundary of these developments and, closer to the town,Lollycocks Field sits between one of the business parks, Eastgate and the Slea.[9][10][11] South of the river, the town's urban area extends eastwards along Boston Road, which runs from Southgate to the A17 atKirkby la Thorpe. Except for Boston RoadRecreation Ground, the road is straddled by housing west of the railway; developments near the centre are mostly 18th- and 19th-century, while those aroundOld Place, attheHoplands and south of Boston Road are mostly planned 20th- or 21st-century residential estates.[9][12]
The Victoriantrain station can be found near the southernmost end of Southgate; Station Road includes some converted 19th-century warehouses.Mareham Lane heads south out of the town, past the vast disusedBass Maltings complex.[9][13] Also forking off from Southgate are Grantham Road and London Road, which fan out in a south-west direction. They link Sleaford withQuarrington village,[9] which has a historic core that has been merged into the town's urban area by modern housing developments.[14] The earliest suburban housing at the base of Southgate appeared in the 19th century and was known asNew Quarrington.[15] Ribbon development along London and Grantham roads is mostly early-20th-century; much larger planned developments took place in the late 20th and 21st centuries atQuarrington Hill,Southfields and between the two roads.[9][8] To the town centre's west is Westgate, medieval in origin but heavily developed with dense terraced housing in the 19th century;[16][17] to its north isWestholme, parkland which houses a school;[18][19] south of Westgate is West Banks and its adjoining streets, between the River Slea and theNine-Foot Drain, an area heavily built up in the 19th century.[9][20] South of Westbanks are the remains ofSleaford Castle.[9]
Outside of the town's urban area, but included in the civil parish boundaries isGreylees, a settlement built in the early 21st century on the site of the formerRauceby Hospital.[9][21]
Sleaford occupies a position on theLincoln Heath, alimestone plateau[22] between theLincoln Cliff to the west (aLimestonescarp running north–south throughLindsey andKesteven),[23] andthe Fens to the east, a low-lying region of the East of England which has been drained to reveal nutrient-rich soils that form some of the most productive farmland in the country.[24][25][26]
The town centre lies about 49 feet (15 m) above sea level and has formed around the River Slea, which runs west to north-east through it.[27] A band ofJurassicCornbrashlimestone forms thebedrock under Holdingham (where the ground rises to 82 feet (25 m) above sea level in places), parts of central Sleaford, and most of the housing at Quarrington (where elevations exceed over 98 feet (30 m) at Quarrington Hill) and southern Greylees. The bedrock on the eastern parts of the town comprises JurassicKellawayssandstone andsiltstone. To the west, the Slea follows a shallow valley underlain by JurassicBlisworth clay andlimestone and, at its lowest elevations at Quarrington Fen and Boiling Wells Farm, earlier JurassicRutlandargillaceous rocks andUpper Lincolnshire limestone. Greylees and the northern fringe of the Quarrington Hill estate sit on the southern edge of this valley, on the Blisworth clays and limestone.[27][28]Alluvium deposits are found along the Slea's course, and sand and gravel of the Sleaford series are found to the east and south.[23][28] Most of the soil is free-draining, lime-rich and loamy, though some of the eastern parts are on loamy soils with naturally high groundwater.[29]
TwoLocal Nature Reserves sit within the civil parish boundaries: Lollycocks Field, providing mostly wildflower and wetlands habitats alongside Eastgate, andMareham Pastures, consisting of wildflower meadows, new woodland, hedges and open grassland.[11][30] There is also Sleaford Wood in the north of the town and Sleaford Moor to the north-east, near the A17 and A153's Bone Mill Junction.[27]
Britain experiences a temperate,maritime climate with warm summers and cool winters.[31] Lincolnshire's position on the east of theBritish Isles allows for a sunnier and warmer climate relative to the national average, and it is one of the driest counties in the UK.[32] In Sleaford, the average daily high temperature peaks at 22.1 °C (71.8 °F) in July and a peak average daily mean of 17.2 °C (63.0 °F) occurs in July. The lowest daily mean temperature is 4.1 °C (39.4 °F) in January; the average daily high for that month is 7.0 °C (44.6 °F) and the daily low is 1.3 °C (34.3 °F) (the latter also occurs in February).[33] The East of England tends to be sheltered from strong winds relative to the north and west of the country. Despite this, tornadoes form more often in the East of England than elsewhere;[34] Sleaford suffered them in 2006 and 2012.[35][36]
The earliest records of the place-name Sleaford are found in a charter of 852 asSlioford and in theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle asSliowaford. In theDomesday Book (1086), it is recorded asEslaforde and in the early 13th century asSliforde.[39] In the 13th centuryBook of Fees it appears asLafford.[40] The name is formed from theOld English wordssliow andford, together meaning "ford over a muddy or slimy river".[39]
An electrumstater of theCorieltauvi, probably struck at Sleaford in the mid-1st century BC
Archaeological material from theBronze Age and earlier has been recovered and excavations have shown there was unsustained late-Neolithic and Bronze Age human activity in the vicinity. The earliest known permanent settlement dates from theIron Age, where a track northwards fromBourne crossed the River Slea. Although only sparse pottery evidence has been found for the middle Iron Age period, 4,290 pellet mould fragments, probably used for minting and dated to 50 BC–AD 50, have been uncovered south-east of the modern town centre, south of a crossing of the River Slea and near Mareham Lane in Old Sleaford. The largest of its kind in Europe, the deposit has led archaeologists to consider that the site in Old Sleaford was one of the largestCorieltauvian settlements in the period and possibly a tribal centre.[41][42]
During theRoman occupation of Britain (AD 43–409), the settlement was "extensive and of considerable importance".[43] It may have been an economic and administrative centre for stewards and owners of fenland estates.[44] There are signs of a road connecting Old Sleaford toHeckington, where Roman tile kilns have been uncovered and may imply the presence of a market.[45] When the first roads were built by the Romans, Sleaford was bypassed as "less conveniently located" and more "geared to native needs".[46] A smaller road,Mareham Lane, which the Romans renewed, ran through Old Sleaford, and south along the fen edge towards Bourne. Where it passed through Old Sleaford, excavations have shown a large Roman domestic residence, associated farm buildings and field systems, and several burials.[47] Other Roman remains, including a burial, have been excavated.[48][49]
There is little evidence of continuous settlement between the late Roman andAnglo-Saxon periods but the Saxons did establish themselves eventually. South of the modern town, a 6th- to 7th-century cemetery has been uncovered with an estimated 600 burials, many showing signs ofpagan rites. The now-ruinedchurch at Old Sleaford has been discovered[45] and excavations of the market place have uncovered Anglo-Saxon remains from the 8th–9th centuries, indicating some form of enclosure with domestic features.[50]
