Denholme: The splendid community-minded Yorkshire village where miners found Fool's Gold

Heavy industry first emerged in the area after the discovery of the Halifax Hard Bed in the 17th century.

The coal seam was found to contain balls of iron pyrites, or Fool's Gold, which was used to make green vitriol to fix colours in clothes for the village’s textile industry.

The iron pyrites made Denholme into a centre of the country’s chemical industry, but following the creation of alternative chemicals, by the end of the 19th century all production had ended.

As a result of the demise of the mills and chemical works, Denholme’s population has halved to less than 3,000 over the last century, and Bradford council’s most recent Local Plan describes it as “primarily a commuter settlement” with “limited employment opportunities”.

Outside of service sector and retail jobs in Denholme, many residents look south of the village to the Denholme Business Centre or Bradford, Keighley and Halifax for work.

With the village’s sweeping upland pasture and parkland surrounds protected by designated Green Belt, few employment or housing developments win approval.

Two years ago, plans to turn an eyesore former electricity sub-station to the north of the village on Pot Oven Lane were rejected as it “would not preserve the openness of the Green Belt”.

However, the village has seen numerous housing developments in recent years, such as 72 affordable homes on the site of Denholme Station, which opened in 1884 and closed in 1961.

Nevertheless, many of the 19th century homes in the village’s heart were built by the family of textile mill founder Henry Foster, who reportedly was both a portrait subject and drinking companion of Branwell Brontë.

Another legacy of the family in Denholme is Foster Park, the centenary of which was marked in 2022.

A donation from the family enabled the council to buy a 38-acre farm on the village’s south-western fringe to provide Armed forces veterans with allotments as well as a park featuring a larger than life bronze statue of an infantryman as a memorial to men who died in the world wars near the bandstand.

Additions such as a community orchard, pavilions, a greenhouse, children’s playground, tennis courts and a bowling green have made what is a sizeable park for a village well used by its residents.

Another popular facility, the landmark Denholme Community Centre, has emerged in the village centre, opposite the Cooperative store on School Street, following a concerted campaign in 2018 to save the former Denholme Mechanics Institute premises.

Last month, after a VE Day event was staged there, the centre’s chair, Shane Hollingdrake, said it was “becoming a thriving hub for local life” and had seen a surge in popularity.

The village boasts other community-spirited ventures, such as Emily’s Eatery on Halifax Road, which has supported a 'pay it forward' scheme to provide meals for less well off residents.

Another example of the village’s unusual degree of community mindedness is the Denholme Shared Church, a partnership since 2008 of the congregations of the Baptist Church, The United Reformed Church and the Church of England.

During the Victorian era four Methodist chapels, a Baptist chapel, a Congregational Chapel known as the Independent Chapel, and the Anglican Church of St Paul’s were built in Denholme to meet the diverse denominations of the influx of mill workers.

The Independent Chapel, on Keighley Road, is only remaining place of worship, and is now home to Denholme Shared Church, which has recently launched a Community Eco Garden, designed with wildlife in mind.

In April, it emerged a couple who bought the crumbling Grade II-listed landmark St Paul’s Church, on Halifax Road, to the village’s south, for £85,000 in 2017, had completed a remarkable transformation of the building and were marketing it at £1.5m.

The 161-year-old building, in an area known by locals as Windy Corner, features a very unusual and impressive three-stage tower, with set-back buttresses and a splay-footed stone spire.

Visitors to Denholme may also feel a chill for a different reason.

It has been claimed Denholme is the site of at least five hauntings, including a headless policeman, a white mist, a ghostly Roman legion and the vengeful spirit of an old woman.

A flat in Carperley Crescent is said to be haunted by an old woman who died alone, leading to many inexplicable happenings and orbs seen flying around in the evening.

There are, however, more records of the abundance of birds which make Carperley Beck their home, while to its east Doe Park Reservoir is another popular green space.

It hosts Bradford's specialist centre for outdoor activities and education and is a Royal Yachting Association Training Centre.

Alongside being a destination for team-building exercises, activities offered on the water range from sailing and dragon boating to raft building, while those surrounding the beauty spot include a high ropes facility and an aerial obstacle course.

They are among a number of wildlife sites near the village.

The South Pennine Moors Special Protection Area and Special Area of Conservationis are close by, to the south and west, meaning the village falls within the 2.5km buffer zone of an internationally designated wildlife habitat.

The buffer zone means all developments proposed within the zone must confirm the presence of relevant habitats.