Birstwith

Birstwith is a village and civil parish in the Harrogate district of North Yorkshire, England. It is part of the Nidderdale, and is situated on the River Nidd. According to the 2001 census, the parish had a population of 756[2] and increased to 868 based on the 2011 Census.[1]

Birstwith
Birstwith
Location within North Yorkshire
Population868 (2011 census)[1]
OS grid referenceSE239595
• London185 mi (298 km) SSE
Civil parish
  • Birstwith
District
  • Harrogate
Shire county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townHARROGATE
Postcode districtHG3
PoliceNorth Yorkshire
FireNorth Yorkshire
AmbulanceYorkshire

Birstwith Mill on Wreaks Road is run by Kerry Ingredients, a food products manufacturer. The River Nidd provided water for the mill, and although sluice gates and a mill race exist, the water wheel no longer turns—an existing weir provides the mill with a head of water. The mill race rejoins the river downstream. About 1 mile (1.6 km) upstream is a packhorse bridge.

A mill race on the Nidd at Birstwith
Site of Birstwith station, 1976

The local public house is the Station Hotel which acts as a meeting place, and venue for organised charity events such as the Birstwith Coast 2 Coast Cycle Challenge.[3] The village has a store and post office, and a doctor's surgery which is part of a Nidderdale medical group. Sport facilities include a cricket pitch, tennis courts, and a snooker room.

The village had a railway station on the NER line running between Harrogate and Pateley Bridge.[4] The goods yard became Birstwith Grange, a housing development for commuters. The railway line continued along the Nidd Valley and was used in the construction of Scar House and Angram reservoirs.

A village primary school and a Reading Room, built and donated by the owner of the local Swarcliffe Hall around 1880, still exist today. In the mid-1970s Swarcliffe Hall was sold and the contents auctioned, the building became a private prep school. Today Birstwith has a Church of England primary school, and a private school which occupy Swarcliffe Hall.

In 2017 Birstwith In Bloom was established. Birstwith won a Silver-gilt at the Yorkshire in Bloom awards, this was the first time the village had entered the competition.[5]

References
  1. UK Census (2011). "Local Area Report – Birstwith Parish (1170216977)". Nomis. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 21 March 2018.
  2. UK Census (2001). "Local Area Report – Birstwith Parish (36UD010)". Nomis. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
  3. "Birstwith News", Harrogate Advertiser, 27 May 2008. Retrieved 17 December 2011
  4. Suggitt, Gordon (2007). Lost railways of North and East Yorkshire. Newbury: Countryside Books. p. 34. ISBN 978-1-85306-918-5.
  5. "2017 Summary of Results Categories 1 – 5" (PDF). yorkshireinbloom.co.uk. Retrieved 30 April 2020.
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