Bury Park is an area of
Luton
Luton () is a town and unitary authority with borough status, in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 census, the Luton built-up area subdivision had a population of 211,228 and its built-up area, including the adjacent towns of Dunstable an ...
, in the
Luton
Luton () is a town and unitary authority with borough status, in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 census, the Luton built-up area subdivision had a population of 211,228 and its built-up area, including the adjacent towns of Dunstable an ...
district, in the ceremonial county of
Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. The county has been administered by three unitary authorities, Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Borough of Luton, since Bedfordshire County Council wa ...
, England. It is located 1 mile north west of the town centre on the road to
Dunstable
Dunstable ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Bedfordshire, England, east of the Chiltern Hills, north of London. There are several steep chalk escarpments, most noticeable when approaching Dunstable from the ...
. The area is roughly bounded by Claremont Road and Highfield Road to the north, Telford Way to the south, Hatters Way to the west, and the
Midland Main Line
The Midland Main Line is a major railway line in England from London to Nottingham and Sheffield in the Midlands. It comprises the lines from London's St Pancras station via Leicester, Derby/Nottingham and Chesterfield in the East Midlands.
...
to the east.
Since the mid-1970s a large Muslim community have settled. Bury Park has a large commercial area specialising in fruit, vegetables, tech shops and all cultural clothing. There is a significant number of restaurants in the area, particularly serving
Halal
''Halal'' (; ar, حلال, ) is an Arabic word that translates to "permissible" in English. In the Quran, the word ''halal'' is contrasted with ''haram'' (forbidden). This binary opposition was elaborated into a more complex classification kno ...
food.
Kenilworth Road
Kenilworth Road is an association football stadium in Luton, Bedfordshire, England. It has been the home ground of Luton Town F.C., Luton Town Football Club since 1905. The stadium has also hosted women's and youth international matches, includ ...
, the home of
Luton Town F.C.
Luton Town Football Club () is a professional association football club based in the town of Luton, Bedfordshire, England, that competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1885, it is nicknam ...
is also located here.
History
Bury Park takes its name from Bury Farm, which was situated near to where Kenilworth Road is now.
An estate was erected on the fields of the farm, and the first houses were occupied in 1882.
Church school
A Christian school is a school run on Christian principles or by a Christian organization.
The nature of Christian schools varies enormously from country to country, according to the religious, educational, and political cultures. In some countr ...
halls were opened in 1895, Bury Park
Congregational Church
Congregational churches (also Congregationalist churches or Congregationalism) are Protestant churches in the Calvinist tradition practising congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its ...
was built in 1903, and Luton Industrial
Co-operative
A cooperative (also known as co-operative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically-control ...
Society Ltd opened a general store at the junction of Dunstable Road and Leagrave Road in 1906. The Anglican church of All Saints was opened in 1907 and a new church built in 1923 in Shaftesbury Road. Before moving to the Kenilworth Road ground, Luton Town played their home games on a flat field that became the site of the Odeon cinema. Dunstable Road was lined with
Victorian houses, each with a neatly fenced garden, but the character of the road altered with the coming of the trams in 1908; the houses were turned into shops, and their front gardens became paved forecourts. By 1926, the shops included a "High-Class Pastry Cook and Confectioner" at 273 Dunstable Road.
Traffic has long been a problem in the area. In 1926, complaints were made that horses and carts were causing obstructions by stopping at a water
trough
Trough may refer to:
In science
* Trough (geology), a long depression less steep than a trench
* Trough (meteorology), an elongated region of low atmospheric pressure
* Trough (physics), the lowest point on a wave
* Trough level (medicine), the l ...
at the junction of Dunstable Road and Leagrave Road. In the following years the junction was covered by
constable
A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in criminal law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. A constable is commonly the rank of an officer within the police. Other peop ...
s on point duty.
Edgar Barber established an
aeroplane propeller factory during
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
at 116 Bury Park Road. This was converted into a cinema called the Empire, which opened in 1921 and which closed in 1938 when the new
Odeon
Odeon may refer to:
Ancient Greek and Roman buildings
* Odeon (building), ancient Greek and Roman buildings built for singing exercises, musical shows and poetry competitions
* Odeon of Agrippa, Athens
* Odeon of Athens
* Odeon of Domitian, Rome
...
opened on Dunstable Road. The Odeon with 1958 seats was designed by Keith P. Roberts, and is now a
listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
.