The earliest documentary reference to Sleaford occurs in a 9th-century charter,[51] when it was owned by Medehamstede Abbey inPeterborough, aMercian royal foundation.[52] There is little evidence of estate structure until the late Saxon period,[45] but there may have been a market and court before theNorman Conquest, and it may have been an economic and jurisdictional centre for surrounding settlements.[53] The Slea played a big part in the town's economy: it never ran dry or froze, and by the 11th century it supported a dozenwatermills. The mills and others in nearbyQuarrington and the lost hamlet of Millsthorpe formed the "most important mill cluster in Lincolnshire".[54]
In the later Middle Ages, the Romano-British settlement became known as Old Sleaford, while New Sleaford was a settlement centred onSt Denys' Church and the market place.[55] TheDomesday Book of 1086 has two entries underEslaforde (Sleaford) recording land held byRamsey Abbey and theBishop of Lincoln.[n 1] The location of these manors is unclear. One theory endorsed byMaurice Beresford is that they focused on the settlement at Old Sleaford, due to evidence that New Sleaford was planted in the 12th century by the bishop to increase his income,[n 2] a development associated with the construction ofSleaford Castle (1123–39).[51] Beresford's theory has been criticised by the historians Christine Mahany and David Roffe[n 3] who have reinterpreted theDomesday material and argued that in 1086 the Bishop's manor included the church and associated settlement which became "New" Sleaford.[58][59]
A charter to hold a fair on the feast day of St Denis was granted by KingStephen toAlexander, Bishop of Lincoln, in 1136–1140. Between 1154 and 1165,Henry II granted the bishop of Lincoln the right to hold a market at Sleaford andEdward III confirmed this in 1329.[60] The town later had at least twoguilds comparable to those found in developed towns.[61] However, there was no formal charter outlining the town's freedoms;[62] tight control by the bishops meant the economy was mainly geared to serve them. It thus retained a strong tradition of demesne farming well into the 14th century.[63][64] A survey ofburgage tenure from 1258 survives,[65] analysis of which indicates thatdemesne farming centred on the hamlet ofHoldingham.[66] As the economic initiative passed more to burgesses and middlemen who formed ties with nearby towns such asBoston, evidence suggests that Sleaford developed a locally important role in the wool trade.[67][68] In theLay Subsidy of 1334, New Sleaford was the wealthiest settlement in the Flaxwellwapentake, with a value of £16 0s. 81/4d.[69] Meanwhile, Old Sleaford, an "insignificant" place since the end of the Roman period, declined and may have been deserted by the 16th century.[70][71]
The tomb of Sir Edward Carre (died 1618) in St Denys' Church
The manor of Old Sleaford was owned in the late 15th and early 16th centuries by the Hussey family.John Hussey, 1st Baron Hussey of Sleaford was executed for treason for his part in theLincolnshire Rising; the manor and his residence at Old Place reverted to the Crown and were later sold to Robert Carre,[72] the son of George Carre or Carr, a wool merchant originally from Northumberland who had settled in Sleaford by 1522.[73] Robert also bought the castle and manor of New Sleaford fromEdward Clinton, 1st Earl of Lincoln.[74][n 4] His eldest surviving son Robert foundedCarre's Grammar School in 1604, and his youngest son Edward was created abaronet; his son founded Sleaford Hospital in 1636.[76] The last male descendant died in 1683 and the heiress, Isabella, marriedJohn Hervey, 1st Earl of Bristol, in whose family the estates remained until the 1970s.[77][78] The Carres and Herveys had a strong influence: while extracting dues from their tenants, they enforced their monopoly on charging tolls on market and cattle traders and for driving animals through the town.[79]
Industry was slow to take hold. By the second half of the 18th century,Cogglesford Mill was the only working corn mill in the town. An old mill at the junction of Westgate and Castle Causeway supplied hemp to the rope-making business of the Foster and Hill families. As the local historian Simon Pawley wrote, "In many respects, things had changed little [by 1783] since the survey of 1692," with few of the buildings or infrastructure being improved.[80] Major changes to agriculture and industry took place in the last decade of that century. Sleaford's three medievalopen fields (North, West and Sleaford Fields) wereenclosed in 1794, with over 90 per cent of the 1,096 acres (444 hectares) of the open land being granted to Lord Bristol.[81]
Sleaford, as it appeared in 1891. The major roads are marked in red; railways in grey and rivers in blue. Key: (1) Market Place, (2) St Denys' Church, (3) Manor House, (4) Carre's Grammar School, (5) Westholme House, (6) Castle, (7) Station, (8) Old Place, (9) the remains of St Giles's Church, (10) the Union workhouse.[82]
Canalisation of the Slea culminated in the opening of theSleaford Navigation in 1794.[83][84] It eased the export of farm produce to the Midlands and the import of coal and oil. Mills along the Slea benefited and wharves were constructed around Carre Street.[85][86] Between 1829 and 1836 the navigation's toll rights increased in value 27 times over.[85] The railways emerged in the 19th century as an alternative to canals and arrived at the town in 1857, when a line fromGrantham to Sleaford opened.[87][88] This made trading easier and improved communications,[n 5][91] leading to the decline of the Navigation Company whose income from tolls decreased by 80 per cent between 1858 and 1868; it became unprofitable and was abandoned in 1878.[92] The town's rural location and transport links led in the late 19th century to the rise of two local seed merchants: Hubbard and Phillips, and Charles Sharpe; the former took over the Navigation Wharves, and the latter was trading in the US and Europe by the 1880s. The advent of steam power led Kirk and Parry to open a large steam-powered flour mill in 1857 and provided the basis ofWard and Dale's factory, which made steamcultivators for farming.[93] The railway, Sleaford's rural location and itsartesian wells, were key factors in the development of the 13-acre (5-hectare)Bass & Comaltings complex at Mareham Lane (1892–1905).[94]
New Sleaford's population more than doubled from 1,596 in 1801 to 3,539 in 1851.[95] Coinciding with this is the construction or extension of public buildings, often by the local contractorsCharles Kirk andThomas Parry.[96][97][n 6] The gasworks opened in 1839 to provide lighting in the town.[98] Sleaford'sPoor Law Union was formed in 1836 to cater for the town and the surrounding 54 parishes. Aworkhouse was built by 1838, able to house 181 inmates.[99] Despite these advances, the slums around Westgate were crowded, lacking in sanitation and ridden by disease;[100] Northgate, as the entry point from the north along theturnpike, had also attracted notoriety for its taverns, lodging houses and brothels in the early 19th century: it was the "plague spot of the town".[101][102] The local administration failed to deal with these issues, prompting a heavily critical report by the General Board of Health, which set up a Local Board of Health in 1850 to undertake public works.[100][103] By the 1880s, Lord Bristol had allowed the Board to pump clean water into the town, though engineering problems and his reluctance to sell land to house a pumping station had delayed the introduction of sewers.[104] In the meantime, despiteAnglicans dominating official institutions,non-conformist chapels were flourishing in the poorest parts of the town, at Westgate from the early 19th century and at Northgate after 1848, where they sought to provide spiritual care and education.Temperance was so prominent in the town that anaerated water factory, Lee and Green, opened in c. 1883 and became one of Sleaford's most important manufacturers.[105]
Officer Training School atRAF Cranwell, near Sleaford.
