Earlswood is a suburb of Redhill in

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

, England, which lies on the A23 between Redhill (in the direction of London) and

Horley Horley is a town in the borough of Reigate and Banstead in Surrey, England, south of the towns of Reigate and Redhill. The county border with West Sussex is to the south with Crawley and Gatwick Airport close to the town. It has its own econ ...

(next to

Gatwick Airport Gatwick Airport , also known as London Gatwick Airport (), is the Airports of London, secondary international airport serving London, West Sussex and Surrey. It is located near Crawley in West Sussex, south of Central London. In 2024, Gatwic ...

). Earlswood Common is a local nature reserve that separates the suburb from the southern outskirts of

Reigate Reigate ( ) is a town status in the United Kingdom, town in Surrey, England, around south of central London. The settlement is recorded in Domesday Book of 1086 as ''Cherchefelle'', and first appears with its modern name in the 1190s. The ea ...

and has two lakes and picnic areas. Earlswood station is on the

Brighton Main Line The Brighton Main Line is a railway line in southern England linking London to Brighton. It starts at two termini in the capital, and , and the branches from each meet at , from where the route continues southwards via to the coast. The line ...

. To the east of the line are Royal Earlswood Park, the

East Surrey Hospital East Surrey Hospital is a National Health Service hospital in the Whitebushes area to the south of Redhill, in Surrey, England. It is managed by the Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust. History The hospital has its origins in the Reigate C ...

and Whitebushes.

History

When the straight turnpike, part of the London to Brighton railway, was cut between Earlswood Common and the railway line, there was a claim that traces of a Roman villa were discovered, but no evidence has so far been found to indicate any Roman presence. The area south of the common, locally known as Whitebushes, was formerly a wilderness containing many clay pits that may be linked to the reputed Roman remains. Most trees of the

Weald The Weald () is an area of South East England between the parallel chalk escarpments of the North and the South Downs. It crosses the counties of Hampshire, Surrey, West Sussex, East Sussex, and Kent. It has three parts, the sandstone "High W ...

that covered Earlswood Common were cut down in the 17th century by order of local noble, Lord Monson and the land was inclosed in 1886. Brickworks were a considerable employer in the

Victorian period In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the reign of Queen Victoria, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. Slightly different definitions are sometimes used. The era followed th ...

and in 1911. In 1863 Earlswood joined Meadvale, Redhill and Reigate to become part of the newly formed municipal borough of Reigate when it was granted this status by royal charter. Earlswood was home to the Royal Earlswood psychiatric hospital, founded as a 'national home' and opened by

Albert, Prince Consort Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Franz August Karl Albert Emanuel; 26 August 1819 – 14 December 1861) was the husband of Queen Victoria. As such, he was consort of the British monarch from their marriage on 10 February 1840 until his ...

, which functioned until 1997. Also here was the

Royal Philanthropic Society Catch22 is a social business, a not for profit business with a social mission which operates in the United Kingdom (England and Wales). Catch22 can trace its roots back 229 years, to the formation of The Philanthropic Society in 1788. Catch22 desi ...

's reform school, from 1849 until 1988. The site has been redeveloped into a housing area called Royal Earlswood Park, providing apartments and houses. The suburb is served by Earlswood railway station, with trains running from Bedford to Three Bridges via London Bridge. The station previously had a third platform which gave access to the Royal Earlswood Hospital. Earlswood Common was converted the late 1800s from open pasture to a pleasure ground, which remained in use until

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The lower lake has a concrete bottom and was used during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

to test the ability of primitive tanks to cross flooded landscapes, having previously been used for summer swimming.

Demography

At the 2001 census area, the ward named Earlswood and Whitebushes had a population of 8,234; Earlswood is identifiable as Reigate and Banstead 14A, 14D and 14E (Lower Layer Super Output Areas) with a population of 5,049.

Geography

Earlswood Common is a Local Nature Reserve. It contains two artificial landscaped lakes, which are used for recreational purposes. The upper lake has ducks and wildfowl. Until 2019, much of Earlswood Common had formed Earlswood Common golf course. The golf course was forced to close in March 2019, after 130 years, due to the closure of the Redhill & Reigate Golf Club which had previously maintained the Earlswood course.

Localities

Earlswood

An area of predominantly Victorian housing, much of it terraced and semi-detached, immediately south of Redhill town centre bordered to the north by Hooley lane, to the west by the A23 Brighton Road, to the south by the Royal Earlswood Park housing development and to the east by fields. Redhill Brook runs north-south through the middle of Earlswood but is not visible in most of it. Two train lines run through Earlswood. The Redhill and Quarry Lines, both part of the Brighton Line, merge just north of Earlswood and run through Earlswood Station although there is no Quarry Line Platform. The Redhill to Tonbridge line passes through north Earlswood in between Redhill and Nutfield stations. There are a nursery, primary and junior school over two sites in north Earlswood combined under the umbrella of the Earlswood Schools Federation. The schools are very popular and, along with the plentiful green space and good transport links, have attracted many young families to the area. There are a few places of religious worship in Earlswood. There is St John's church on St Johns Road, opposite Earlswood, and there is also a Mosque on Earlswood Road, the Redhill Jamia Mosque Al-Mustafa. This is one of 3 mosques in the Redhill area, along with Masjid Al Yaqeen on Warwick Road, Redhill, and Masjid ul Emaan on Frenches Road near Watercolour and Merstham.

South Earlswood

One sub-area of Earlswood, South Earlswood is a separate neighbourhood containing approximately half of the housing, which constitutes the main land use in Earlswood.Grid square map

Ordnance survey The Ordnance Survey (OS) is the national mapping agency for Great Britain. The agency's name indicates its original military purpose (see Artillery, ordnance and surveying), which was to map Scotland in the wake of the Jacobite rising of ...

website Separating it from the north are Earlswood Common and the

Greensand Way The Greensand Way is a long-distance path of in southeast England, from Haslemere in Surrey to Hamstreet in Kent. It follows the Greensand Ridge along the Surrey Hills AONB, Surrey Hills and Chart Hills. The route is mostly rural, passing thr ...

