Lawnswood is a small suburb in the north west of the city of
Leeds in
West Yorkshire,
England. As such it is north north east of the
West Yorkshire Urban Area
The West Yorkshire Built-up Area, previously known as the West Yorkshire Urban Area is a term used by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) to refer to a conurbation in West Yorkshire, England, based on the cities of Leeds, Bradford and Wakefie ...
. The suburb falls within the Adel and Wharefdale Ward of the City of Leeds Council.
Location
It is bordered by
West Park,
Adel,
Ireland Wood and
Holt Park
Holt Park is a medium-sized low-rise 1970s housing estate in the northwest suburbs of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is approximately from Leeds city centre situated between Tinshill, Cookridge and Adel, and is at the edge of the Leeds ur ...
. The
A660 Leeds to Otley road runs through the area..
University influences
Bodington Hall
Bodington Hall was the largest hall of residence of the University of Leeds, in Leeds, England. It was opened in 1961 and closed in 2013. The site still contains the university's main playing fields. Known as ''Bod'' within the university, it wa ...
, a former major hall of residence for the
University of Leeds was in Lawnswood and it was not uncommon to find some students taking accommodation in Lawnswood after their first year. Also, when considering
Lawnswood School
Lawnswood School is a mixed secondary school and sixth form located in the Lawnswood area of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England.
The school was founded in 1972 and had its first comprehensive intake in 1974. Its predecessors were the Leed ...
as part of Lawnswood, one must also regard
Oxley Hall as if not in Lawnswood itself, then on the very border of Lawnswood and
Headingley or
Weetwood. Oxley, as it is affectionately known, is also a major
hall of residence of the
University of Leeds.
The ''Stables Pub'' and the ''Lawnswood Arms'' are both occasionally, but rarely, visited by students doing the
Otley Run
The Otley Run is a pub crawl in Leeds, West Yorkshire. The route shares much in common with the Headingley Mile (a similar crawl in LS6) but usually incorporating more pubs on the A660 road, typically those towards Leeds City Centre.
The Ot ...
.
Transport
Lawnswood is north of Leeds city centre and its nearest railway station is in
Horsforth.
Lawnswood is served by regular buses on the
First Leeds Overground Lines that pass through the area towards the
Leeds city centre
Leeds city centre is the central business district of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is roughly bounded by the Leeds Inner Ring Road, Inner Ring Road to the north and the River Aire to the south and can be divided into several quarters.
C ...
.
[Leeds Overground bus route map, First Group](_blank)
/ref>
* Brown Line (1)
* Sky Line (6)
* Pink Line (18 18A)
* Unilink (95)
Supertram
Lawnswood and Bodington Hall were two of the planned stops on the Leeds Supertram North Line. The Supertram project was cancelled by the Government in 2005 much to the disappointment of many Lawnswood residents.
Politics
The area is in the parliamentary constituency, Leeds North West
Leeds North West is a constituency in the City of Leeds which has been represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2017 by Alex Sobel, of Labour Co-op.
Boundaries
1950–1955: The County Borough of Leeds wards of Far He ...
, represented by Greg Mulholland
Gregory Thomas Mulholland (born 31 August 1970) is a Liberal Democrat politician in the United Kingdom who was the MP for Leeds North West.
He was first elected at the 2005 general election, winning the seat from Labour and was re-elected with ...
MP. In terms of local politics, Lawnswood constitutes a large portion of the council ward
A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/ shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or nati ...
, Weetwood.
Housing
Most of the houses in Lawnswood are large private detached and semi detached suburban houses. Houses in the area fetch amongst the highest prices in the City of Leeds along with neighbouring Adel, Alwoodley
Alwoodley is a civil parish and suburb of Leeds in West Yorkshire, England. It is north of central Leeds and is one of the most affluent areas of the city. Alwoodley lies in Leeds 17 which was reported to contain the most expensive housing ar ...
, Roundhay
Roundhay is a large suburb in north-east Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Roundhay had a population of 22,546 in 2011.
It sits in the Roundhay ward of Leeds City Council and Leeds North East parliamentary constituency.
History Etymology
Roundh ...
, Scarcroft and Boston Spa. Besides these large houses there are many 1930s flats in Lawnswood, built in the style of semi-detached houses, each block contains four flats, each with a private entrance, these are a good example of architecture of their time and while there are examples of similar houses in Moortown, Lawnswood has a great number of them.
Amenities
Lawnswood has most of its amenities on the western side of Otley Road. Lawnswood School
Lawnswood School is a mixed secondary school and sixth form located in the Lawnswood area of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England.
The school was founded in 1972 and had its first comprehensive intake in 1974. Its predecessors were the Leed ...
lies on the Leeds Outer Ring Road. Along Otley Road there are several shops, including a Co-op, a post office (named 'Adel Post Office'), several banks as well as hairdressers, estate agents, delicatessens and other independent retailers. Towards the top end of Lawnswood is the Lawnswood Arms, a large detached public house, whilst on the opposite side of Otley Road there is an Esso Petrol Station.
