Bletchley Urban District was an

urban district Urban district may refer to: * District * Urban area * Quarter (urban subdivision) * Neighbourhood Specific subdivisions in some countries: * Urban districts of Denmark * Urban districts of Germany * Urban district (Great Britain and Ireland) (hist ...

covering the town of

Bletchley Bletchley is a constituent town of Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. It is situated in the south-west of Milton Keynes, and is split between the civil parishes of Bletchley and Fenny Stratford and West Bletchley. Bletchley is best know ...

in the

administrative county An administrative county was a first-level administrative division in England and Wales from 1888 to 1974, and in Ireland from 1899 until either 1973 (in Northern Ireland) or 2002 (in the Republic of Ireland). They are now abolished, although mos ...

of Buckinghamshire,

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

from 1911 to 1974. The district had been created in 1895 as Fenny Stratford Urban District, being renamed to Bletchley Urban District in 1911.

History

When district councils were established under the

Local Government Act 1894 The Local Government Act 1894 (56 & 57 Vict. c. 73) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales outside the County of London. The Act followed the reforms carried out at county level un ...

, the small town of

Fenny Stratford Fenny Stratford is a constituent town of Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England and in the Civil Parish of Bletchley and Fenny Stratford. Originally an independent town, it was included in the Milton Keynes " designated area" in 1967. From 189 ...

was not initially given its own district council, but was included in the

Newport Pagnell Rural District Newport Pagnell was a rural district in the administrative county of Buckinghamshire, England, from 1894 to 1974, covering an area in the north-east of the county. History The district had its origins in the Newport Pagnell Poor Law Union, ...

. Prior to 1866, the town had straddled the parishes of Bletchley and

Simpson Simpson most often refers to: * Simpson (name), a British surname *''The Simpsons'', an animated American sitcom **The Simpson family, central characters of the series ''The Simpsons'' Simpson may also refer to: Organizations Schools *Simpso ...

. A Fenny Stratford parish had been created in 1866 from part of Bletchley parish, covering the main part of the Fenny Stratford urban area and also extending south-west from it to include

Bletchley railway station Bletchley is a railway station that serves the southern parts of Milton Keynes, England (especially Bletchley itself), and the north-eastern parts of Aylesbury Vale. It is 47 miles (75 km) northwest of , about 32 miles (51 km) east of ...

and the associated urban area that was growing to the east of the railway station. The reduced Bletchley parish after 1866 therefore did not include the railway station which bore its name, but was instead focussed on the older village and rural areas to the west of the railway. Bletchley, Fenny Stratford, and Simpson were all given parish councils subordinate to the Newport Pagnell Rural District Council when the 1894 Act came into force at the end of December 1894. As soon as the new parish and district councils were established, efforts began to create an urban district for Fenny Stratford, removing the town from the Newport Pagnell Rural District. It was decided that the urban district should cover the two parishes of Fenny Stratford and Simpson. The Fenny Stratford Urban District came into force on 1 July 1895, at which point the Fenny Stratford Parish Council and Simpson Parish Council were abolished. After elections, the Fenny Stratford Urban District Council held its first meeting on 1 August 1895 at the Bletchley Road Board Schools, when Joseph Baisley, a

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

, was appointed the first chairman of the council. The Fenny Stratford Urban District was enlarged on 1 April 1898 to also include the parish of Bletchley, with Bletchley Parish Council being abolished. At a meeting on 14 February 1911 the council decided to seek a change of name for the district and council from Fenny Stratford to Bletchley, with the Bletchley name said to be better recognised by potential residents and businesses looking to invest in the area. The old centre of Fenny Stratford was in decline, whereas the area adjoining Bletchley station was growing to become the more significant commercial centre within the district. This change of name was agreed by Buckinghamshire County Council and came into effect on 16 May 1911. In 1967 the new town of Milton Keynes was designated, with the Bletchley Urban District falling within the designated area. The Milton Keynes Development Corporation was established to oversee construction of the new town, and Bletchley Urban District Council lost its town planning responsibilities to the development corporation.

Civil Parishes

(after 1898) *

(abolished to enlarge Bletchley in 1934) *

(abolished to enlarge Bletchley in 1934)

Premises

Fenny Stratford Urban District Council initially met at the Bletchley Road Board Schools (later renamed Knowles School). In 1901 the council tried to purchase the privately owned Fenny Stratford Town Hall at 32 Watling Street to use as its offices and meeting place. However, the

Local Government Board The Local Government Board (LGB) was a British Government supervisory body overseeing local administration in England and Wales from 1871 to 1919. The LGB was created by the Local Government Board Act 1871 (C. 70) and took over the public health a ...

would not sanction the necessary loan, instead recommending that the council bought a site and built itself new premises instead. A site was bought later in 1901 at the corner of Victoria Road and Bletchley Road (renamed Queensway in 1966), in between the two centres of Fenny Stratford and Bletchley. A new building called "Council Offices" was built during 1902, with the architect being John Chadwick of Bletchley. The council held its first meeting in the new building on 13 January 1903. The council remained based at the Council Offices until its abolition.

Abolition

Bletchley Urban District was abolished under the Local Government Act 1972, with the area becoming part of the

non-metropolitan district Non-metropolitan districts, or colloquially "shire districts", are a type of Districts of England, local government district in England. As created, they are sub-divisions of non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties (colloquially ''shi ...

and

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle A ...

of Milton Keynes on 1 April 1974. Initially, no

successor parish Successor parishes are civil parishes with a parish council, created in England in 1974. They replaced, with the same boundaries, a selected group of urban districts and municipal boroughs: a total of 300 successor parishes were formed from the ...

was created for the former Bletchley Urban District, and so it became an

unparished area In England, an unparished area is an area that is not covered by a civil parish (the lowest level of local government, not to be confused with an ecclesiastical parish). Most urbanised districts of England are either entirely or partly unpa ...

, governed directly by Milton Keynes Borough Council. Parishes were re-established for the area in 2001. The former Bletchley Council Offices was given the address 263 Queensway and was converted to become a

Masonic Hall A Masonic Temple or Masonic Hall is, within Freemasonry, the room or edifice where a Masonic Lodge meets. Masonic Temple may also refer to an abstract spiritual goal and the conceptual ritualistic space of a meeting. Development and history In ...

in 1975.Planning application MK/267/75: Ex Council Offices, Victoria Road, Bletchley, Change of use from Council Offices to Masonic Hall, granted 8 Aug 1975.

References

A Vision of Britain - History of Fenny Stratford RD

A Vision of Britain - History of Bletchley UD
{{History of local government districts in Buckinghamshire History of Milton Keynes History of Buckinghamshire Local government in Buckinghamshire Districts of England abolished by the Local Government Act 1972 Districts of England created by the Local Government Act 1894 Urban districts of England