Eyres Monsell is an electoral ward and

administrative division Administrative division, administrative unit,Article 3(1). country subdivision, administrative region, subnational entity, constituent state, as well as many similar terms, are generic names for geographical areas into which a particular, ind ...

in Leicester,

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 ...

Geography

Eyres Monsell is bounded to the north by the historic

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred ...

Aylestone Aylestone is a suburb of Leicester, England, southwest of the city centre and to the east of the River Soar. It was formerly a separate village, but the growth of the city since the Leicester Extension Act of 1891 incorporated Aylestone into ...

. To the east is the

South Wigston South Wigston is a large village to the south of Leicester, England. It is outside the city boundary, forming part of the Oadby and Wigston district of Leicestershire. The population of the ward rose slightly from 7,471 at the 2001 census to ...

and to the south and west is the

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 authorit ...

of Glen Parva. The ward is also adjacent to Blaby. The area is defined by Saffron Road to the east, the Birmingham to Peterborough railway to the south, and Leicester Road to the west. Although located in the far south-west corner of Leicester, the area is under the administration of Leicester City Council rather than

Leicestershire County Council Leicestershire County Council is the county council for the English non-metropolitan county of Leicestershire. It was originally formed in 1889 by the Local Government Act 1888. The county is divided into 52 electoral divisions, which return a to ...

as some of the neighbouring areas are. Eyres Monsell is five miles south of Leicester city centre and is in walking distance from Fosse shopping park in Enderby. It is the southernmost ward of Leicester City.

History

The late 1940s saw an urgent need for new housing. The late 1940s and 1950s saw a large increase in housing being built across Leicester, including 2,500 new houses built between 1946-1959 in Eyres Monsell, which was being built south and adjacent to the earlier built Saffron Lane Estate. A mixture of brick and concrete houses were built, and tenants were given the option between a green or brown front door. Grey concrete walls were painted

cream Cream is a dairy product composed of the higher-fat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, the fat, which is less dense, eventually rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream, this process ...

. The land Eyres Monsell sits on was purchased in 1950, for the sum of £40,500, from councillor Bolton Eyres-Monsell (after whom the area is named) in a

compulsory purchase order A compulsory purchase order (CPO; , ) is a legal function in the United Kingdom and Ireland that allows certain bodies to obtain land or property without the consent of the owner. It may be enforced if a proposed development is considered one for p ...

by Leicester City Council. Previously the land was largely rural which allowed the Council to avoid building tower blocks, and instead focus on open-plan development and greener spaces. Eyres Monsell would become Leicester's second largest estate built after

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 opposing ...

Demographics

In the 2011 census data, it was reported that Eyres Monsell had 11,520 usual residents, 52.6% of which were female, and with 4,826 houses in the area (11,230 usual residents in 2001 census). 2011 census data reported that 40.5% of homes are rented from the council. Under the 'right to buy' initiative, Eyres Monsell has proportionally more council houses being bought from the council by their occupants than other areas in the city. It is noteworthy that, although it is a suburb of one of the most multiracial cities in the UK, the population of Eyres Monsell is 88.8% white British, according to 2011 Census data (a drop from 94.8% in 2001). 2001 census data also reported that the average age in Eyres Monsell was 37.2 years, which dropped slightly to 36.2 years in the 2011 census. Unemployment in Eyres Monsell was at 5.9% in 2001 (this rose to 7.6% in 2011 census data), and the area was reported in 2001 to be amongst the top 10% most deprived areas in the country. In 2011 census, it was reported that 40.6% of households have no adults in employment. In a 2013 government report on health in Eyres Monsell, it was reported that health in the area is generally worse than the rest of England. An average of 1230 children live in poverty, and the area was reported to have a higher deprivation level than the Leicester average.

Education

Eyres Monsell was ranked amongst the top 10% worst in the country in regards to educational attainment in 2001. 2011 census data reported that 40.8% of residents over the age of 16 have no qualifications. Eyres Monsell has one

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary e ...