Sport
Support
Lawnswood is within walking distance of Headingley Stadium
Headingley Stadium is a stadium complex in Headingley, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, comprising two separate grounds; Headingley Cricket Ground and Headingley Rugby Stadium, linked by a two-sided stand housing common facilities. The grounds a ...
and so many of the residents are supporters of the Leeds Rhinos rugby league club, the Leeds Tykes
Leeds Tykes (formerly Leeds RUFC, Leeds Carnegie and Yorkshire Carnegie) is an English rugby union club in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, playing in the National League 1.
The club was founded as Headingley FC, but renamed in 1991 when it j ...
rugby union club and the Yorkshire County Cricket Club, all based at the stadium.
In terms of football, most people in Lawnswood support the city's major football club, Leeds United.
Participation
The City of Leeds Lawnswood YMCA provides facilities for aerobics, football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
, rugby league, rugby union and many other competitive sports.
Lawnswood Cemetery
Lawnswood has one of the city's main cemeteries and crematoria. Lawnswood Cemetery was opened in 1875, its grounds and most of its buildings designed by architect George Corson
George Corson (1829–1910) was a Scottish architect active in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England.
Background
He was born in Dumfries, where he was articled to Walter Newall before moving to Leeds in 1849 to work with his brother William Reid Cor ...
, who was himself buried here in 1910. The crematorium, first in Leeds, was opened in 1905. The cemetery contains the war graves of 138 Commonwealth service personnel of the First World War and 67 of the Second World War, besides a screen wall memorial listing 105 service personnel buried in the closed Leeds General Cemetery whose graves could no longer be maintained. The crematorium has a memorial erected within the columbarium central hall by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) to 94 service personnel cremated here during the Second World War. Three soldier recipients of the Victoria Cross were also cremated here:
*Colonel Richard Kirby Ridgeway (1848–1924) (earned in Naga Hills Expedition)
*Lieutenant-Colonel Harry Daniels
Lieutenant Colonel Harry Daniels VC MC (13 December 1884 − 13 December 1953) was a British Army officer and an English recipient of the Victoria Cross (VC), the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that c ...
(1884–1953) (First World War)
*Sergeant Albert Mountain
Albert Mountain VC (19 April 1897 – 7 January 1967) was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross during the First World War, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British an ...
(1895–1967) (First World War)
Buried here is the computing pioneer and entrepreneur Dora Metcalf
Dora Stuart Primrose Metcalf (11 March 1892 – 17 October 1982) was an entrepreneur, mathematician and computing pioneer. During World War I she was a comptometer operator in a munitions factory during which time she realised the potential in ...
(1892-1982). Also buried here is Second Lieutenant Anthony Moorhouse (1935–1956), whose kidnap and murder following the ceasefire in Suez formed the diplomatic row known as the Moorhouse Affair
The Moorhouse Affair was a military confrontation between the United Kingdom and Egypt over the abduction and murder of British Second Lieutenant Anthony Moorhouse by an Egyptian mob in Port Said, Egypt, following the end of British military oper ...
.
Local employment
The Department for Work and Pensions, (DWP), has a cluster of buildings in Lawnswood dealing with Disabilities and Carers.
Notable Lawnswoodians
Playwright Alan Bennett and BBC television presenter John Craven attended Leeds Modern School
Leeds Modern School was a school in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England.
History
Leeds Modern School was founded on 14 July 1845 in Rossington Street as the Mathematical and Commercial School. This building in the centre of Leeds became council offi ...
, now known as Lawnswood School
Lawnswood School is a mixed secondary school and sixth form located in the Lawnswood area of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England.
The school was founded in 1972 and had its first comprehensive intake in 1974. Its predecessors were the Leed ...
(slogan ''"a truly comprehensive school"''.)[http://www.lawnswood-portal.co.uk/Pages/Default.aspx]
See also
*Lawnswood School
Lawnswood School is a mixed secondary school and sixth form located in the Lawnswood area of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England.
The school was founded in 1972 and had its first comprehensive intake in 1974. Its predecessors were the Leed ...
*Bodington Hall
Bodington Hall was the largest hall of residence of the University of Leeds, in Leeds, England. It was opened in 1961 and closed in 2013. The site still contains the university's main playing fields. Known as ''Bod'' within the university, it wa ...
*Otley Run
The Otley Run is a pub crawl in Leeds, West Yorkshire. The route shares much in common with the Headingley Mile (a similar crawl in LS6) but usually incorporating more pubs on the A660 road, typically those towards Leeds City Centre.
The Ot ...
*Listed buildings in Leeds (Adel and Wharfedale Ward)
Adel and Wharfedale is a ward in the metropolitan borough of the City of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It contains 40 listed buildings that are recorded in the National Heritage List for England. Of these, one is listed at Grade I, th ...
References
{{City of Leeds
Places in Leeds