Raunds is a

market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rural ...

North Northamptonshire North Northamptonshire is one of two local authority areas in Northamptonshire, England. It is a Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area forming about one half of the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Northampto ...

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 ...

. It had a population of 9,379 at the 2021 census.

Geography

Raunds is situated north-east of Northampton. The town is on the southern edge of the Nene Valley and surrounded by arable farming land. Nearest civilian airports are

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 a ...

50 miles and East Midlands 65 miles. Raunds is close to Stanwick Lakes, a country park developed from gravel pits and managed by the Rockingham Forest Trust. This park is internationally recognised for its birdlife and can be reached on foot from Raunds along Meadow Lane bridleway.

History

In the mid-1980s, during sand excavations in the Nene Valley, the remains of a Roman villa were discovered. Excavation of the area, near Stanwick, was delayed by several years while archaeologists studied the remains. In 2002

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...

's ''

Time Team ''Time Team'' is a British television programme that originally aired on Channel 4 from 16 January 1994 to 7 September 2014. It returned online in 2022 for two episodes released on YouTube. Created by television producer Tim ...

'' excavated a garden and found remains of an Anglo-Saxon cemetery. The place-name Raunds is first attested in an Anglo-Saxon charter of c. 972–992, where it appears as ''Randan''. It appears as ''Rande'' in

Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manus ...

(1086); and as ''Raundes'' in a later survey of Northamptonshire. The name is the plural of the

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlers in the mid-5th c ...

''rand'', meaning "border". Raunds played a role in the boot and shoe industry until its decline in the 1950s and 1960s. In 1905 a dispute arose about wages to be paid to army bootmakers, which culminated in a march to London in May that year. Several factories remained into the early 1990s but all are now closed, with many being demolished and housing estates built. The Coggins boot factory was the last to go, and the site of it is now Coggins Close. The land on which the shoe factory and the original Coggins houses stood (not Coggins Close), was purchased by Robert Coggins on 25 February 1899 from the

Duchy of Lancaster The Duchy of Lancaster is the private estate of the British sovereign as Duke of Lancaster. The principal purpose of the estate is to provide a source of independent income to the sovereign. The estate consists of a portfolio of lands, properti ...

, for the sum of £14.10s.0d (£14.50). The houses are still there, but were sold to Charles Robinson of

Wellingborough Wellingborough ( ) is a large market and commuter town in the unitary authority area of North Northamptonshire in the ceremonial county of Northamptonshire, England, 65 miles from London and from Northampton on the north side of the River Nen ...

in 1934. Robert Coggins lived in the hall where his picture hangs in the meeting room, and he is buried in St Peter's Churchyard. There is no industry in the town now, although there are some industrial sites on the outskirts. Raunds once held the record for the highest temperature in Britain at , set on 10 August 1911, which stood until 1990.

Notable buildings

The Historic England website contains details of a total of 19 listed buildings and six scheduled monuments at or in the vicinity of Raunds. Amongst them are: * St Peter's Church, Church Street. * The

Manor House A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were held the lord's manorial courts, communal meals w ...

, 2 Manor Street. St Peter's, CoE is in the Diocese of Peterborough and St Thomas More's, RC is in the Diocese of Northampton.

Demography

* In 1801 there were 800 persons * In 1831 there were 1,370 persons * In 1841 there were 1,653 persons * In 2011 there were 8,641 personsOffice for National Statistics, Census * In 2020 there were 9,379 personsOffice for National Statistics, Census

Transport

Road

Raunds is adjacent to the A45 and close to the A14 jct 13. Access to the M1 and A1 is close and the A14 runs from Britain's largest container port at

Felixstowe Felixstowe ( ) is a port town in Suffolk, England. The estimated population in 2017 was 24,521. The Port of Felixstowe is the largest Containerization, container port in the United Kingdom. Felixstowe is approximately 116km (72 miles) northea ...

in Suffolk to join the M6. Consequently, the area attracts distribution companies warehouses.

Bus

Bus services are limited, the X46 links the town with

Rushden Rushden is a market town and civil parish in North Northamptonshire, England, around east of Northampton. The parish is on the border with Bedfordshire, north of Bedford. The parish of Rushden covers an area of some . The population of Rushde ...

and Northampton, running half-hourly. There are intermittent routes to

Huntingdon Huntingdon is a market town in the Huntingdonshire district in Cambridgeshire, England. The town was given its town charter by King John in 1205. It was the county town of the historic county of Huntingdonshire. Oliver Cromwell was born there ...

and a local service termed the 'Raunds Rover'.

