I was on my way to incredibly impressive Cockburn School in Beeston the other day, and passed Hunslet Nelson Cricket Club. Which seemed to be right at the bottom of the Middleton Park area. Next to a Beeston school.
And it got me thinking – exactly where do the boundaries of our communities start and end? The case of Hunslet Nelson is a good example, but putting my mind to it, I can think of others.
Hunslet Fire Station off Dewsbury Road appears to be in Beeston Hill. Hunslet Moor Primary School I would also have said was in the Beeston Hill area – is it really in Hunslet? Further down the road, someone told me the other day that The Greenhouse and South Leeds Sports Centre weren’t in Beeston, or even Holbeck at a stretch, but, in fact, Hunslet.
I’d always assumed St Luke’s Church was in Holbeck. Now I’m told it’s in Beeston Hill. Perhaps it’s neither, perhaps it’s in the netherland in between? Malverns-beck perhaps? (I’m kidding, of course). Does anyone know exactly where it is?
And where does Belle Isle end and Middleton start? The start of Middleton Town Street seems awfully close to Belle Isle. And why is Middleton Railway technically based in Hunslet?
Now, I’m being pedantic and ultra-parochial with much of what I’ve said so far. But if we’re ever going to take a pride in our communities this kind of stuff matters. We need to know where we live, where we work, where we do our leisure. Otherwise we’re left with saying ‘well I live in LS10, or LS11’ which I detest.
Presumably some of the changes are historic. Presumably having motorways cut communities in two hasn’t helped.
Can someone shed light on our community boundaries in south Leeds? Does it really matter? Post your comments below and enlighten me.
