 Wealdstone war memorial and clock alongside a parade in the northern part of High Street | |
  Wealdstone Location withinGreater London | |
| Population | 11,394 (2011 Census. Ward)[1] |
|---|---|
| OS grid reference | TQ155895 |
| London borough | |
| Ceremonial county | Greater London |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | HARROW |
| Postcode district | HA3 |
| Dialling code | 020 |
| Police | Metropolitan |
| Fire | London |
| Ambulance | London |
| UK Parliament | |
| London Assembly | |
| 51°35′45″N0°20′07″W / 51.595697°N 0.335190°W /51.595697; -0.335190 | |
Wealdstone (/ˈwiːldstoʊn/) is a district located in the centre of theLondon Borough of Harrow, England. It is located just north ofHarrow town centre and is south ofHarrow Weald, west ofBelmont andKenton, and east ofHeadstone.The area accommodates most of Harrow's industrial and business designated land. Wealdstone was the location of theKodak Harrow factory; it closed in 2016.[2] Wealdstone is centred on the High Street, and much traffic is bypassed from here by the George Gange Way flyover built in 1996.[3][4] Its western boundary is formed by Harrow View, across whichHeadstone Manor lies, whereas on the east is Byron Park and theBelmont Trail.Harrow & Wealdstone station and the council offices are located at its southern end.
The eponymous Weald Stone is asarsen stone, positioned to mark the then boundary between the parishes ofHarrow andHarrow Weald. It is located outside the Bombay Central restaurant,[5] which was built as a public house (previously known as the Weald Stone Inn and prior to that, the Red Lion), outside 328 High Road, Harrow Weald.[6]
Wealdstone Urban District was created under theLocal Government Act 1894 in 1894, and absorbed byHarrow Urban District in 1934.
Much of the housing stock in central Wealdstone consists of Victorian and Edwardian terraces along with new flatted developments in High Street and George Gange Way.[7]
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TheKodak Harrow factory was located in Wealdstone until its closure in 2016. This, along with nearby factories ofWinsor & Newton (a facility of the artists' materials company which closed in 2010),[8]Whitefriars Glass and Hamilton Brush Works,[9] turned Wealdstone into Harrow's industrial centre. Waverley Industrial Estate still contains industry today. AHer Majesty's Stationery Office factory in the area was demolished in 1996 and now replaced byHarrow Crown Court.[10]
At the junction of Graham Road with High Street was located the former Herga Cinema which opened in 1939 but closed in 1951.[11] The building was gutted by fire in the early 1960s, later renovated and variously used throughout its later life as commercial premises until Harrow Council confirmed in 2018 that the building was to be demolished and replaced by flats.[12]
The bypass of Wealdstone High Street was completed in late 1996. In 1997, supermarket chainAsda announced a grand scheme for a superstore in Wealdstone involving a redevelopment of the town centre which included the demolition of 60 small business establishments. The project divided opinion and was scrapped, but in a more modest scheme was revived later that year.[13][4][14] Following lengthy negotiations and consultations, Asda dropped the plan in 1999 blaming Harrow Council.[15] Local traders were reportedly "beleaguered" by the high street's decline since the opening of the bypass and the abandonment bySainsbury's of a new supermarket project in 2001, which traders hoped would help revitalise Wealdstone.[16][17] Later that year, Harrow Council secured funding for a community centre including a library at the site of a formerSafeway.[18][19] It opened in 2004 as the Wealdstone Centre. Asda eventually opened a smaller supermarket on the high street in 2015.[20]
A mural commemoratingQueen Victoria was painted on the railway bridge in 2004 by local children.[21]
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Possibly the most prominent building in Wealdstone is the former Police Station in the high street. The site was built in 1909 and has beenGrade II listed since 1998.[22] It is known for its distinctive style and features.[23]
In 2003, plans by theMetropolitan Police to close Wealdstone police station was met with by protests and opposition in the community. A petition against the closure received 200 signatures.[24] The station eventually remained open, but the issue arose again in 2008 and 2011 amid police plans to sell the building. While the station was no longer open to the public, it still housed the Anti-Social Behaviour Partnership team.[23]
In May 2011,Navin Shah representingBrent and Harrow in the London Assembly asked then-Mayor of LondonBoris Johnson about his thoughts on the closure. Johnson responded:
Let's be clear - the closing of a police station is always a very difficult decision. People understandably are reassured by the physical presence of a corner police station. But the Met's real estate portfolio is ageing, and modern policing is these days more reliant on resources other than just bricks and mortar.[25]
Gareth Thomas, MP forHarrow West, launched a petition to save the station.[26] However, opponents were unsuccessful and the station was closed.[27]
Wealdstone formerly had the highest crime rate in the borough, as the town suffered from antisocial behaviour and drug crime, higher than the borough's average. However, the Wealdstone Antisocial Behaviour Partnership (WASP), started by the Metropolitan Police to tackle crime in the town in 2010, saw impressive results with crime figures below the average in the borough. Wealdstone was one of only four Harrow wards to show a fall in reported Crime from April 2015 to March 2016.[28]
The Harrow Leisure Centre[29] is located in Wealdstone and facilities includeswimming,badminton,snooker,martial arts and a gym run by Harper's Fitness. One of the country's oldest remaining skate parks,Harrow Skate Park, is next to the leisure centre. The park is a major centre of the British skateboarding scene and draws visitors from all over the country.
In 1903,Wealdstone FC played at the College Farm ground situated in Locket Road, then later played in Belmont Road before moving in 1922 toLower Mead, which was located behind the Dominion/ABC cinema (now closed) on Station Road, prior to its controversial sale toTesco for retail development in 1991. After many years of without a home stadium of their own, Wealdstone FC is now based nearby inRuislip, having abandoned plans to relocate within the borough of Harrow at Prince Edward Fields,Canons Park, now the home stadium ofBarnet FC. Former players includeStuart Pearce,Vinnie Jones andJermaine Beckford.
Wealdstone is the youngest ward in the borough of Harrow.[30] It is also the most deprived part of the borough.[31][32]
According to the 2011 census, the largest ethnic group in Wealdstone ward is White British (25%), followed by 20% Indian and 13% Other Asian.[33]
Wealdstone ward is within theHarrow West constituency, currently represented by Labour MPGareth Thomas. However smaller parts of the district west of High Street and north of Locket Road are in the Harrow Weald ward, which is inHarrow East constituency and represented by Conservative MPBob Blackman.
The Holy TrinityChurch of England was built in Gothic style in 1882.[34]
Schools includeSacred Heart Language College,Salvatorian College andWhitefriars School.
There is one station in the district:
SevenLondon Buses routes run during day, as well as a school bus (640). There are two night routes serving Wealdstone:140 andN18.
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