During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
the old Empire was requisitioned for "government purposes". After the war it was used as a synagogue, and then later as an
Islamic
Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the mai ...
centre. The Odeon was used for music concerts as well as for showing films;
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...
played there in 1963. It eventually closed in 1983 and re-opened as a Top Rank
Bingo
Bingo or B-I-N-G-O may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Gaming
* Bingo, a game using a printed card of numbers
** Bingo (British version), a game using a printed card of 15 numbers on three lines; most commonly played in the UK and Ireland
** Bi ...
Club. After local objections when its name changed to
Mecca Bingo
Mecca Bingo (formerly called Top Rank) is a British operator of bingo clubs, with 76 locations throughout the country. Mecca Bingo is owned by the Rank Group, which operates bingos, casinos and online gambling in Belgium, Spain and Britain. The Ra ...
, it finally closed in 1999 and became a church.
Churches and mosques
The Congregational Church in Waldeck Road is now a
United Reformed Church
The United Reformed Church (URC) is a Protestant Christian church in the United Kingdom. As of 2022 it has approximately 40,000 members in 1,284 congregations with 334 stipendiary ministers.
Origins and history
The United Reformed Church resulte ...
. The converted cinema in Dunstable Road is now the UK headquarters of the Calvary
Church of God in Christ
The Church of God in Christ (COGIC) is a Holiness–Pentecostal Christian denomination, and the largest Pentecostal denomination in the United States. Although an international and multi-ethnic religious organization, it has a predominantly Bl ...
pastored by Jurisdictional Bishop, Rev Dr. Alvin Blake.
Calvary Church of God in Christ (United Kingdom)
.
The Luton skyline includes the Luton Central Mosque in Westbourne Road, foundations of which were laid by the late Waliat Hussain Jarral (also alternatively known as Walayat) in 1982. Born in Kashmir, the founder died aged 72, on 24 June 2010 after a battle with cancer. But his legacy remains, as having founded one of the first purpose built mosques in Britain and the biggest purpose built in modern Europe in the early 1980s. A dispute over who should run the mosque led to a highly publicised High Court battle, as a result of which the building changed hands to a section of the Pakistani community in Luton, and has remained so ever since.
The more recent Islamic Centre in Bury Park Road, also serves the Islamic community in Luton and occupies the former synagogue.
Politics
The area north of Dunstable Road is in Biscot
Biscot is an area of Luton close to the town centre, in the Luton district, in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England. The area is roughly bounded by Montrose Avenue to the north, the Midland Main Line to the west, and the A6 to the eas ...
ward and the area to the south is in Dallow
Dallow is an inner area of Luton about a half mile (0.8 km) west of the town centre and a ward of the Borough of Luton, in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England. The extended area along Dallow Road is roughly bounded by Hatters Way ...
ward.
The wards form part of the parliamentary constituency
An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other poli ...
of Luton South
Luton South is a constituency in Bedfordshire represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2019 by Rachel Hopkins, a member of the Labour Party.
History
This seat was created in 1983, primarily from the former seat of Luton ...
and the MP is Rachel Hopkins
Rachel Louise Hopkins (born 30 March 1972) is a British politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Luton South since 2019. A member of the Labour Party, she has been a Shadow Minister for the Cabinet Office since 2021.
Hopkins ...
(Labour
Labour or labor may refer to:
* Childbirth, the delivery of a baby
* Labour (human activity), or work
** Manual labour, physical work
** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer
** Organized labour and the labour ...
).
Local attractions
Local newspapers
Two weekly newspapers cover Bury Park, although they are not specific to the area.
They are the:
Herald and Post
Luton News
References
Luton Borough Council
Further reading
* Sarfraz Manzoor
Sarfraz Manzoor ( ur, سرفراز منظور; born 9 June 1971) is a British journalist, documentary maker, broadcaster, and screenwriter of Pakistani origin. He is a regular contributor to ''The Guardian'', presenter of documentaries on BBC Ra ...
, ''Greetings from Bury Park: Race, Religion and Rock 'n' Roll'', Bloomsbury
Bloomsbury is a district in the West End of London. It is considered a fashionable residential area, and is the location of numerous cultural, intellectual, and educational institutions.
Bloomsbury is home of the British Museum, the largest mus ...
, 2007, .
{{Luton
Areas of Luton