Wigmore, Luton

Wigmore is a suburb in east Luton, Bedfordshire, England. The area is roughly bounded by Telscombe Way and Someries Hill to the north, Wigmore Park to the south, Buckingham Drive and Wigmore Lane to the west, and the edge of Luton to the east.

Wigmore
Wigmore Location within Bedfordshire
Population	11,681
OS grid reference	TL123226
Unitary authority	Luton
Ceremonial county	Bedfordshire
Region	East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	LUTON
Postcode district	LU2
Dialling code	01582
Police	Bedfordshire
Fire	Bedfordshire and Luton
Ambulance	East of England
UK Parliament	Luton South

History

Before being engulfed by Luton, Wigmore was a small hamlet with few scattered residential houses. It was centred on Wigmore Hall, a farmhouse built in the early 19th century, which still stands at 66 Eaton Green Road.[1] It was not until the 1970s when extensive development began, consisting mostly of suburban low-density residential housing. The 1980s saw further development, as the estate now stretches from the original eastern edge of Luton to the county border.

Local Area

Wigmore Lane, the main road through the area, is the home to Luton's only Asda supermarket, the Wigmore Place retail area, the Wigmore House offices and a number smaller chain stores and independent shops. Wigmore Hall now houses the Active Luton headquarters. The area is also home to Wigmore Primary School.

London Luton Airport

Wigmore is notable for its proximity to London Luton Airport, one of the busiest airports in the United Kingdom. Despite being located directly next to the airport, Wigmore suffers from little aircraft noise due to not being on the flight path and the nearby green space Wigmore Park acting as a buffer zone.

London Luton Airport's growth in recent years spawned proposals to purchase and demolish homes in southern Wigmore to construct a second runway north of the current one. However, the Airport authority withdrew this plan in favour of one to develop without the need for an additional or extended runway.

Politics

Wigmore is part of the much larger Wigmore ward, which also includes parts of Vauxhall Park, Napier Park, Ramridge End, and Putteridge. The ward represented by Cllr Peter Chapman (Liberal Democrats), Cllr Diane Moles (Liberal Democrats) and Cllr Alan Skepelhorn (Liberal Democrats). The ward forms part of the parliamentary constituency of Luton South, and the MP is Gavin Shuker (Change UK). Wigmore is situated within the East of England (European Parliament constituency).

Map of Luton wards from 2006-2007 showing Wigmore.

Local Newspapers

Two weekly newspapers are delivered free to all the houses in Wigmore. However they are not specific to Wigmore. They are:

• Luton & Dunstable Express- Delivered every Wednesday
• Herald and Post - Delivered every Thursday

References

1. "Wigmore Hall".