, Eyres Monsell Primary School, which is located on Simmins Crescent. The school accepts an age range from 3-11, and was founded in 1950. In 2020, the school had a reported 360

pupils The pupil is a black hole located in the center of the iris of the eye that allows light to strike the retina.Cassin, B. and Solomon, S. (1990) ''Dictionary of Eye Terminology''. Gainesville, Florida: Triad Publishing Company. It appears black ...

. In 2018, the school earned its first ever "good" rating from Ofsted, and became the first school in the UK to receive the Princess Royal Training Award for its work in improving the mental health of staff and pupils (which it won again in 2021). The school was forced to close temporarily during the

Covid-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

due to an outbreak of cases in the school. In 2021, Eyres Monsell Club for Young People, a volunteer-ran

youth club A youth center or youth centre, often called youth club, is a place where young people can meet and participate in a variety of activities, for example table football, association football (US soccer, UK football), basketball, table tennis, vi ...

and charity, was awarded the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service. It is the highest award that a voluntary group can receive. The charity was founded in 1961 and provides informal education to youth in the area. During the Covid-19 pandemic, it was forced to close its youth centre and instead re-focused as a

food bank A food bank is a non-profit, charitable organization that distributes food to those who have difficulty purchasing enough to avoid hunger, usually through intermediaries like food pantries and soup kitchens. Some food banks distribute food direct ...

for the local community.

Religion

2011 census data reported that 51.9% of residents in Eyres Monsell have a religion, of which 47.3% are Christian. The

Anglo-Catholic Anglo-Catholicism comprises beliefs and practices that emphasise the Catholic heritage and identity of the various Anglican churches. The term was coined in the early 19th century, although movements emphasising the Catholic nature of Anglica ...

Parish Church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

of St Hugh is located on Sturdee Road, Eyres Monsell, and serves a

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one o ...

of around 11,000 people. The church was proposed by Bishop Williams in February, 1955, and the

vicarage A clergy house is the residence, or former residence, of one or more priests or ministers of religion. Residences of this type can have a variety of names, such as manse, parsonage, rectory or vicarage. Function A clergy house is typically ow ...

was built by Frank Cooke between March and May 1956. The design was based on churches designed for

Coventry Coventry ( or ) is a city in the West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its city status until the Middle Ages. The city is governed b ...

. The complex opened in Autumn of 1958. The area is also home to a Gypsy Church, and the St John Bosco

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

Church on Pasley Road.

Transport

Eyres Monsell is serviced by

Arriva Midlands Arriva Midlands is a bus operator providing services in the East Midlands and West Midlands areas of England. It is a subsidiary of Arriva UK Bus. Arriva Midlands North Operations In September 1981 Midland Red North was formed with 230 bu ...

services 86 and 87, Centrebus Circle Line service 40, and

First Leicester Leicester Citybus,Companies House extract company no 2000072< ...

services 88 and 88E. Arriva Services 84, 85 and X45 serve the Leicester Road area which is in Glen Parva on the border to Eyres Monsell. Services 47, 47A, 48, and 48A serve the top end of the exchange park which is in Eyres Monsell.

Sports

Eyres Monsell is home to FC Wygston First and Monsell Club Wasps F.C, both

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

clubs based around Sturdee Road. FC Wygston played in The Alliance Football League during the 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 leagues. Monsell Club Wasps F.C played in the Leicester Sunday Football League until late 2016 when, following a merger with the Charnwood League, the club played in the Leicester and Charnwood Sunday Football League.

Politics

Eyres Monsell is part of the Leicester South parliamentary constituency, the winner of which represents the area in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...

. In local city council elections, the ward has been a Labour Party stronghold, who have held the area continually since 2007, after defeating the Liberal Democrats who formerly held the ward. In the 2007 election, Labour came first, Conservative Party second, BNP third (with 21% of the vote), and Liberal Democrats fourth. In 2015, Labour won with 43% of the vote.

UKIP The UK Independence Party (UKIP; ) is a Eurosceptic, right-wing populist political party in the United Kingdom. The party reached its greatest level of success in the mid-2010s, when it gained two members of Parliament and was the largest p ...

finished second with 26%, and the Conservative Party came third with 18% of the vote.

References

{{Wards of Leicester Areas of Leicester