Although hardly damaged in theFirst andSecond World Wars,[n 7] Sleaford has close links with theRoyal Air Force due to proximity to several RAF bases, includingRAF Cranwell,RAF Digby andRAF Waddington. Lincolnshire's topography – flat and open countryside – and its location in the east of the country made it ideal for the airfields being constructed in the First World War. Work began on Cranwell in late 1915; it was designated an RAF base in 1918 and theRAF College opened in 1920 as the world's first air academy.[107][108] TheCranwell branch railway linking Sleaford station with the RAF base opened in 1917 and closed in 1956.[109][110] During the Second World War, Lincolnshire was "the most significant location for bomber command" andRauceby Hospital, south-west of Sleaford, was requisitioned by the RAF as a specialist burns unit which the plastic surgeonArchibald McIndoe regularly visited.[107]
Sleaford's population remained static between the wars, but theGreat Depression in the 1930s caused unemployment to rise. The Council housing put up along Drove Lane proved insufficient for the low-income families after the Westgate slums were cleared in the 1930s; Jubilee Grove opened in that decade to meet the demand.[106] In the post-war period, there were housing developments at St Giles Avenue, the Hoplands, Russell Crescent, Jubilee Grove and Grantham Road.[111] Parts of the town were redeveloped: in 1958, the Bristol Arms Arcade opened, the Corn Exchange was demolished in the 1960s and the Riverside Shopping Precinct opened in 1973, as did Flaxwell House, designed to house a department store, though later becoming the national headquarters forInterflora.[112] Old industries departed; Ward and Dale closed down in 1939[113] and Lee and Green around the 1940s;[114] Bass shut the maltings in 1959,[94] and Hubbard and Phillips's pea-sorting factory closed in 1972.[7] Newindustrial estates and business parks were built off East Road in the late 20th century.[115]
By 1979, the major landowner,Victor Hervey, 6th Marquess of Bristol, was heavily in debt and sold most of his estates in Sleaford and Quarrington. The estate office closed in 1989.[14] Much of the land went to property developers and subsequent decades brought new housing and a considerable rise in population.[116] According to a council report, people were attracted to the town by "the quality of life, low crime rates, relatively low house prices and good-quality education".[117] From 1981 to 2011, Sleaford's population more than doubled; the growth rate in 1991–2001 was the fastest of any town in the county.[118][119] The infrastructure struggled to cope, especially with increased traffic congestion. Two bypasses opened and a one-way system was introduced.[14] Between 1995 and 2001, theSingle Regeneration Budget granted over £10 million to Sleaford to deliver 13 major regeneration programmes collectively known as "Sleaford Pride", including improvements to the town centre, the conversion of the old Navigation stables, and the development ofThe Hub arts centre (opened 2002) on the site of a former Hubbard and Phillips seed warehouse.[6][7][120]
The Sleaford built-up area is the urban centre of the North Kesteven district,[121] and one of the district's centres of employment.[122] According to a local authority report, Sleaford is also "the main retail, service and employment centre for people living in the town and in the surrounding villages".[123] The town's primary employment zones are Sleaford Enterprise Park, the adjoining business park at Woodbridge Road and along East Road, and the town centre (focused on Southgate, Northgate and the Market Place).[124] Many of North Kesteven's residents alsocommute out of the district to work, including toLincoln,Grantham andNewark-on-Trent;[122] one study found that, in 2011, 70% of workers living in the housing built at Quarrington since the 1980s worked outside of Sleaford: 24% of the total in other parts of North Kesteven, 13% in South Kesteven, 8% in Lincoln, and the remainder mostly in other districts of the East Midlands.[125]
Sleaford is a retail and services hub for its own population and its rural hinterland.[123] It has a long history of providing services for the wider district; despite the emergence of industries in the town in the 19th century, employment "revolved around services, trades and commerce" through the 20th century.[126] In 2021, retail, accommodation and food services made up 21% of the town's workforce.[127] The town centre hosts many shops and services,[128] including those in the covered Bristol Arcade (opened in 1958) and the Riverside Centre (opened in 1973).[112] Supermarkets are in the town centre, Northgate, Lincoln Road and Stump Cross Hill.[129] Other retailers and wholesalers operate on East Road and the business parks.[130] Sleaford's cattle and poultry markets closed in the 1980s; although the weekly market (traditionally held in the Market Place) has reduced substantially in size,[131] as of 2025 it continues to be held weekly on Fridays, Saturdays and Mondays, and a farmers' market is held on the first Saturday of each month.[132]
In 2011, the district council found that Sleaford's retail and service offer had not kept pace with its growing population, leading many shoppers to travel elsewhere to buy high-value goods, use services or engage in leisure activities: 85p in every pound spent on higher-valuecomparison goods were spent outside of the town.[133] In 2015, another report estimated that 23% of shopping spend in Sleaford's catchment area was spent in the town (accounting for £62m spending);[134] although the town had 210 shops and a higher ratio of shops to residents than many other urban areas in the region, these were dominated by outlets sellingconvenience goods and services.[135] The ratio of "multiple" brand shops compared to independent shops was 20% lower in Sleaford compared with regional benchmarks, which was thought to be a factor driving consumer spending out of the town; Lincoln was believed to be the key beneficiary of this outflow.[136] To address this, the district council proposed creating a new "retail anchor" at the disused Bass Maltings,[137] improving parking, removing parts of the one-way system, and regenerating Southgate and Money's Yard.[138][139] Though the maltings project stalled after an investor withdrew in 2015,[140] the Riverside Centre was refurbished in 2017[141] and town centre regeneration continues as of 2024.[142]
As local government expanded in the late 19th and 20th centuries and RAF Cranwell opened, the public sector became increasingly important to Sleaford's economy. From the early 20th century, the town housed the headquarters of Kesteven County Council,East Kesteven Rural District Council and the town's Urban District Council. By 1939, 18% of its employed population were in public administration and defence.[126] In the 21st century, the public sector is the predominant form of employment in Sleaford civil parish;[143] public administration, education and healthcare collectively accounted for 37% of the workforce in 2021.[127] As of 2024, Sleaford is home to the headquarters of North Kesteven District Council,[144] as well as fourprimary schools and threesecondary schools,[145] and is near RAF bases atCranwell,Digby andWaddington which are major employers in the district.[122]
Sleaford's position as a market town serving a rural district supported some local craft industries before the mid-19th century. The canalisation of the Slea and then the arrival of the railways in the 19th century meant that the town became important in the supply of agricultural produce inland and the import of industrial products into the wider district. Several large scale industries, some closely connected to agriculture, emerged in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, including malting, seed sorting and agricultural implement making. Many heavier industries closed between the 1920s and 1960s; the local authority encouraged lighter manufacturing after the 1950s through the provision of land for an industrial estate off East Road, which has since expanded.[146] By 2021, manufacturing employed 10% of Sleaford's workforce, construction employed 8.4%, and transport and distribution 6%; the professional, administrative, financial and real estate sectors accounted for a combined 10.6% of the workforce.[127]
In the early 2020s, Sleaford includes one of the district council's three "strategic employment locations", Sleaford Enterprise Park,[122] which is adjacent to other business parks at Woodbridge Road and East Road.[124] In 2023, the district council opened the first units of an extension, Sleaford Moor Enterprise Park.[147] Combined, in 2024 these estates housed at least 95 businesses, according toGoogle Maps; these included: 11 wholesalers, builders' merchants or plumbers' merchants; 11 vehicle repair shops or MOT centres; 11 furniture and furnishings shops; 7 manufacturers, including Sleaford Quality Foods (a food producer) and the ingredients' maker, J. L. Priestley and Co; five vehicle dealerships; four plant and equipment suppliers; four tyre shops; two gyms; a dance studio; and a bus company, Sleafordian Coaches.[130]
