Kesgrave is a town in the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

of Suffolk on the eastern edge of

Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line ...

. Kesgrave forms part of the wider Ipswich Built-up area.

History

The area was recorded as ''Gressgrava'' in the

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 ...

, by the late 15th century its name had become Kesgrave. Kesgrave remained a small agricultural settlement with just a church, inn and a few farmsteads for over 700 years. In 1921 the population was only 103 housed in 20 dwellings. Since then great changes have taken place. By 1988 Kesgrave covered an area of more than . Kesgrave parish council officially adopted the title of a town in January 2000.

Schools

Kesgrave High School is a large 11-18 comprehensive

co-educational Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to t ...

school with nearly 2000 pupils. A study for

Sustrans Sustrans is a United Kingdom-based walking, wheeling and cycling charity, and the custodian of the National Cycle Network. Its flagship project is the National Cycle Network, which has created of signed cycle routes throughout the United K ...

noted that 61% of the pupils cycled to the school. This is largely due to the installation of a large cycle lane through the local housing development and along the main road. The school actively encourages walking or cycling and provides bicycle storage facilities. The five primary schools in the immediate vicinity of Kesgrave are Beacon Hill Primary School, Birchwood Primary School, Cedarwood Primary School the building of which was awarded a Civic Trust Award in 2003, Gorseland Primary School and Heath Primary School. Kesgrave was home to a number of private day and boarding schools based at Kesgrave Hall * St. Edmund's School (1946–1975) * Kesgrave Hall School (1976–1993) * Shawe Manor (1993) * Ryes School (2004–2007)

Gallery

File:Computer Commemoration - geograph.org.uk - 1446830.jpg, Computer commemoration monument File:A1214 Main Road in Kesgrave - geograph.org.uk - 2544629.jpg, Main road in Kesgrave File:Kesgrave All Saints - geograph.org.uk - 2102318.jpg, Kesgrave All Saints File:Kesgrave Social Club - geograph.org.uk - 1141231.jpg, Kesgrave Social Club File:Kesgrave guided busway.JPG, guided busway File:Double Signs - geograph.org.uk - 1155564.jpg, Kesgrave traffic sign

Notable residents

* Lawrence Ward, former

Serjeant at Arms of the British House of Commons The Serjeant at Arms of the House of Commons is a parliamentary official responsible for order in the House of Commons. The office dates to 1415 and traditionally included responsibility for security. The role is now mainly ceremonial. The Hou ...

. Lawrence Ward Serjeant at Arms

References

External links