Cross Roads with Lees or Cross Roads cum Lees is a village in the

Haworth, Cross Roads and Stanbury Haworth, Cross Roads and Stanbury is a civil parish covering the far western hinterland of the City of Bradford in West Yorkshire, England. According to the 2001 census the parish had a population of 6,566, increasing to 6,994 at the 2011 Cen ...

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...

within the

City of Bradford The City of Bradford () is a local government district of West Yorkshire, England, with the status of a city and metropolitan borough. It is named after its largest settlement, Bradford, but covers a large area which includes the towns and v ...

Metropolitan District,

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...

, England. Historically part of the

West Riding of Yorkshire The West Riding of Yorkshire is one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the administrative county County of York, West Riding (the area under the control of West Riding County Council), abbreviated County ...

, it lies less than from

Haworth Haworth () is a village in the City of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, in the Pennines, south-west of Keighley, west of Bradford and east of Colne in Lancashire. The surrounding areas include Oakworth and Oxenhope. Nearby villages includ ...

, approximately from

Keighley Keighley ( ) is a market town and a civil parish in the City of Bradford Borough of West Yorkshire, England. It is the second largest settlement in the borough, after Bradford. Keighley is north-west of Bradford city centre, north-west of Bi ...

and approximately from

Bradford Bradford is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Bradford district in West Yorkshire, England. The city is in the Pennines' eastern foothills on the banks of the Bradford Beck. Bradford had a population of 349,561 at the 2011 ...

Geography

Cross Roads is named after the crossroads junction which leads in the directions of Haworth, Keighley and

Denholme Denholme is a town and civil parish in the Bradford Metropolitan Borough, West Yorkshire, England. It is west of Bradford, from Keighley and roughly the same distance from Halifax. Administratively, it is part of the Bingley Rural ward ...

. The village of Cross Roads with Lees is not necessarily a village, but is a collection of small hamlets which are today regarded collectively as a village. Within the village boundaries are 'Lees', 'Barcroft', 'Bocking', 'Bingley Road' and 'Cross Roads'. Halifax Road which runs through the village, is part of the

A629 road The A629 road is an inter-Yorkshire road that runs from Skipton to Rotherham through Keighley, Halifax, Huddersfield and Chapeltown in Yorkshire, England. The road runs through North, West and South Yorkshire, but before 1974, the entire leng ...

Governance

From 1895 until 1938, Cross Roads was part of Haworth Urban District Council. Following abolishment of Haworth Urban District Council in 1938, Cross Roads joined Haworth in Keighley Borough Council. Cross Roads remained within Keighley Borough Council until changes caused by the Local Government Act in 1974 resulted in the abolishment of Keighley Borough Council with Cross Roads and all other areas previously within Keighley Borough Council being transferred into

Bradford Metropolitan District Council City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council is the local authority of the City of Bradford in West Yorkshire, England. It is a metropolitan district council, one of five in West Yorkshire and one of 36 in the metropolitan counties of England, ...

. Since 1974, Cross Roads has been represented within the

Worth Valley Worth Valley is a ward in the City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council, West Yorkshire. The population of the ward taken at the 2011 Census was 14,387. It is named after the River Worth that runs through the valley to the town of Keighley ...

Ward of

. Since its formation in 1999, Cross Roads has been represented within the civil parish of

Parish Council. The village is represented in the Keighley Constituency of UK Parliament.

Education

Lees Primary School is within the village and teaches children between the ages of 4 and 11. The closest secondary schools are Parkside School in Cullingworth and Beckfoot Oakbank near Keighley. Both secondary schools are within of the village.

Transport

In comparison with many nearby villages, Cross Roads can be considered well served by the local bus company in terms of the volume of services and the amount of different destinations. This owes to the fact that the village lies in between many other large settlements. There are frequent buses towards Keighley, Haworth,

Oakworth Oakworth is a village in West Yorkshire, England, near Keighley, by the River Worth. The name "Oakworth" indicates that the village was first established in a heavily wooded area. Oakworth railway station is on the route of the Keighley and ...

, Stanbury,

Hebden Bridge Hebden Bridge is a market town in the Upper Calder Valley in West Yorkshire, England. It is west of Halifax and 14 miles (21 km) north-east of Rochdale, at the confluence of the River Calder and the Hebden Water. The town is the largest ...

and Bradford operated by

Keighley Bus Company The Keighley Bus Company operates both local and regional bus services in West Yorkshire, England. It is a subsidiary of Transdev Blazefield, which operates bus services across Greater Manchester, Lancashire, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire. ...

. While steam trains running along the heritage

Keighley & Worth Valley Railway The Keighley & Worth Valley Railway is a heritage railway line in the Worth Valley, West Yorkshire, England, which runs from Keighley to Oxenhope. It connects to the National Rail network at Keighley railway station. History Inception an ...

can be seen from the village, the closest station to Cross Roads with Lees to catch a train is situated less than 1 mile away at Haworth Railway Station. The closest regular train service providing links towards

Skipton Skipton (also known as Skipton-in-Craven) is a market town and civil parish in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England. Historically in the East Division of Staincliffe Wapentake in the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is on the River Air ...

, Bradford and

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

is Keighley station which is approximately 3 miles from the village.

Sport

In history there have been football teams and cricket teams in the village. Today, only Cross Roads Bowling Club continue to exist and they play their matches on the bowling green in Cross Roads Park.

Religious sites

The village has three places of worship. There is St. James

C of E The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

Church and Lees

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...

Church in the Lees area. There is the

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian Christian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ. The c ...

in the Bocking area.

Local amenities

Cross Roads Park is an area with facilities used by families and dog walkers. As of 2016, it is currently in the process of redevelopment. The Cross Roads Inn is situated at the crossroads junction. This pub plays a significant part in history due to this supposedly being a haunt of

Branwell Brontë Patrick Branwell Brontë (, commonly ; 26 June 1817 – 24 September 1848) was an English painter and writer. He was the only son of the Brontë family, and brother of the writers Charlotte, Emily, and Anne. Brontë was rigorously tutored at h ...

who was the only brother to the Brontë Sisters. There are also two other pubs in the village with the Bronte Hotel in the Lees area and The 3 Acres in the Lees Moor area. Both of these pubs focus on a food menu as well as drinks. There is also the Bocking

Working Mens Club Working men's clubs are British private social clubs first created in the 19th century in industrial areas, particularly the North of England, English Midlands, Midlands, Scotland and South Wales Valleys, to provide recreation and education for ...

in the Bocking area of the village. Across the village there are many different shops offering different convenient services.

Notable people

Joseph Hardaker (1790) was born in Lees and had 3 volumes of science fiction themed verse published. Halliwell Sutcliffe (1870-1932) was brought up in the village and was the author of many popular novels, most of which were historical romances set in the Yorkshire Dales.

References

External links

*
Cross Roads Net

A Church Near You St. James Church page

Haworth Village - History of Cross Roads

Haworth Village Website's Cross Roads history pictures

Haworth, Cross Roads & Stanbury Parish Council
{{authority control Villages in West Yorkshire Geography of the City of Bradford