In 1563 there were 145 households in New Sleaford (including 20 in Holdingham), plus 10 in Old Sleaford and 17 in Quarrington.[151] In the late 17th and early 18th centuries, the diocese recorded that there were "more than 250 families" in the ecclesiastical parish of Sleaford, with a further 35 in the parish of Quarrington.[152] One estimate puts the population of New Sleaford at 800 to 900 at this time.[153] The first officialcensus was conducted in 1801 and recorded a population of 1,596 in New Sleaford (including Holdingham); combined with Old Sleaford and Quarrington, this gave a population of 1,812 in the area covered by today's Sleaford civil parish.[n 11] Following the opening of Sleaford Navigation in 1794 and the flourishing of the town's economy this produced (combined with the effects of inflated agricultural prices during the Napoleonic wars), Sleaford's population rose steadily in the first half of the 19th century.[153] It totalled 3,539 in New Sleaford and 4,160 across all the three parishes by 1851. The population grew much more slowly between the 1850s and the 1880s, before witnessing further growth that took the urban district's population to 6,427 by 1911 (incorporating New Sleaford, Old Sleaford, Holdingham and Quarrington).[n 11]
Slower rates were recorded for the urban district between then and the 1931 census, though the pace picked up again in the 1930s; by the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939 there were 7,835 residents. Sleaford's population grew very slowly in the post-war years, reaching 7,975 by 1971,[154][155] largely due to the fact that Lord Bristol remained owner of the vast majority of the undeveloped land around the town. However, as the 6th Marquess sold the land from the 1960s onwards and speculative housing blossomed around Sleaford, the civil parish's population expanded rapidly;[156] the population growth rate between 1991 and 2001 was the fastest of any town in Lincolnshire.[157] Between 1981 and 2011, the population more than doubled, reaching 17,671;[158] this had risen by a further 12% to 19,815 by the2021 census.[159] This accounts for 17% of North Kesteven's population, making Sleaford the most populous civil parish in the district.[160]
According to the 2021 census, Sleaford's population was 96%White; 1%Asian/British Asian; 1%mixed; and less than 1%Black,African,Caribbean,Black British, or other ethnicities.[161] The population is less ethnically diverse than England as a whole, where 81% were White; 10% Asian/British Asian; 4% Black, African, Caribbean or Black British; 3% mixed; and 2% other.[162] Parish-level data about country of origin have not been published for the 2021 census. The previous census, in 2011, recorded that 93% of Sleaford's population was born in the United Kingdom (in England as a whole the figure was 86%); 4% was born inEuropean Union countries other than the UK and Ireland (England: 4%). 3% of the population was born outside the EU (England: 9%).[163][164]
The 2021 census also lacks parish-level data on religion. In 2011, 72% of Sleaford's population said they werereligious and 23% said theydid not follow a religion (England: 68% and 25% respectively). Compared to England's population,Christians were a much higher proportion of Sleaford's population (70%), and all other groups were present at a lower proportion than the national rates;Muslims were the largest religious minority, accounting for 0.4% of the town's residents compared with 5% nationally; all other groups were present in very low numbers.[163][164]
Ethnicity (2021)[161][162] and nationality and religious affiliation (2011)[163][164]
Parish-level data about household composition, age and housing have not yet been published for the 2021 census. In the 2011 census, 48% of the population were male and 52% female. Of the population over 16, 50% were married (England: 47%); 29% were single (England: 35%), 11%divorced (England: 9%), 7% widowed (England: 7%), 3% separated and <1% in same-sexcivil partnerships (England: 3% and <1% respectively). In 2011, there were 7,653 households in Sleaford civil parish. It had a roughly average proportion of one-person households (29%; England: 30%); most other households consisted of one family (65% of the total; England: 62%).[163][164]
The 2011 census found the mean age was 40 and the median 41, compared with 39 and 39 for England. 24% of the population was under 20 (England: 24%), and 23% of Sleaford's population was aged over 60 (England: 22%).[163][164] 82% of the population were in good or very good health (England: 81%).[163][164]
In 2011, Sleaford had a higher proportion ofowner-occupiers (69%) than in England (63%), a similar proportion of people whoprivately rent (16%; England: 17%) and a smaller proportion ofsocial renters (14%; England: 18%). The proportion of households indetached houses was higher than average (39%; England: 22%), while the proportion interraced houses (19%; England: 25%) and purpose-built flats (9%; England: 17%) was lower.[163][164]
In 2021, 63% of Sleaford's residents aged 16 to 74 wereeconomically active (England: 61%) and 61% were inemployment (England: 57%). The rate of economically inactive people aged 16 to 74 was 37% (England: 39%).[162][165] The 2021 census revealed that the most common industries residents worked in were: public administration, education and health (combined 37%; England: 30%), retail, hotels and accommodation (combined 21%; England: 20%), finance, real estate, professional or administrative services (combined 11%; England: 17%), and manufacturing (10%; England: 7%). No other sectors accounted for more than 10% of the population.[162][127] In terms of occupational composition, in 2021 Sleaford's workforce was broadly similar to the workforce in the whole of England. It has slightly lower proportions of people in professional, associate professional and technical roles (30%) and managerial occupations (11%). There are slightly higher proportions of people incaring, leisure and otherservice occupations (10%), process, plant and machine operatives (9%), and elementary occupations (11%).[162][166]
TheIndices of Multiple Deprivation (2019) show that North Kesteven contained the lowest level of deprivation of any district in Lincolnshire.[167] The indices divided the Sleaford parish into 10 statistical areas (LSOAs). Of these, five placed in the least-deprived 30% of LSOAs nationally (one in the least-deprived 10% nationally); these were concentrated in Quarrington and the Holdingham ward. However, the eastern part of Holdingham ward and the central parts of the Westholme and Castle wards are among the most-deprived 40% of areas nationally.[168]
TheA17 road fromNewark-on-Trent toKing's Lynn bypasses Sleaford from Holdingham Roundabout toKirkby la Thorpe.[169] It ran through the town until the bypass opened in 1975.[170][171] The Holdingham roundabout connects the A17 to theA15 road fromPeterborough toScawby. It also passed through Sleaford until 1993, when its bypass was completed.[172][173] Three roads meet at Sleaford's market place: Northgate (B1518), Southgate and Eastgate (B1517). Aone-way system set up in 1994 creates a circuit around the town centre.[169][174] The bus companiesStagecoach andSleafordian Coaches operate public buses through and around the town on behalf of the county council, alongside the council's demand-responsive, flexibleCallConnect service.[175]
Plans to canalise the River Slea were drawn up in 1773,[83][181] but faced opposition from landowners who feared it might affect fenland drainage. Plans were approved in 1791 with the support of the5th Duke of Ancaster and Kesteven who owned estates and quarries that he hoped would benefit. An Act of Parliament passed in 1792, establishing theSleaford Navigation, which opened two years later.[83][84] After falling revenues due to competition from the railways, the navigation company closed in 1878. The river, although no longer navigable, passes under Carre Street and Southgate.[92] The Nine Foot Drain, also unnavigable, meets the Slea just before Southgate.[169]
The parts of Lincolnshire, which have medieval origins. They formed the basis of local government until 1974, including (from 1889)Kesteven County Council (KCC).[182] Sleaford was in Kesteven and KCC held its meetings alternately in Sleaford and the other major settlement in Kesteven,Grantham.[183]
SleafordPoor Law Union, overseen by a Board of Guardians, was founded in 1836 covering Old and New Sleaford and surrounding parishes.[99][188] The parish of New Sleaford, excluding the hamlet of Holdingham, was made alocal board district (LBD) in 1850, governed by an electedlocal board of health (LBH).[189][190] Holdingham was made its own civil parish in 1866.[187] ThePublic Health Act 1872 establishedurban sanitary districts (USD) to cover the areas in LBDs and made the LBH the urban sanitary authority.[191] The New Sleaford USD was enlarged in 1877 to include Holdingham, Old Sleaford and Quarrington.[n 15]
TheLocal Government Act 1894 converted the USD into New SleafordUrban District, overseen by an urban district council (UDC).[195] In 1900, it was renamed Sleaford Urban District.[196][n 16] During areorganisation of local government, Sleaford Urban District was abolished on 1 April 1974, being absorbed into the newdistrict ofNorth Kesteven.[198][199] Asuccessor parish called Sleaford was created on 6 July 1973 covering the area of the urban district, which had the effect of abolishing the four parishes of Holdingham, New Sleaford, Old Sleaford and Quarrington.[200] The newparish council declared its parish to be a town at its first meeting on 14 November 1973, allowing it to take the style "town council" and letting the chair of the council take the title ofmayor.[201][202]
Sleaford is in the North Kesteven District of Lincolnshire (coloured red on this map).
