Crowthorne
Crowthorne is a large village and civil parish in the Bracknell Forest district of south-eastern Berkshire, England. It had a population of 6,711 at the 2001 census, which rose to 6,902 at the 2011 census. A 2020 estimate put it at 7,808. Crowthorne is the venue of Wellington College, a large co-educational boarding and day independent school, which opened in 1859, and of Broadmoor Hospital, one of England's three maximum-security psychiatric hospitals, which lies on the eastern edge of the village. History. Crowthorne was only a hamlet until Wellington College opened in 1859 and Broadmoor  Hospital in 1863. Crowthorne railway station, originally Wellington College for Crowthorne Station, opened in 1860 and burgeoned quickly. In the 1960s, the Transport Research Laboratory established by the UK Government as the Road Research Laboratory (RRL) opened in Crowthorne. It was privatised in 1996. Geography. Crowthorne is part of the Reading/Wokingham Urban Area. It lies 4 miles (6.5 km) NNE of Camberley and some 5 miles (8 km) SSW of Bracknell. The Crowthorne urban area spills over into the neighbouring parish of Wokingham Without. However, most of the housing is in Crowthorne parish, which is part of Bracknell Forest  district. North of Crowthorne is Pinewood, which has a leisure centre, cafe and miniature railway. Natural environment. The Crowthorne urban area adjoins several Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and local nature reserves: Schools. Crowthorne houses Wellington College, a large co-educational boarding and day independent school, opened in 1859 as a monument to the Duke of Wellington (1769–1852), who had led British, Spanish and Portuguese forces to successive victories in the Iberian Peninsula. It became fully coeducational in 2005. Edgbarrow is a secondary school fed by five feeder schools: Hatch Ride Primary, New Scotland Hill, Crowthorne Church of England  School, Wildmoor Heath (formerly Broadmoor Primary) and Oaklands Junior. There are some pre-preparatory and preparatory schools, nurseries and childcare centres for children between 3 months and 11 years old. Aeronautics. C. F. Taylor grew into a large international aeronautical fabrications business, later part of British Aerospace. It was born in a shed of the Buckler premises in Heath Hill Road shortly after World War II. Metal craftsman C. F. Taylor single-handedly produced aluminium racing fairings for motorcycles and bodies for early Buckler cars. Local societies and community groups. Crowthorne holds a biennial carnival, usually in early July, organised  by the Crowthorne Carnival Association, with some individual events put up by local schools, groups and businesses. Crowthorne Amateur Theatrical Society was founded in 1978. The Crowthorne Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Robert Roscoe, gives three concerts a year, usually at Wellington College. It also holds an open workshop for full orchestra in September and a string workshop in May. The orchestra marked its 20th anniversary in 2011. The Crowthorne Natural History Group, founded in 1977, held its final meeting in 2013, due to a diminishing, ageing membership. Sports. Crowthorne & Crown Wood Cricket Club was formed in January 2014 as a  merger of two existing clubs. It plays its home games in the grounds of Wellington College and at Crown Wood's established base at St Sebastian's. It belongs to the Saturday League Cricket in the Berkshire League and Sunday Friendlies. In 2013, Crowthorne CC fielded two Saturday teams for the first time, along with a Sunday Team and a Midweek T20 team, while Crown Wood CC fielded two League teams and a youth set-up. The 1st XI gained promotion from Division 2 in 2013 after winning the League. Crown Wood's existing youth set-up continues under the  merged club. AFC Crowthorne is one of the local football teams that play home games at Morgan Recreation ground. Crowthorne RFC is a local rugby union club, which has played at New Nest, Lower Broadmoor Road, since its construction in 2019. Notable residents. In order of birth: