Collingham, West Yorkshire: Preserving its beauty, despite traffic
Collingham, amid the rolling hills of the Lower Wharfe Valley, must rank alongside Yorkshire's busier villages. Located at the crossroads of the A58 Leeds to Wetherby road and the A659 near the A1(M), used by those heading to and from Otley and Leeds Bradford Airport, the heart of the village attracts more traffic than would usually be expected in a rural location.
Traffic is nothing new for Collingham. Local historians say the village developed beside a ford, where people crossed the River Wharfe for hundreds of years until a railway bridge was built, changing the watercourse to an extent that a road bridge between Collingham and Linton was built. The Harewood Road bridge over Collingham Beck dates to the time of the French Revolution, while Linton Road bridge over the River Wharf was created several decades later.
The cricket club nearby has 19th century origins, but followers of other sports are also catered for, such as squash at an association boasting a horseshoe-shaped bar. Five years ago dozens of birdwatchers descended on the cricket pitch after hearing that a rare hoopoe bird had moved there.
Further along Harewood Road there is a mid-19th century milestone in front of Langwith Mews, which is literally a sign of the times. Despite being nearer to Collingham, Leeds and Harrogate are overlooked on the signpost in favour of Otley.
In response to mounting traffic concerns Leeds City Council approved plans last year to create a lay-by for speed camera vans on the southern side of Harewood Road. However, some residents are unconvinced about the investment in one of Leeds most pricey neighbourhoods, branding it a “waste of money”.
Surveys have found Collingham has the second highest average household income in the Leeds area, more than double the average. This is reflected in a profusion of large, detached properties, with ones on the lane between Collingham and East Keswick averaging at about £1.5m.
Many properties along The Avenue, Leeds Road and Harewood Road date to the first half of 20th century, including the semi-detached Brookside and Garth End council estates.
The centre of the village was originally a linear development along Main Street, with back lanes of Church Lane and School Lane.
At the centre of the village is its 1960s shopping arcade, Hastings Court and Elizabeth Court, off Main Street and School Lane, which has a functional and urban feel to it. So does the zebra crossing beside it, the Tesco convenience store and car dealership opposite, and pelican crossing and steel railing combination by the junction of the two A-roads. Unlike many village centres there is a significant amount of off-road parking, directly outside the shops, as well as outside the pub and the nearby Collingham Memorial Hall.
A council conservation report states: "The village core has been detrimentally affected in the past by some inappropriate development and unsympathetic public realm..."
Overlooking the busy crossroads stands the 15th century hostelry Cromwell's, which owes its name to a claim Oliver Cromwell stayed there during the English Civil war after the Battle of Marston Moor. Beside the pub there's a pair of mid-19th century cottages bearing a Collingham Preservation Society blue plaque dedicated to Alfred Brown who worked as a passenger porter for the North East Railway before enlisting into the Army during the First World War. Private Brown was captured in 1918 and died months later in a prisoner of war camp.
The railway had arrived in Collingham in the 1860s, as a stop on the Leeds to Wetherby line, but despite it opening up possibilities for the area, such as commuting to Leeds, a steady increase in population and housing followed. A century after its opening, the railway through the village was dismantled, with Collingham Bridge station and goods yard being replaced by housing. Despite areas of infill, many historic elements remain in Collingham's heart. The timber-framed Manor House Barn, on Church Lane, dates back to the mid-16th century. It is thought the structure may have originally had a thatched roof.
While the conservation area in Collingham is on low ground, just 24 metres above sea level, part of the village lies in the River Wharfe floodplain. The village's stretch of the river, the banks of which are lined with mature and overhanging deciduous trees, has a reputation for excellent shallow water fishing for chub, barbel, dace, grayling, perch and trout.
It's eight years since grade II-listed Linton Bridge reopened following significant flood damage on December 27, 2015 and the area includes a number of properties at risk of flooding from both river and surface water flooding. Shortly after 6pm on Boxing Day, the monitoring station at Collingham reached a record high of 5.25 metres above sea level. During floods in 2007 waters reached the village centre. Recent volunteers' work to introduce natural flood management measures in the Collingham area has seen thousands of trees planted, leaky dams created and 4km of hedges planted.
Approaching the village, the majority of which is surrounded by a mix of pasture and arable land and designated Green Belt, from Wetherby St Oswald’s Church is the focal point. The place of worship is believed to have an Anglo-Saxon structure and a name reflecting pre-Conquest times. Seven Anglo-Saxon cross fragments from the late 9th century to the early 10th century have been found in the church, suggesting a Christian settlement existed at Collingham for at least two centuries before the invasion.
Among the most celebrated people linked to the church is William Mompesson, who was baptised there in 1639 before becoming a Church of England priest who took decisive action to avert more widespread catastrophe when plague reached his Derbyshire parish, Eyam.