Stradbroke
Stradbroke (/ˈstrædbrʊk/ STRAD-brook)[2] is an English village in the Mid Suffolk district of the county of Suffolk. The Census of 2011 gave Stradbroke parish a population of 1,408, with an estimate of 1,513 in 2018.
| Stradbroke | |
|---|---|
 Church of All Saints, Stradbroke | |
  Stradbroke Location within Suffolk | |
| Area | 15.35 km2 (5.93 sq mi) |
| Population | 1,408 (2011)[1] |
| • Density | 92/km2 (240/sq mi) |
| OS grid reference | TM231739 |
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Eye |
| Postcode district | IP21 |
| Dialling code | 01379 |
| Police | Suffolk |
| Fire | Suffolk |
| Ambulance | East of England |
| UK Parliament | |
Heritage
The village was listed in the Domesday Book of 1096 as being in the Bishop's Hundred,[3] which was later renamed Hoxne Hundred. During the Middle Ages and in local documents as late as the early 19th century, the name of the village was sometimes spelt Stradbrook.
A prominent medieval philosopher Robert Grosseteste, also Bishop of Lincoln, was born in Stradbroke in about 1175. Its parish church of All Saints, with a 15th-century tower and a raised stair turret, dominates the village as a local landmark.[4]
In October 2014 the state primary school marked the 150th anniversary of its predecessor's opening on 28 September 1864.[5]
The village used to host a Navy Day on the last Saturday in July. This mourned the end of the Royal Navy's rum ration in July 1970, and as part of the celebrations a tot of rum was taken in procession round the village. The last such Navy Day was held in 2007.[6]
Amenities
Stradbroke's position as a centre for many smaller villages and hamlets means has more facilities than its population might suggest. It serves as a centre for education for Mid Suffolk. There is a primary school and a high school in the village.
There are two pubs, several shops, and other local services that include a public library, a community centre, a swimming pool and a gym. It has a playing field for cricket and football, three tennis courts and two bowling greens. There is also a fitness track. The village includes some 12 miles of public footpaths, maintained by local government twice or three times a year. Near the community centre there is a doctor's surgery and a play area for young children. At Westhall there is another play area and a recreation ground for informal games.
The village post office reopened in 2014 in the local library, housed in the historic courthouse building. The previous post office in a shop had closed.[7] Library staff work on both the post office and library counters.[8] The village shop was refurbished in 2014. There is also a bakery, a butcher's shop, a wedding shop, and an antiques centre and cafe.
In 2012 a six-acre field was purchased on Drapers Hill and 28 allotment gardens created, together with a community orchard and wild flower meadow. A pond was donated at the top of the site, overlooked by donated public seats. There are views of the Church towards the centre of the village.
Stradbroke has a free magazine: The Stradbroke Monthly. It also has an online community radio station, Radio Stradbroke. It has held a now-annual "Stradisphere Music Festival" since 2014, which works in partnership with charities such as Help For Heroes and music-related charities in Suffolk and Norfolk.
Communications
Stradbroke lies midway between Norwich and Ipswich on the B1117 and B1118 secondary roads. It is a short driving distance from the coastal towns of Southwold and Aldeburgh.
Stradbroke is 7 miles/11.3 km from the small Suffolk town of Eye and 9 miles/14.5 km from the larger Norfolk market town of Diss, which is an hour and a half by train from London. There are bus services linking Stradbroke to surrounding towns.
Notable people
In birth order:
- Robert Grosseteste (c. 1175–1253), scholar and Bishop of Lincoln, was born in Stradbroke.
- Mary Matilda Betham (1776–1852), diarist, poet and miniature painter, was born in Stradbroke.
- William Betham (1779–1853), antiquarian, brother of Mary Matilda, was born in Stradbroke.
- J. C. Ryle (1816–1900) became Vicar of Stradbroke in 1861, launching a restoration of the church in the 1870s.[4] He served later as Bishop of Liverpool.
- Herbert Edward Ryle (1856–1925), son of J. C. Ryle, was brought up in Stradbroke. He served successively as Bishop of Exeter, Bishop of Winchester and Dean of Westminster.
Notes
- "Stradbroke report - Nomis - Official Labour Market Statistics". www.nomisweb.co.uk. Retrieved 30 May 2020.
- G.M. Miller, BBC Pronouncing Dictionary of British Names (London: Oxford UP, 1971), p. 142.
- Open Domesday: Stradbroke, accessed February 2020.
- Stradbroke All Saints', Suffolk Churches Website. Retrieved 2013-02-05.
- "Clocks turned back in 150 years celebration at Stradbroke Primary School". Diss Express. Johnson Press. Retrieved 4 October 2014.
- "Final Navy Day Photo Album". Stadbroke Village Website. Retrieved 20 June 2014.
- "Post Office returns to Stradbroke two years after closing". Diss Express. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
- "Stradbroke Library Post Office is open!". Suffolk Libraries. Archived from the original on 2 November 2014. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
References
- S. Govier, 2010, An Illustrated History of Stradbroke and Denham
External links