There are three tiers of local government covering Sleaford: Sleaford Town Council,North Kesteven District Council andLincolnshire County Council.[203] County councils have statutory responsibility for some public services, including education, transport, libraries, planning and social care. District councils manage social housing, planning applications, council tax, and waste and recycling.[204] Town councils have powers to run some local amenities.[205][n 17] Since the2023 local elections, the town council has been composed of 18 councillors from fivewards.[n 18] There are seven representatives from five wards on the district council, as of 2023.[n 19] Under the most recently devised boundaries, Sleaford has one seat on Lincolnshire County Council.[216]
Since 2015, the town council has had its headquarters at the Town Hall in Quayside House, off Carre Street.[217][218][n 20] The district council is based at theCouncil Offices on Kesteven Street, which had been occupied by the former Kesteven County Council (KCC) from 1925; a large extension took place in 1960. After KCC's abolition in 1974, the complex was transferred to North Kesteven District Council, serving as its offices and, after a major extension in 1991, becoming its sole office building and host to its council chamber.[220][221]
Before 1832, Sleaford was in theLincolnshire parliamentary constituency, which encompassed all of the county except for four boroughs. In the 1818 election, 49 of the roughly 2,000 people living in New and Old Sleaford and Quarrington qualified to vote. In 1832, theReform Act widened the franchise and divided Lincolnshire. Sleaford was in theSouth Lincolnshire constituency that elected two members to Parliament.[222] Following the 1867 reforms, the South Lincolnshire constituency's borders were redrawn, but Sleaford remained within it.[223] The franchise was widened by the reforms so that roughly 15% (202) of males in Sleaford and Quarrington could vote in 1868.[224] The constituency was abolished in 1885 and theSleaford constituency formed. It merged with theGrantham seat in 1918. In 1997, Sleaford was reorganised intoSleaford and North Hykeham.[225][226] The current constituency has been held by Conservatives since it was created;[n 21] the incumbent isCaroline Johnson, who has held it since2016[227] and was re-elected with 36% of the vote in2024.[228]
The Sleaford Gas Light Company was formed in 1838. The following yeargas lighting was provided and a gasworks was constructed in Eastgate. In 1866, the company was incorporated; it lit the town through to the company's nationalisation in 1948.[229] Gas ceased to be made there in the 1960s.[230]
Followingcholera outbreaks in the 1850s and 1870s, the Sleaford Water Act 1879 set up the Sleaford Water Company to provide clean water;[231][232] it built a reservoir at Quarrington Hill, mains piping, and pumping machinery and waterworks, all opened in 1880. In 1948, the urban district council took over the company; in 1962 its operation was handed to theKesteven Water Board, which was absorbed by theAnglian Water Authority in 1973.[233][234] Until the 1880s, Sleaford's raw sewage was conveyed through "an antiquated system of drains, open cesspits and inadequate sewers";[235] the town's effluent was discharged into the Slea, which was also the source of drinking water. The local board of health purchased land for asewage farm on the eastern fringe of the parish in the early 1880s and converted Cogglesford Mill into a pump to convey wastewater to the farm.[235][236] This system was in place from 1884. Initially let to tenants, the urban district council took over management of the farm in 1903. In 1954, a treatment plant was built on East Road;[237] expanded in the 1970s,[238][239] it was upgraded in 1994.[240]
Kesteven County Council built an electricity generating station on Castle Causeway in 1901, which remained beyond nationalisation in 1948; by the 1970s it had been extended to include atransformer and converted to asubstation.[241][242] Following nationalisation, theEast Midlands Electricity Board provided electricity until privatisation in 1990.[243] A "virtually carbon neutral" straw-burning power-station opened in 2013; most electricity generated is fed into theNational Grid though it provides free heat to Sleaford's public buildings.[244]
Sleaford'spost office was based at Lindum House (23 Northgate) from 1897 to 1933, when it moved to Southgate.[245] As of 2024, Sleaford Post Office still operates in Southgate.[246] There is also Woodside Post Office on Lincoln Road.[247] The town's telephone exchange was also based at Lindum House from 1897 to 1967, when an automated exchange opened on Westgate.[245][n 22] Sleaford Library has occupied its present building on the Market Place since 1987, having previously been based in the former fire station at Watergate since 1956.[249] As of 2024, the library includes a local and family history section and microfiche machine.[250]
Policing is provided by theLincolnshire Police,[251] firefighting by theLincolnshire Fire and Rescue Service,[252] and ambulance services by theEast Midlands Ambulance Service.[253] The first police station was built at Kesteven Street in 1845 and reconstructed in 1912;[254] the police moved into the former Sleaford Rural District Council offices at the Hoplands on Boston Road in 1998,[255][n 23] and this remains Sleaford Police Station as of 2024.[251] The fire and ambulance services share accommodation on Eastgate which opened in 2018.[249] Sleaford's first fire station was built in 1829 on Watergate and was completely rebuilt by the urban district council in 1900; the fire service moved to premises on Church Lane in 1953, which it occupied till 2018.[249] The ambulance service had operated from Kesteven Street from 1960 until 2018.[258][259][260]
From the 14th century, justice was administered through theassizes (periodic courts which heardcapital cases) or by thejustices of the peace (later called magistrates), who tried more serious but non-capital crimes in thequarter sessions with ajury and more minor crimes in thepetty sessions without a jury.[269][270] The petty and quarter sessions came to be known as themagistrates' courts.[269] Each of the threeparts of Lincolnshire had its own quarter sessions; in Kesteven, the sessions were split between northern and southern divisions; those for the north met at Sleaford from at least the 17th century and the court was known as the Sleaford Bench.[271][272][n 24] The magistrates met at a building on the market place, which was replaced in 1830 bySessions House.[273] The system was overhauledin 1971, with the quarter sessions and assizes replaced with theCrown Court,[274] which has been held in Lincoln ever since;[275] Sessions House continued to host the petty sessions until 2008, when cases were transferred to Grantham.[276]
Sleaford has four state primary schools.[277] William Alvey Church of England School, founded in 1729 following a bequest by William Alvey,[278] became anacademy in 2012[279] and in 2022 was rated "good" by theOffice for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted);[280] it caters for 650 pupils aged 4 to 11.[281] Founded in 1867,[282] St Botolph's Church of England School isvoluntary controlled, has 406 pupils aged 5 to 11 on roll,[283] and was rated "good" by Ofsted in 2023.[284] Our Lady of Good Counsel Roman Catholic School was established in 1882[285] and converted to an academy in 2013;[286] in 2023, it had 166 boys and girls aged 4 to 11 on roll and was rated "good" by Ofsted.[287] Church Lane Primary School, formerly Sleaford Infants' School, opened in 1908;[288][289] acommunity school with a nursery, it caters for 203 boys and girls aged 3 to 11 as of 2023;[290] at its latest Ofsted inspection (in 2014), Church Lane Primary School was rated "outstanding".[291]