Rail

Connections are provided by East Midlands Railway from

and

Kettering Kettering is a market and industrial town in North Northamptonshire, England. It is located north of London and north-east of Northampton, west of the River Ise, a tributary of the River Nene. The name means "the place (or territory) of ...

railway stations, for direct trains to London St Pancras International, Nottingham, Sheffield and Leeds. There was once a Raunds railway station, on the

Midland Railway The Midland Railway (MR) was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844. The Midland was one of the largest railway companies in Britain in the early 20th century, and the largest employer in Derby, where it had its headquarters. It ama ...

's cross-country line from

, closed in September 1959, and which gave access to St Ives and

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a College town, university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cam ...

, though Raunds station was sited 1½ miles from the town. It was also planned that the Midland's

Higham Ferrers Higham Ferrers is a market town and civil parish in the Nene Valley in North Northamptonshire, England, close to the Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire borders. It forms a single built-up area with Rushden to the south and has an estimated popula ...

branch, also closed in 1959, would continue to Raunds, but landowners prevented it. The

Manchester, Sheffield & Lincolnshire Railway The Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway (MS&LR) was formed in 1847 when the Sheffield, Ashton-under-Lyne and Manchester Railway joined with authorised but unbuilt railway companies, forming a proposed network from Manchester to Grimsb ...

(the forerunner of the

Great Central The Great Central Railway in England was formed when the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway changed its name in 1897, anticipating the opening in 1899 of its London Extension. On 1 January 1923, the company was grouped into the L ...

), proposed a line from

Doncaster Doncaster (, ) is a city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, it is the administrative centre of the larger City of Doncaster. It is the second largest settlement in South Yorkshire after Sheffield. Doncaster is situated in ...

to Raunds in an early version of its bid to build a trunk line to the capital. This line never came to fruition, and the company eventually built its London Extension via

Nottingham Nottingham ( , locally ) is a city and unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east of Sheffield and north-east of Birmingham. Nottingham has links to the legend of Robi ...

, Leicester,

Rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby league: 13 players per side *** Masters Rugby League *** Mod league *** Rugby league nines *** Rugby league sevens *** Touch (sport) *** Wheelchair rugby league ** Rugby union: 1 ...

and

Brackley Brackley is a market town and civil parish in West Northamptonshire, England, bordering Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire, from Oxford and from Northampton. Historically a market town based on the wool and lace trade, it was built on the inter ...

Waterways

Stanwick Lakes are within walking or cycling distance of Raunds, and river ways connect to the Nene Valley river section. By boat,

Oundle Oundle () is a market town on the left bank of the River Nene in North Northamptonshire, England, which had a population of 5,735 at the time of the 2011 census. It is north of London and south-west of Peterborough. The town is home to Ound ...

can be reached in a day. The Nene Valley river section connects to the Middle Level Navigation System, making it possible to reach

and

Peterborough Peterborough () is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, east of England. It is the largest part of the City of Peterborough unitary authority district (which covers a larger area than Peterborough itself). It was part of Northamptonshire until ...

. The nearest marina is Willy Watt's in

Ringstead, Northamptonshire Ringstead is a village and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England, forming part of North Northamptonshire. It is located approximately 15 miles north-east of Northampton. At the time of the 2011 census, the parish's population was 1,461 pe ...

Trade

There are many small businesses and many people commute to larger centres for work. Raunds is home to a

Hotpoint Hotpoint is a British brand of domestic appliances. Ownership of the brand is split between American company Whirlpool, which has the rights in Europe, and Chinese company Haier, which has the rights in the Americas through its purchase of GE ...

distribution centre, and depots for

Robert Wiseman Dairies The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...

Avery Dennison Avery Dennison Corporation is a multinational manufacturer and distributor of pressure-sensitive adhesive materials (such as self-adhesive labels), apparel branding labels and tags, RFID inlays, and specialty medical products. The company is ...

, DPD,

Howdens Joinery Howden Joinery Group plc is the multinational parent company for the Howdens Joinery business (Howdens) based in London, England. It is a supplier of kitchens and joinery products to the building trade. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange, a ...

and

Dr. Martens Dr. Martens, also commonly known as Doc Martens, Docs or DMs, is a German-founded British footwear and clothing brand, headquartered in Wollaston in the Wellingborough district of Northamptonshire, England. Although famous for its footwear, Dr ...

, all located on the Warth Park estate.

