  leiston is a town in eastern suffolk, england. it is situated near saxmundham and aldeburgh, about  from the north sea coast and is  northeast of ipswich and  northeast from london. the town had a population of 6,240 at the 2001 census.2001 census population data - leiston ward office for national statistics. retrieved 2011-03-30. ==history== the 14th century remains of leiston abbey lie northwest of the town.leiston abbey, english heritage. retrieved 2011-03-30. leiston thrived in the late 19th and early 20th centuries as a manufacturing town dominated by richard garrett & sons, owners of the "leiston works". this firm made steam tractors and a huge variety of cast and machined metal products, including munitions during both world wars. the works closed in 1981 and the site was reused as a mixture of housing, flats and industrial uses. the long shop museum, showing the history, vehicles and products of the works, remains as a heritage tourist attraction. during world war ii, raf leiston,  northwest of the town in the neighbouring village of theberton, sent fighter squadrons of the american 357th fighter group to fight the luftwaffe. famous american test pilot and fighter ace general chuck yeager (who, later, first broke the sound barrier) flew out of raf leiston. the friends of leiston airfield hold a memorial service and flying display at the end of may each year, with veterans and their families attending. since the 1960s leiston became famous outside the uk as the home of the summerhill school, founded by a.s. neill in the 1920s, which was the first major "free school" - referring to freedom in education. children are not required to attend classes and discipline is given by pupil self-government meetings. summerhill has inspired a large "free school" movement and, more recently, "democratic schools" in several countr
Post_towns_in_the_IP_postcode_area Suffolk_Coastal Towns_in_Suffolk