The town has three secondary schools, each withsixth forms:[277] the two grammar schools (Carre's Grammar School andKesteven and Sleaford High School) areselective: pupils are required to pass theeleven plus exam.[292][293] The other school,St George's Academy, is not selective.[294] Carre's is a boys' school (with acoeducational sixth form) founded in 1604 with 806 pupils on roll as of 2024;[295][296] it converted to an academy in 2011 and was judged to be "good" by Ofsted in 2023.[297] It is run by the Robert Carre Trust.[296] Kesteven and Sleaford High School is a girls' school (with a coeducational sixth form) founded in 1902.[298][299] It became an academy in 2011[300][301] and was judged to be "good" by Ofsted in 2017.[300] It was taken over by the Robert CarreTrust in 2015.[302] As of 2024, it has 763 pupils on roll.[298] St George's Academy is a mixed-sexcomprehensive school.[303] It traces its origins to 1908 when Sleaford Council School opened; it became asecondary modern school after the Second World War,[304] a comprehensive in 1992,[305] atechnology college in 1994[304] and an academy in 2010.[303] As of 2024, it operates a satellite school atRuskington;[303] and has 2,319 pupils across both sites.[303] Ofsted judged it "good" in 2015.[306] The coeducationalSleaford Joint Sixth Form consortium allows pupils from each school to choose subjects taught at all three schools.[307][308]
In the Middle Ages, Old Sleaford hadits own church, originally dedicated toAll Saints and later toSt Giles. It disappeared at the end of the medieval period.[317] It was in the possession ofRamsey Abbey at the time of Domesday and laterHaverholme Priory, and was eventually served by a vicar. At theDissolution of the Monasteries (1536–41), the king took over collection of thetithes, later leasing them to Thomas Horseman and then selling them to Robert Carre. In the 17th century, the rectory of Quarrington and the vicarage of Old Sleaford were combined to form the ecclesiastical parish of Quarrington with Old Sleaford.[318] As of 2024, the parish is served bySt Botolph's Church in Quarrington village.[319][320] It is in the deanery of Lafford and archdeaconry of Lincoln.[321][n 25] In 1932 achurch hall was built on Grantham Road and used as a community centre as of 2009.[322]
Theprebendary of New Sleaford or Lafford had a seat in theLincoln Cathedral; it is not known when it was established, but it was confirmed by the Pope in 1146 and 1163,[323] and was in the patronage of the bishop. The Prebendal Court of Sleaford had jurisdiction over New and Old Sleaford and Holdingham to grantadministration andprobate.[324]
Meetings ofDissenters were taking place at Southgate by 1692, but ceased in 1732.[325]Non-conformist meetings next took place on Hen Lane (later Jermyn Street) fromc. 1776. The chapel was extended in 1819 and a school added in 1837.[326][327][n 27] TheCongregationalists who met there moved to a new chapel on Southgate in 1867–1868 (extended in 2007); in 1972, it became Sleaford United Reformed Church, which merged with Sleaford Community Church to form Riverside Church in 2008.[329][330] As of 2024, it hosts weekly Sunday worship.[331]Wesleyan Methodists first met on Westgate in the late 18th century and built a chapel there in 1802.[n 28] They moved to a chapel on North Street in 1848, rebuilt in 1972.[332][333] As of 2024, this houses Sleaford Methodist Church, in the SleafordMethodist Circuit; it hosts services every Sunday.[334] AWesleyan Reform chapel opened in West Banks in 1864, but since 1896 has been occupied by theSalvation Army,[335] who hold a weekly Sunday service there as of 2024.[336] In the 19th and 20th centuries, there were alsoPrimitive Methodist[n 29] andBaptist chapels in the town.[n 30]
By 1879 aRoman Catholic missionary was conducting services in the town. A Catholic school and chapel were built in 1882 on Jermyn Street and in 1889, Our Lady of Good Counsel Roman Catholic Church, opened beside it.[341] As of 2023, the Catholic parish sits in theFenland Deanery of theDiocese of Nottingham.[342] As of 2024,Mass is celebrated on Sundays and throughout the week with aVigil mass on Saturday.[343]
A congregation ofJehovah's Witnesses was founded in Sleaford in 1955; they built aKingdom Hall on Castle Causeway in 1972, which was rebuilt in 1999.[344][345] As of 2024, the congregation meet on Wednesdays and Sundays.[346] Sleaford New Life Church began meeting in the 1960s;[347] in 2002, they purchased a site at Mareham Lane and built a new church there;[348] as of 2024, the congregation meet there for worship on Sundays.[349] The church also runs afood bank.[350] Sleaford Spiritualist Church was founded in 1932 and opened its church building on Westgate in 1956.[351] As of 2024, a divine service is held there on Sundays.[352]
The Sleaford Muslim Community Association met in St Deny's Church Hall during the early 2000s. A prayer hall, Sleaford Islamic Centre, opened in 2015.[353] A mosque was completed on the Station Road site in 2020.[354] Daily prayers are held there as of 2024.[355]
The Hub (formerly the National Centre for Craft & Design)
The Hub, an arts centre, opened in 2002 and houses exhibitions of applied and contemporary art.[356] Opened in 2010, the Carre Gallery is operated by Sleaford Gallery Arts Trust.[357] ThePlayhouse theatre on Westgate was constructed in 1825 forJoseph Smedley and sold in 1856 to be converted into a school and later a library and offices. Sleaford Little Theatre restored it and in 2000 it reopened as a theatre.[358] The Sleaford Picturedrome opened in 1920; the cinema closed in 2000 and has since been occupied by nightclubs and bars.[n 31]
Sleaford hosted an annual carnival in the 20th century; it was last held in 1995[364] before being revived in 2013;[365] it ran for three years before the planned 2016 carnival was cancelled.[366] The RiverLight Festival, offering activities, open days and exhibitions, has taken place annually since 2022.[367][368] As of 2024, Sleaford Live Week is organised annually to showcase local musicians and artists.[369]
Sleaford Museum Trust was formed in the 1970s to preserve historical artefacts from the town's history; it opened a museum on Southgate in 2015.[370][371] Sleaford and District Civic Trust was founded in 1972 to "preserve the best features" of the town.[372][373] SleafordRotary Club received its charter in 1956;[374] it runs charity and community events.[375] Founded in 1999, Sleaford and District TownTwinning Association has maintained links withMarquette-lez-Lille since 1999 andFredersdorf-Vogelsdorf since 2009.[376]
Sleaford Town F.C. played in theUnited Counties League Premier Division North for the 2024–25 season.[377] Formed as Sleaford Amateurs F.C. in 1920, the club was renamed Sleaford Town in 1968. In 2007 it moved to its present grounds at Eslaforde Park.[377][378][379] Sleaford Rugby FC was established in 1978[380] and opened its clubhouse in 1999.[381] Sleaford Golf Club was founded in 1905. In 2014, the club had roughly 600 members.[382][383] Sleaford Cricket Club has grounds atLondon Road; the earliest record of the club is in 1803; its pavilion opened in 1967.[384] The town is also home to lawn bowling clubs, including Bristol Bowls Club (founded in 1934),[385][n 32] Eslaforde Park BC,[387] and Sleaford Town BC (at Mareham Lane).[388] There is also Sleaford Indoor Bowling Club, established in 1991;[n 33] an all-discipline gymnastics club founded in 1996;[390][391] Sleaford Striders, an athletics club founded in 1984;[392] and Sleaford Town Runners, established in 2006.[393]
