Sundon Park is a suburb of north

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

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. The area is roughly bounded by the edge of Luton to the north, Leagrave Park to the south, 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 west, and Spinney Woods and the footpath from the woods to the edge of town to the east. The name is taken from the nearby villages of

Upper Sundon Upper may refer to: * Shoe upper or ''vamp'', the part of a shoe on the top of the foot * Stimulant, drugs which induce temporary improvements in either mental or physical function or both * ''Upper'', the original film title for the 2013 found fo ...

and

Lower Sundon Lower Sundon is a hamlet located in the Central Bedfordshire district of Bedfordshire, England. The settlement was established before 1066. The manor of Sundon is listed in the Domesday Book of 1086. The manor was held by the de Clare, Badlesme ...

, and the estate was originally built as a self-contained community serving the

SKF AB SKF (Swedish: ''Svenska Kullagerfabriken''; 'Swedish Ball Bearing Factory') is a Swedish bearing and seal manufacturing company founded in Gothenburg, Sweden, in 1907. The company manufactures and supplies bearings, seals, lubrication and l ...

ball bearing factory.

Local area

The "official" entrance to Sundon Park is through the "Sundon Arch", the railway bridge which connects Sundon Park Road to Toddington Road. The estate is in two distinct parts, divided by Hill Rise. The older part to the south (known colloquially as "the Avenues") consists of a number of long, straight avenues which are numbered ("Fourth Avenue", etc.). Fourth Avenue was the first to be built in the 1920s, followed by the other Avenues in the 1930s. North of Hill Rise, are the newer houses, built mainly in the 1950s and 1960s. Most of the roads here are named after hills and mountains e.g. Grampian Way, Pennine Avenue. These were all built as

owner-occupier Owner-occupancy or home-ownership is a form of housing tenure in which a person, called the owner-occupier, owner-occupant, or home owner, owns the home in which they live. The home can be a house, such as a single-family house, an apartment, con ...

properties. Shopping is provided around the junction of Hill Rise and Sundon Park Road, with a precinct featuring convenience stores, takeaways and a petrol station, and a large Aldi Superstore as well as a community centre. There is also a smaller parade of shops on Ashwell Avenue. The SKF factory has been largely turned into industrial units, with other large industrial facilities concentrated in the strip between Sundon Park Road and the railway line. Luton, Sundon Park Baptist Church - geograph

Luton, Sundon Park Baptist Church - geograph

Education

There are two schools in the district. Parklea Primary School, on Cranbrook Drive and Kinross Crescent, caters for 4-11 year olds; and Lealands High School on Sundon Park Road is for 11-16 year olds. Next to Lealands is the

City Learning Centre A City Learning Centre is a facility in the United Kingdom which provides ICT-based learning opportunities for the pupils at the host school, for pupils at a network of surrounding schools and for the wider community. The centre aims to enhance ...

for Luton, elearning@luton.

Politics

Sundon Park is within the Sundon Park ward (of which the southern tip also contains part of

Leagrave Leagrave is a former village and now a suburb of Luton, in the Luton district, in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England, in the northwest of the town. The area is roughly bounded by Vincent Road, Torquay Drive and High Street to the nor ...

) and is represented by Cllr Anna Pedersen ( Liberal Democrats) and Cllr Clive Mead ( Liberal Democrats). The ward forms 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 North and the MP is

Sarah Owen Sarah Mei Li Owen (; born 11 January 1983) is a British politician and trade unionist serving as Member of Parliament (MP) for Luton North since 2019. A member of the Labour Party, she has served Shadow Minister for Local Government and Faith ...

(Labour).

Local attractions

Local newspapers

Two weekly newspapers cover Sundon Park, although they are not specific to the area. They are the:
Herald and Post

Luton News

References

Luton Borough Council
{{Luton Wards of Luton Areas of Luton