Raunds Co-operative Society Raunds Co-operative Society Limited was a consumer co-operative society based in Raunds, Northamptonshire, founded in 1891. The society operated a large supermarket and a department store in Raunds, and as of 2007 held of farmland at Northd ...

ran a supermarket and department store and had 4,000 members until 2007 when it merged with the larger

Midlands Co-operative Society Midlands Co-operative Society Limited was the second largest consumer co-operative in the United Kingdom. It was a registered Industrial and Provident Society, a member of the Co-operative Union, the Co-operative Retail Trading Group and a corpo ...

. There is also an

Asda Asda Stores Ltd. () (often styled as ASDA) is a British supermarket chain. It is headquartered in Leeds, England. The company was founded in 1949 when the Asquith family merged their retail business with the Associated Dairies company of Yorks ...

store in the town, which opened on 24 April 2017. The shops still operate. A market is held on Fridays in the square. Regular stalls include butchers, plant stockists, home-made jewellery and confectioners. Local organisations and clubs can also set up a stall.

Education

Raunds has: *a day nursery *a playgroup *an infant school *a primary school *a junior school *a secondary school,

Culture

Raunds holds an annual music festival over a weekend in early May. Events include: rock, jazz and folk concerts starring nationally and internationally known artists, performances by Raunds Community Choir and Raunds Temperance Band, song and tune sessions, dancing displays, a ceilidh and an annual youth dance competition. Raunds Music and Drama Society (MADS) holds several stage performances throughout the year. The town holds a Christmas festival in the square. Continental markets are held annually to celebrate neighbouring countries. Woodbine Working Men's Club (1901-2005) and the Conservative Club (1920 to date) have offered community and recreational facilities. For the past few years, an annual beer festival has been held at the cricket club. This features a range of local beers and ciders, as well as traditional world beverages, accompanied by local music artists.

Sport and leisure

Football

Raunds Town F.C. are at Kiln Park and play in the

United Counties League The United Counties League (also known after its sponsor as the ''Uhlsport United Counties League'') is an English football league covering Northamptonshire, Rutland and Bedfordshire and most of Leicestershire as well as parts of Buckinghamshi ...

. As well as the first team, they also have reserve, women's and youth teams.Raunds Tigers F.C.
focus on junior football and have several youth teams.

Cricket

Raunds Town Cricket Club have a ground in Marshalls Road. The team plays in the

Northamptonshire Cricket League The Hevey Building Supplies Northamptonshire Cricket League is the top level of competition for recreational club cricket in Northamptonshire, England, and since 1999 has been a designated ECB Premier League. The league headquarters is based i ...

Archery

Archers of Raunds meet at Manor School and Sports College.

Mayors of Raunds

In 2005, Raunds Town Council decided to elect a Mayor rather than having a chairman of the council. Holders of the post have been: :2005-06: Lisa Costello :2006-07: Dudley Hughes :2007-08: Michelle Goring :2008-10: Peter Wathen :2010-13: Michael Clements :2013-14: Pauline Williams :2014-15: Louisa Thomas :2015-17: Helen Howell :2017-18: Nicholas Beck :2018-20: Richard Levell :2020-22: Sylvia Hughes :2022- : Richard Levell

Town councillors

Saxon Ward

:Bill Cross :Ollie Curtis :Helen Howell :Dudley Hughes :Magdalena Levell :Lee Wilkes

Windmill Ward

:Rosalie Beattie :Paul Byrne :Kirk Harrison :Richard Levell (Mayor) :Trevor Swailes : Vacancy

Notable former and current residents

* Ada Salter (1866–1942), an environmentalist *Sir David Frost, a television personality

Nearby settlements

Ringstead, Keyston, Stanwick,

Thrapston Thrapston is a market town in North Northamptonshire, England. It was the headquarters of the former East Northamptonshire district, and at the time of the 2011 census, had a population of 6,239. The town's name means 'Farmstead or town of a ...

, Hargrave,

Irthlingborough Irthlingborough () is a town on the River Nene in North Northamptonshire, England. It had a population of 8,900 at the 2011 census and was the smallest town in England to have had a Football League team, Rushden & Diamonds F.C., prior to the ...

Chelveston Chelveston is a small village in North Northamptonshire. It is about east of Higham Ferrers and east of Wellingborough on the B645 (former A45 road) from Higham Ferrers to St Neots. To the south is the hamlet of Caldecott and the settlement ...

References

External links

16. Raunds Town Council
{{authority control Towns in Northamptonshire Market towns in Northamptonshire Civil parishes in Northamptonshire North Northamptonshire