Sleaford Leisure Centre originated as an outdoor lido in 1886; a children's pool was added in 1960 but closed in 1981, and the older pool was converted into the modern indoor leisure centre in 1984.[394] In 2013 North Kesteven District Council rebuilt the centre and its gym.[395][396] Owned and managed by Sleaford Town Council, Sleaford Recreation Ground on Boston Road (opened in 1897) spans 13.8 acres.[207][n 34] Other smaller open spaces and playgrounds are managed by the town council.[n 35]
Local news and television programmes are provided byBBC Yorkshire and Lincolnshire[398] andITV Yorkshire.[399] Local radio stations includeBBC Radio Lincolnshire[400] andHits Radio Lincolnshire (formerly Lincs FM).[401] The town's newspapers are theSleaford Standard (founded in 1924),[402] theSleaford Advertiser (founded in 1980)[403] and theSleaford Target (founded in 1984).[404] TheSleaford Gazette operated between 1854 and 1960 (when it was taken over by theStandard).[405][406] TheSleaford Journal ran from at least 1884 until it was incorporated into theGazette in 1929.[407][n 36]
A few medieval buildings remain. St Denys' Church, noted for itstracery, dates to the 12th century; its stonebroach spire is among the oldest in England. The half-timbered vicarage is 15th-century.[408] Quarrington's St Botolph's Church includes 13th-century elements.[409] The Bishops of Lincoln constructed the now-ruinedSleaford Castle[62] and granted a market to the town.[63] The town's historic core is the market place and the four roads which meet there: Northgate, Southgate, Eastgate and Westgate; many 18th- and 19th-century buildings are found in this area,[410] including the "fine"baroque late-17th-century building at 2 Northgate, theManor House inset with medieval masonry, andSessions House. The Carre family founded the grammar school which was rebuilt in 1834, the hospital, rebuilt in 1830, and the almshouses, rebuilt 1857,[410] while theVictorian buildersKirk and Parry constructed or added to numerous buildings, including Lafford Terrace and their own houseson Southgate and atWestholme.[411]
Cogglesford Mill is a testament to the historic economic importance of the Slea.[412] During theIndustrial Revolution, theSleaford Navigation Company constructed offices along Carre Street (their reputed location is now grade-II-listed),[413][414] while theGothic gasworks on Eastgate lit the town from 1839.[98]Henry Handley, a local MP, is commemorated by the Handley Memorial on Southgate, a Gothic monument in the style of anEleanor Cross.[415] During the 1850s, the railway station was built in a Gothic style.[416] Sleaford's agricultural location and transport links encouraged seed trading and malting in the late 19th century; the seed merchant Charles Sharpe's listed house, The Pines, is on Boston Road.[417] The Bassmaltings, built off Mareham Lane between 1892 and 1905, has a frontage over 1,000 feet long.[418]
TheHandley family were well-connected with business; Benjamin Handley was a lawyer, prominent in the Navigation Company and partner in the local bank Peacock, Handley and Kirton.[419] His son,Henry, was MP for South Lincolnshire; after his death, the residents erected a monument to him on Southgate.[420]Robert Armstrong Yerburgh, the son of Rev. Richard Yerburgh, vicar of New Sleaford, was twice MP forChester.[421] The politiciansSir Thomas Meres[422] andSir Robert Pattinson attended the grammar school.[423]
The religious controversialistHenry Pickworth was born in New Sleaford and challenged the opponent of QuakerismFrancis Bugg to an open debate there.[424]John Austin, a religious writer, was educated at the grammar school.[425]William Scoffin was the town's Presbyterian minister and preached there for more than forty years,[426] whileBenjamin Fawcett, a Presbyterian minister, was born and educated at Sleaford.[427]
Sleaford Urban District Council was granted a coat of arms on 26 October 1950.[441] Its successor Sleaford Town Council was granted the right to use the arms in 1975.[442]
Crest
On a Wreath of the Colours an Eagle wings extended and head downwards and to the sinister proper holding in the beak an Ear of Wheat stalked and leaved Or. (not shown)
Escutcheon
Gules on a Chevron Or three Estoiles Sable on a Chief Argent as many Trefoils slipped Vert.
Symbolism
The shield combines elements from the arms of the Carre family and the Marquesses of Bristol; the eagle in the crest symbolises Sleaford's links with the Royal Air Force and the ear of wheat in its beak represents agriculture.[443]
^The Bishop succeeded a Saxonthegn, Bardi, and held 11 carucates with 29 villeins, 11 borders, 6 sokeman, a church and priest, and 8 mills, 1 acre (0.4 hectares) of woodland, 320 acres (130 hectares) of meadow and 330 acres (130 hectares) of marsh. Ramsey Abbey had been granted land in Sleaford and surrounding villages in about 1051. ByDomesday its fee calledEslaforde consisted of 1carucate, 1sokeman, 2villeins and 27 acres (11 hectares) of meadow; it was sokeland of the abbot of Ramsey's manor ofQuarrington, where he is recorded holding two churches.[51]
^This hypothesis was based on the topography, the granting of a fair, market and burgage tenure in the 12th century, and the "Old" and "New" epithets[56]
^The earliest references to Old and New Sleaford occur in 13th-century documents, which limits their use as evidence for town plantation; the grants of a market and fair in the 12th century do not necessarily indicate a new settlement, but merely a codification and rationalisation of pre-existing arrangements. The diversion of roads like Mareham Lane and the compass-aligned streets provide no chronology even if they imply a westward migration from Old Sleaford.[57]
^Bricks could also be transported more easily, which contributed to the construction of new buildings on West Banks, Grantham Road and London Road.[89] For a full account of the development of West Banks and adjoining roads, seeStroud & Stroud 1981, pp. 51–65. Station Road and Nag's Head Passage were also developed in this period.[90]
^The principle buildings were the Sessions House (1831), the grammar school (1834), Carre's Hospital (1830–1846), the gasworks (1839), Navigation House (1838–39), much of Eastgate (including the Alvey School in 1850, and Kingston and Lafford Terraces in 1856 and 1857), the cemetery (1856) and the corn exchange (1857)
^These figures relate to the area of the Sleaford civil parish as defined in 1974. For the years before 1974, they relate to the civil parish's predecessor, the Sleaford Urban District, which existed between 1894 and 1974. For the years before 1894, they are the sum of the resident populations of the ancient/civil parishes of New Sleaford, Old Sleaford, Quarrington and (after it was separated from New Sleaford in 1866) Holdingham.
^Figures for 1801–1901, except 1861 and 1871, are taken from:
The figures for 1861 and 1871 are based on combining the populations for Old Sleaford, New Sleaford and Holdingham parishes, as recorded inCensus Office 1862, pp. 517, 850 andCensus Office 1873, pp. 654, 685, 700, 710, 729
The figure for 2021 has been obtained by querying thePP002 Dataset from the 2021 Census viaNomis: Official Labour Market Statistics.Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
^These figures include Holdingham before 1866. The figures excluding Holdingham hamlet were: 1,483 (1801), 1,781 (1811), 2,094 (1821), 2,450 (1831), 3,184 (1841), 3,372 (1851),[148] and 3,325 (1861).[149]
^Proposals to link Sleaford to Ancaster for transporting stone in 1827 did not materialise; works by the Ambergate Company in the 1840s should have extended to Sleaford, but stopped at Grantham in 1850, while opposition from the Navigation Company to another proposal further delayed railway links to the town.[176]
^The order establishing this arrangement made no mention of Holdingham,[192] but contemporary press reports[193] and the scholar F. A. Youngs[194] state that Holdingham was included in New Sleaford USD.