, which follows the

Greensand Ridge The Greensand Ridge, also known as the Wealden Greensand, is an extensive, prominent, often wooded, mixed greensand/sandstone escarpment in south-east England. Forming part of the Weald, a former dense forest in Sussex, Surrey and Kent, it ...

from

Haslemere The town of Haslemere () and the villages of Shottermill and Grayswood are in south-west Surrey, England, around south-west of London. Together with the settlements of Hindhead and Beacon Hill (Hindhead, Surrey), Beacon Hill, they comprise ...

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

. Immediately adjoining South Earlswood is the village or neighbourhood of

Whitebushes Earlswood is a suburb of Redhill, Surrey, Redhill in Surrey, England, which lies on the A23 road, A23 between Redhill (in the direction of London) and Horley (next to Gatwick Airport). Earlswood Common is a local nature reserve that separates ...

, which is contiguous therefore, apart from councillors, is difficult to separate artificially.

Whitebushes

A mixed housing estate built in the 1970s and early 1980s,mainly consisting of 4 and 3 bedroom homes and some flats.surrounded by pre-existing farmland, South Earlswood and the railway line.

opened in 1979 to its north. A small portion of farmland remains

common land Common land is collective land (sometimes only open to those whose nation governs the land) in which all persons have certain common rights, such as to allow their livestock to graze upon it, to collect wood, or to cut turf for fuel. A person ...

where (traditionally) gypsy horses, used for riding lessons and transport, have grazed since the 1950s. The area has been occupied since medieval times and probably before that, as evidenced by archaeological finds nearby of an axe and flint flakes. The surrounding farms date back to the 13th and 14th centuries, notably Hazelhurst Farm from 1203 and Dean Farm from 1316. There is evidence of a medieval farmstead in Woodlands Field, off Green Lane. This consists mainly of soil marks in a square of about 350m and an adjoining L-shaped mark. The pottery has been dated to 1250–1350. In the 19th century a number of brick works sprung up in the area. The Reigate Isolation Hospital was established in 1884 and later renamed to the Reigate Rural District Infectious Diseases Hospital. In 1900 a second establishment, the Reigate Borough Isolation Hospital, was opened. Around 1927 the two establishments were combined into a single Isolation Hospital run by the Reigate Joint Hospital Board as part of the Redhill County Hospital. In 1960 the site was acquired by

University College Hospital University College Hospital (UCH) is a teaching hospital in the Fitzrovia area of the London Borough of Camden, England. The hospital, which was founded as the North London Hospital in 1834, is closely associated with University College Lo ...

and renamed Jordan's Hospital for the treatment of Tropical Diseases, especially

leprosy Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a Chronic condition, long-term infection by the bacteria ''Mycobacterium leprae'' or ''Mycobacterium lepromatosis''. Infection can lead to damage of the Peripheral nervous system, nerves, respir ...

. The site was sold for development, demolished and in 1970 and the estate between Green Lane and the railway, including Jordans Close, was built. East Surrey hospital was built as a replacement for Jordan’s hospital in 1979 The

passes the west of Whitebushes and was opened in 1841. An ancient trackway along what is now Green Lane, The Brow and the western leg of Bushfield Drive, links Whitebushes to

Earlswood Earlswood is a suburb of Redhill, Surrey, Redhill in Surrey, England, which lies on the A23 road, A23 between Redhill (in the direction of London) and Horley (next to Gatwick Airport). Earlswood Common is a local nature reserve that separates ...

station to the north and Salfords station to the south. Somewhat circuitous routes under the railway link to the parking areas by these stations for those unwilling to walk.

Local governance

Surrey County Council Surrey County Council is the county council for the non-metropolitan county of Surrey, England. The council is composed of 81 elected councillors, and in all but one election since 1974 the Conservative Party has held the majority. The leader ...

Following boundary changes in response to the new communities built at The Watercolour and Park 25 developments East of Redhill, Earlswood is now split between two divisions at Surrey County Council level. Earlswood North falls with the Redhill East division and Earlswood South falls within the Earlswood and Reigate South division. This does cause some confusion as there is also a Redhill East ward at borough council level which Earlswood is not part of. Both are elected every four years. They are currently represented by: Redhill East: Mr Jonathan Essex of the

Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as environmentalism and social justice. Green party platforms typically embrace Social democracy, social democratic economic policies and fo ...

who, in being elected, became the first member of his party to sit on Surrey County Council. Earlswood and Reigate South: Catherine Margaret Baart ( Green Party (England and Wales)), was voted in by the electorate in 2021.

Reigate and Banstead Reigate and Banstead is a local government district with borough status in Surrey, England. Its council is based in Reigate and the borough also includes the towns of Banstead, Horley and Redhill. Parts of the borough are within the Surrey ...

At Borough council Earlswood North and South are combined to form one division, simply Earlswood. Three Earlswood councillors sit on

borough council, who are:

Amenities

Earlswood Common, an local nature reserve, is managed by

Reigate and Banstead Borough Council Reigate ( ) is a town status in the United Kingdom, town in Surrey, England, around south of central London. The settlement is recorded in Domesday Book of 1086 as ''Cherchefelle'', and first appears with its modern name in the 1190s. The ea ...

. Football club Redhill F.C. has its ground, Kiln Brow, on a site in Earlswood on the east side of the A23, immediately north of

References

External links

{{authority control Villages in Surrey Reigate and Banstead Local Nature Reserves in Surrey