Astwood Bank is a district within

Redditch Redditch is a town, and local government district, in north-east Worcestershire, England, approximately south of Birmingham. The district has a population of 85,000 as of 2019. In the 19th century, it became the international centre for the ...

. Astwood Bank is near the

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Avon an ...

- Worcestershire border, near villages such as Studley, Sambourne, Callow Hill,

Feckenham Feckenham is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Redditch in Worcestershire, England. It lies some south-west of the town of Redditch and some east of the city of Worcester. It had a population of 670 in the 2001 census and its immedi ...

, and

Cookhill Cookhill is a village and civil parish in Worcestershire, England, on the county border near Alcester. It is close to a former Cistercian Priory of the same name. History In the Domesday Book; Cookhill is mentioned as being in the Hundred of As ...

. Astwood Bank is noted for its successful

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

team, who have twice played at

Lord's Lord's Cricket Ground, commonly known as Lord's, is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England and ...

in the National Village Knock Out Final. The

A441 List of A roads in zone 4 in Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European isla ...

Evesham Road is the main trunk road through Astwood Bank from Redditch. Astwood Bank has an annual carnival. The carnival has been a big part of the village for over 30 years. Three traction engines raising steam, Astwood Bank - geograph

Three traction engines raising steam, Astwood Bank - geograph

History

Church

Residents held church services in the local school until a church was built in 1883–84. The foundation stone was laid by Lady Georgina Vernon of

Hanbury Hall Hanbury Hall is a large 18th-century stately home standing in parkland at Hanbury, Worcestershire. The main range has two storeys and is built of red brick in the Queen Anne style. It is a Grade I listed building, and the associated Orangery a ...

. The church of St. Matthias & St. George was originally designed by W. J. Hopkins as a large church with a south tower, only the east end was completed by him in 1884. The nave was added by W. Cogswell in 1911 and consecrated by Bishop Louis Mylne. The tower was never built hence the deep sloping roof. The church was built as a chapelry of

. It became an independent parish in 1950.

Railway station

A railway station called Studley & Astwood Bank railway station served the village, with service going as far north as Lichfield Trent Valley and as far south as

Tewkesbury Tewkesbury ( ) is a medieval market town and civil parish in the north of Gloucestershire, England. The town has significant history in the Wars of the Roses and grew since the building of Tewkesbury Abbey. It stands at the confluence of the Riv ...

. The line was closed in 1964 so now

Redditch railway station Redditch railway station serves the town of Redditch, North Worcestershire, England. It is the southern terminus of the Cross-City Line south of . The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by West Midlands Trains. Redditch station s ...

is the end of the line. The station building still exists as a domestic dwelling house and is located on the Slough, just into Green Lane, Studley, Warwickshire. It is about two miles from Astwood Bank and one mile from Studley.

Politics

Politically, Astwood Bank is part of the Astwood Bank and Feckenham ward. The councillors are: * Craig Warhurst (

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

)-(Astwood Bank & Feckenham) * Brandon Clayton (Conservative)-(Astwood Bank & Feckenham) *Craig Randall (UKIP)-(Astwood Bank & Feckenham) *Josh Carter (Liberal Democrats)-(Astwood Bank) *Aaron Bwail (Green Party)-(Astwood Bank)

Education

The village is served by Astwood Bank Primary School and

Ridgeway Secondary School Ridgeway Secondary School is a coeducational secondary school located in Astwood Bank (near Redditch) in the English county of Worcestershire. Established in 1959, it was a middle school for many years, known as Ridgeway Middle School. In Dec ...

.https://ridgewaysecondary.org.uk/

Notable residents

* Lionel Britton (1887–1971) was a working class writer from Astwood Bank. *

Dan Sealey Dan Sealey is the former session bass guitarist for the rock group Ocean Colour Scene. He was drafted in by the band after Damon Minchella left the band in 2003. Sealey is also in Merrymouth, a folk band with Ocean Colour Scene bandmate Sim ...

Ocean Colour Scene Ocean Colour Scene (often abbreviated to OCS) are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Solihull in 1989. They have had five top 10 albums including a number one in 1997. They have also achieved seventeen top 40 singles and six top 10 sin ...

and Merrymouth was born in Astwood Bank. *

Adam Barry Adam Barry (born 4 April 1981) is the English Hammond organ/piano/accordion/harmonica/backing vocalist for the folk group Merrymouth (band), Merrymouth, led by Barry, Simon Fowler and Dan Sealey from Ocean Colour Scene. Before joining Merrymouth, ...

of Merrymouth and co founder of Americana band The Misers has lived in Astwood Bank since leaving school in 1996. * Charlie Clemmow, actress.

References

External links

* Villages in Worcestershire {{Worcestershire-geo-stub