^The UDC, like its predecessor, met inSessions House until 1901, after which it used a purpose-built council chamber at Sleaford's fire station in Watergate. From 1919, the UDC also had a depot and stables at Jermyn Street and created a permanent office there in 1927. In 1955, the UDC brought its offices and council chamber under one roof when it moved into Westgate House, where the authority remained until its abolition.[197]
^Sleaford Town Council owns and manages the town cemetery,[206] as well as the Boston Road Recreation Ground and six other public open spaces;[207] it also manages the market,[208] Eastgate Car Park,[209] the town's allotments on The Drove and Galley Hill,[210] and several bus stops,[211] public toilets,[212] and street lighting and furniture.[213][214]
^The town council met in and maintained an office at Westgate House from 1973 until 1981, after which it shared rooms at the new civic centre atSt George's School; in 2002, the offices moved to 3 Hill House, Carre Street, but the council continued to meet at St George's until 2006, after which it met atCarre's Grammar School until 2011, after which meetings were held at The Source in Southgate. In 2015, it very briefly met at Mill House, before moving both its offices and council chamber to Quayside House that year; it purchased the property in 2016.[219]
^The Westgate exchange replaced aprimitive methodist chapel built in 1907 (superseding an older one on Westgate of 1841, which survives) and closed in 1964 when the society merged with the methodists on Northgate and worshipped at the chapel there.[248]
^The site at the Hoplands was acquired by Sleaford Rural District Council (RDC) by 1960 to be used for housing, but in 1962 they opted to build a new office there (replacing smaller premises on Northgate, which they had occupied since 1915); the RDC building was completed in 1964 and included its council chamber and offices. After its abolition in 1974, the RDC's successor, North Kesteven District Council, used the site for offices and full council meetings, but after it extended its other building at Lafford Terrace in 1991, the district council sold the Hoplands site to Lincolnshire County Council,[256] who spent £2m converting it into the police station between 1996 and 1998 (this included adding a cell block and communications tower).[257]
^Covering the wapentakes of Flaxwell, Langoe, Aswardhurn, Loveden and Boothby Graffoe.[271]
^Holdingham had its own chapel in the medieval period; dedicated toSt Mary, it was last in use around the 1550s; it subsequently disappeared and its former location is not known.[316]
^In theCompton Census (1676), New Sleaford had a Conformist (Anglican) population of 576 people, no "Papists" and 6 Non-conformists.[328] In the 19th century, it had a sizeable Non-conformist population and a large Anglican congregation; at the 1851 Census of Religious Worship, an estimated 2,000 people attended Non-conformist places of worship, while an estimated 600–700 people attended Anglican services in the parish.[326] TheWesleyans met in Westgate in the early 19th century; by 1848, the congregation had set up in Northgate, an area known for its taverns and poor tenements.[101]
^The local historian Simon Pawley says that they first met in the 1790s at the house of Thomas Fawcett there,[326] while the county council has stated that they first met in 1796 at the Paper Mills on Westgate, and then hired a room in Park's Yard inc. 1799, before occupying a succession of houses until 1802.[332]
^ThePrimitive Methodists began meeting in the town in 1838 in a house in Long Row, New Quarrington. They then occupied a house on Westgate, before having a purpose-built chapel on that road in 1841; in 1964 the congregation merged with the Methodists based at Northgate.[337]
^A Baptist chapel was built on Boston Road in 1808. It served theStrict Baptists until 1881, when most of the congregation moved to a new chapel on Eastgate, though a faction remained until 1915, after which the building was converted to a house.[338] The chapel on Eastgate was known as the Temple and housedParticular Calvinist Baptists.[339] It closed in the 1980s.[340]
^After closing in 2000, the building became a snooker hall and then a nightclub[359][360] that closed in 2008[361] before reopening as another nightclub in 2015 which was still operating in 2021,[362] though as of 2024 the building has been converted into a sports bar.[363]
^Sleaford has a lawn bowls club, Bristol Bowls Club, with facilities on Boston Road. Its origins trace back to at least 1904, when croquet matches were being played at Boston Road. Croquet fell out of favour in the 1930s and the croquet club was disbanded and the Boston Road Bowls Club founded in its place in 1934. By the 1960s, it had its own pavilion and lawn at Boston Road. It was renamed Bristol Bowls Club in 1961 to avoid confusion with the Sleaford Road (Boston) Bowls Club.[386]
^Following a fundraising campaign and membership drive beginning in 1985, Sleaford Indoor Bowling Club purchased the lease on land adjacent to the town's leisure centre in 1987, and opened a purpose-built bowling centre in 1991, which was refurbished in 2004.[389]
^Previously a plant nursery, by the 1890s the land was being let by its tenant Thomas Constable for public events and sports matches. The urban district council acquired his lease in 1897 to use the land as a recreation ground and bought the freehold from Lord Bristol in 1962 (also purchasing another field). In the 1950s and 1970s, the council added tennis courts.[397]
^The council owns and manages Castlefield (6.2 acres), Woodside Play Area (5.5 acres), George Street Play Area (2.2 acres), Lincoln Road Play Area (1.2 acres), Meadowfield Play Area (0.75 acres) and Eastgate Green (0.75 acres); it manages but does not own the play areas at Peacock Court and Spire View.[207]
^Short-lived newspapers included theSleaford Telegraph (1888–1889) and theSleaford Guardian (1945–1946).[405]
Citations
^"Sleaford".City population. Retrieved25 October 2022.
^"Archive Listings 721–740".Lincolnshire Film Archive (ARCHON directory code2929). Retrieved 7 January 2015.Archived on 17 April 2024. See no. 732 ("Building the A17 Bypass"), on standard 8 mm colour film, a sample of which is available onYouTube.
^"Kesteven County Council".Stamford Mercury. 16 November 1900. p. 6. Retrieved21 November 2023 – viaBritish Newspaper Archive....henceforth the name or style of the Urban District Council of New Sleaford and their district shall be respectively known as the "Sleaford Urban District Council" and the "Sleaford Urban District"...
^The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 1995 (1995, no. 1626),article 2 with reference to theschedule. Retrieved 5 January 2025 – viaLegislation.gov.uk.
^When the building was converted into a shop in 1996, it was reported that it had been derelict for "ten years or more":"Breathing New Life into Chapel".Sleaford Standard. 23 May 1996. p. 7. Retrieved13 June 2024 – viaBritish Newspaper Archive. It was still in operation as a church in 1980:"The Churches".Sleaford Standard. 6 November 1980. p. 25. Retrieved13 June 2024 – viaBritish Newspaper Archive.
Ellis, Charles W. R. (1954),Carre's Grammar School: 1604–1954, Sleaford: W. K. Morton & Sons,OCLC40597553
Ellis, Charles (1981a), "Background", in Ellis, Charles (ed.),Mid-Victorian Sleaford, 1851–1871, Lincolnshire History, vol. 4, Lincoln: Lincolnshire Library Service, pp. 1–4,ISBN978-0-86111-102-2
Ellis, Charles (1981b), "Buildings Going up, Areas Decaying", in Ellis, Charles (ed.),Mid-Victorian Sleaford, 1851–1871, Lincolnshire History, vol. 4, Lincoln: Lincolnshire Library Service, pp. 67–70,ISBN978-0-86111-102-2
Ellis, Charles (1981c), "Sleaford and National Politics", in Ellis, Charles (ed.),Mid-Victorian Sleaford, 1851–1871, Lincolnshire History, vol. 4, Lincoln: Lincolnshire Library Service, pp. 171–179,ISBN978-0-86111-102-2
Elsdon, Sheila M. (1997),Old Sleaford Revealed: A Lincolnshire Settlement in Iron Age, Roman, Saxon and Medieval Times: Excavations 1882–1995, Oxford: Oxbrow Books,ISBN978-1-900188-32-6
Peyton, S. A., ed. (1931),Minutes of Proceedings in Quarter Sessions Held for the Parts of Kesteven in the County of Lincoln, 1674-1695: Volume I, Publications of the Lincoln Record Society, vol. 25, Lincoln: J. W. Rudduck and Sons for theLincoln Record Society,OCLC504418392
Stroud, William; Stroud, Margaret (1981), "A Comparison of the 1851 and 1871 Census Returns for the Area Formerly Known as 'The Tofts'", in Ellis, Charles (ed.),Mid-Victorian Sleaford, 1851–1871, Lincolnshire History, vol. 4, Lincoln: Lincolnshire Library Service, pp. 51–66,ISBN978-0-86111-102-2
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