Bishop's Tachbrook NDP Regulation 16 Submission

2.0 A Spatial Portrait of the Area

Introduction

2.1 Bishop's Tachbrook is a civil parish in the Warwick district of Warwickshire, England, about three miles south of Warwick and Leamington Spa. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 2,514, increasing to 2,558 at the 2011 Census. The parish includes the original village of Bishop's Tachbrook and a developing new community associated with Royal Leamington Spa located in the north of the parish, including development at The Asps, Heathcote and Oakley Grove (Figure 2). In the village some of the buildings are of half-timbered design, however much of the housing is more modern, and includes areas of terraced housing owned by Warwick District Council. As would be expected the newer homes in the parish, both in Bishop's Tachbrook village and south of Leamington, comprising Heathcote, Grove Farm and, to the west of the A452, The Asps, are predominantly more modern detached and semi-detached properties.

Figure 2. Bishop's Tachbrook Locational Diagram

2.2 The village has a large sense of community, with a successful Church, Community Centre and Sports and Social Club. There is a strong sense of self-sufficiency, with an active Parish Council, village primary school, for children aged 4 to 11, as well as a large park - known as "The Meadow" to the residents of the village which contains a new BMX track. There are a few small retail premises including a corner shop. The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association breeding centre is based just to the south of the village. As well as the primary school in the village, Bishop's Tachbrook Church of England Primary School, there is also one in the north of the neighbourhood area, Heathcote Primary School. A new school site has been approved between the Tachbrook Road/Harbury Lane junction and Bishop's Tachbrook village. The site will have both new Primary and Secondary Schools. They are scheduled to be open by 2023.

2.3 Despite the level of recent housing development Bishop's Tachbrook remains a rural parish (Map 1, page 8) with areas of woodland, watercourses, including the Tach Brook and 22 working farms.

How it Started

2.4 The village of Bishop's Tachbrook derived the latter part of its name from the old English meaning of a boundary, "Tachbrook". The Brook is a tributary of the River Avon running north to north-east of the village. The Brook was recorded in 1033 as the boundary between the ancient Saxon diocese of Worcester and Lichfield. The name "Bishops" is believed to have been derived from the Norman Episcopal ownership of the village. Prior to the conquest, Bishop's Tachbrook was held by the diocese of St Chad's in Lichfield. In 1086, it was transferred to the Bishop of Chester, and its rateable value was recorded as 7 hides. The village remained under ecclesiastical ownership until the English Reformation in the sixteenth century, apart from one brief interlude in its history, when Bishop Hugh De Nonant fell from royal favour, following a dispute with King Richard I, the village lands were seized by the crown. Bishop's Tachbrook was later

restored to the church in 1195. The tenure was sold to Thomas Fisher, passing to Edward Ferrars of Baddlesly Clinton in 1602. It then passed to the Wagstaffe family and their descendants until 1780, when the lands were sold to the Earls of Warwick, where they remained until the 1950s when the Earl started to sell off both houses and land.

1844 Tithe Map (Warwickshire Records Office CR56/236)

2.5 The village church of St Chad's was originally Norman, built in the mid twelfth century. The north aisle was constructed in the fourteenth century and the south isle added in the fifteenth century. A great deal of alterations to the church were carried out during the nineteenth century. The eastern window of the church is engraved with a memorial to the wife of Charles Kingsley, the novelist. There is also a memorial to the poet, Walter Savage Landor. As a boy, he lived in the village with his family during 1770's, residing in "Savage House", which is reputed to be the Manor House, which dates back to 1558.

2.6 The location of the local doctor's surgery used to be the old Victory Club. This was used by the Church for entertainment purposes. The local pub, The Leopard, is a highly popular part of the village. The eldest part of The Leopard building, originally used as a morgue in connection to the nearby crematorium, is believed to be haunted.

More Recent Times

2.7 In 2011, Bishop's Tachbrook had a population of 2,558. The average (mean) age of residents was

40.1 years. Bishop's Tachbrook when compared with Warwick District and England has a population that is somewhat younger: just over 20% of the neighbourhood area population was under 16 when compared with the District (17.1%) and England (18.9%). The neighbourhood area also has a much larger proportion of residents in the key working age group 30-59 (45.7%), but much fewer residents in the age group entering the workforce and looking for new homes – 10.1% compared with 17.8% in Warwick District and 16.3% of the population in England (Figure 3).

Figure 3. Age Structure (Source: Nomis)

2.8 The breakdown of population by ethnic group shows a population comparable to that across Warwick District, with 90% white (Warwick District 89.2%); and 8.1% Asian (7.2% Warwick District).

2.9 Perhaps reflecting the younger age profile of the neighbourhood area, residents in Bishop's Tachbrook consider themselves to be healthier: 85.7% consider themselves to be in very good/good health compared with 84%% in the District and 81.4% nationally. 3.8% of Bishop's Tachbrook residents consider they have bad or very bad health compared with 4.0% in the District and 5.4% nationally.

2.10 Homes in the neighbourhood area are more likely to be detached and semi-detached homes, rather than flats, in 2011 the parish had the following mix: 33% detached, 45.2% semi-detached, 18.2% terraced and 2.8% flats. Comparable figures for the District and England are as follows: detached 24.3 and 22.3; semi-detached 30.9% and 30.7%; terraced 21.5% and 24.5%; flats 17.2% and 16.7%.

2.11 In terms of tenure home ownership is considerably higher than in the District or nationally: 81.5% of all dwellings compared with 66.7 for the District and 63.3 in England (Figure 4). Correspondingly, social and private renting is lower.

Figure 4. Tenure (Source: Nomis)

2.12 Car ownership in the parish is very high (Figure 5). Only 7.8% of households had no access to a car in 2011, this compares with 18.5% for Warwick District and 25.8% for England. Over 50% of households in the parish had two or more cars.

Figure 5. Car ownership (Source: Nomis)

2.13 Economic activity in the parish is relatively high at 75.9% (Warwick District 71.3%; England 69.9%) as is the number of retired residents, 15% compared with 12.9% in the District and 13.7% nationally. Bishop's Tachbrook residents tend, on the whole, to be better qualified than nationally: 47.5% of local residents being educated to Level 3 and above, compared with 43% in the District and 33.1% nationally.

2.14 In terms of occupations the local workforce is dominated by those in managerial, professional, associate professional and administrative jobs (Figure 6).

Figure 6. Occupation (Source: Nomis)

2.15 With the rapid expansion of housing within the parish since the 2011 Census, the statistics quoted in paragraphs 2.7 to 2.14 will have changed. It is estimated that the population will grow by 25% within the lifetime of this plan.