Basildon facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Basildon
Basildon town square, looking east
Basildon
Population	115,955
OS grid reference	TQ7389
• London	25.6 miles (41.2 km) WSW
District	Basildon
Shire county	Essex
Region	East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	Basildon
Postcode district	SS13 – SS16
Dialling code	01268
Police	Essex
Fire	Essex
Ambulance	East of England
EU Parliament	East of England
UK Parliament	Basildon and Billericay South Basildon and East Thurrock
List of places UK England Essex 51°35′N 0°29′E / 51.58°N 0.49°E / 51.58; 0.49

Basildon (/ˈbæzɪldən/ baz-IL-dən) is a town in the county of Essex, England. It is part of the Basildon borough. In 2021, about 115,955 people lived there. Back in 1931, only 1,159 people lived in the town.

Basildon is about 26 miles (42 km) east of Central London. It is also 11 miles (18 km) south of Chelmsford and 10 miles (16 km) west of Southend-on-Sea. Other towns nearby are Billericay to the northwest and Wickford to the northeast. Basildon was created as a new town in 1948. This happened after World War II to help house people from London. It was formed by joining four small villages: Pitsea, Laindon, Basildon, and Vange.

The Basildon local government area was set up in 1974. It became a borough in 2010. This borough is larger than the town itself. It includes Billericay, Wickford, and many smaller villages. Basildon Town is one of the most crowded areas in Essex. Many Basildon residents work in Central London. They can travel there easily by train in about 36–58 minutes. The A127 and A13 roads also connect Basildon to London.

Basildon's Early History

The first time Basildon was mentioned in history was in 1086. It appeared in the Domesday Book as 'Belesduna'. The name 'Basildon' might come from an old Anglo-Saxon name, 'Boerthal', and the word 'dun', meaning hill. Over the years, the name was spelled in different ways, like Berdlesdon and Batlesdon.

Trains started coming to nearby Pitsea in 1856 and Laindon in 1888. However, it took longer for Basildon itself to get a train station. People were worried it would just become a place for London commuters. Today, many people do travel to London for work.

By the early 1900s, Basildon had grown in a messy way. Land was sold in small pieces, and people built homes without much planning. Some houses were made from old materials, while others were brick. Basic services like water, gas, electricity, and proper roads were often missing.

Becoming a New Town

In the 1940s, local councils asked the government to create a New Town. They were concerned about the lack of services and unplanned growth. Basildon became one of eight 'New Towns' in the South East of England. This happened after the New Towns Act was passed.

On January 4, 1949, Basildon was officially named a 'New Town'. A special group, the Basildon Development Corporation, was formed to build the modern town. The new town included Laindon and Pitsea. It was designed with small neighborhoods. The first house was finished in June 1951. The plan for the town included lots of green spaces and playing fields. The first families moved into homes in Vange. In 1956, a large sign saying "Basildon Town Centre Site" was put up by the railway. The Basildon Centre, which holds the local council offices, opened in 1989.

Since 2010, Basildon has a small white sign that says "Basildon." It is five feet tall, like a tiny version of the famous Hollywood sign. This sign was part of a plan to improve the area.

Basildon's Communities

Basildon was built with many planned communities, which are now the local areas of the town:

• Pitsea - One of the four original villages. It has seven smaller areas: Pitsea, Pitsea Mount, Eversley, Chalvedon, Northlands, Burnt Mills, and Nevendon.
• Laindon - Another original village.
• Vange - Also one of the first four villages.
• Fryerns - Named after a nearby farm.
• Craylands - Located between Fryerns and Pitsea. It is being redeveloped and is now called Beechwood Village.
• Barstable - Named after an old local area. It is known for its shops at Stacey's Corner.
• Kingswood - Located at the west end of Clay Hill Road.
• Ghyllgrove - Between the town center and Fryerns.
• Lee Chapel South - Between the town center and Basildon University Hospital.
• Lee Chapel North - Between Gloucester Park, Lee Chapel South, and Laindon.
• Langdon Hills - South of Laindon.
• Dry Street - A small village south of Laindon and west of Vange.
• Great Berry - Declared a village in 2015, west of Laindon.
• Noak Bridge - North of Pipps Hill.
• Steeple View - North of Laindon. You can see church steeples from here.
• Pipps Hill - An industrial area north of Gloucester Park.
• Cranes - An industrial area east of Pipps Hill, named after an old farm.

What Does Basildon Make?

Basildon has many factories and businesses. When the New Town was being built, the government offered money to companies to set up here. Big companies like Ford Motor Company and GEC-Marconi (now Leonardo MW) moved to Basildon.

There are industrial areas in Laindon, Cranes Farm Road, and Burnt Mills. The CNH Tractor Plant, once owned by Ford, is on Cranes Farm Road. Argos has a large warehouse on Pipps Hill. In 2015, Amazon opened a delivery center here.

A large data center for the Intercontinental Exchange is in Basildon. In 2017, Costa Coffee opened Europe's biggest coffee roasting factory in Basildon. It can roast 45,000 tonnes of coffee beans each year!

Getting Around Basildon

Roads in Basildon

A map showing Basildon's 'Mayne' roads

The two main roads from London to Southend, the A13 and A127, pass near Basildon. These roads are important for commuters. They connect easily to the M25 and other major roads. The A13 helps you get to Pitsea and Vange. The A127 leads to the town center and Laindon.

Inside Basildon, there are six main roads that connect to the A13 and A127. All of them have the word 'Mayne' in their names:

• Nether Mayne: Goes from the town center to the A13.
• Upper Mayne: Goes from the town center to the A127.
• South Mayne: Connects Northlands Park to the A13.
• East Mayne: Connects Northlands Park to the A127.
• Broadmayne: Connects the town center to Northlands Park.
• West Mayne: Goes from Laindon to the A127.

Trains in Basildon

Basildon has three train stations: Pitsea, Basildon, and Laindon. All these stations are on the London, Tilbury and Southend line. c2c trains run from here to Fenchurch Street in London and to Southend or Shoeburyness.

Buses in Basildon

Most bus services are run by First Essex. They connect Basildon to Billericay, Wickford, and other nearby towns. Other bus companies include Stephensons of Essex and NIBS Buses.

Road Improvements

Basildon Enterprise Corridor development

Basildon has seen many improvements to its roads. For example, the A127 had a big upgrade that finished in 2011. This project added extra lanes and improved junctions. It also included the new "Hollywood" sign for Basildon near the A176 junction.

Learning in Basildon

Basildon has several secondary schools:

• Basildon Academies
• De La Salle School
• James Hornsby School
• Woodlands School

There are also two colleges for further education:

• South Essex College: Located in the town center.
• PROCAT: An engineering and construction college at Pipps Hill.

Essex County Council also offers adult learning classes at Ely House.

Sports in Basildon

Basildon has several football clubs for men, including Bowers & Pitsea F.C., Hashtag United F.C., and Basildon United. There is also a women's team, Hashtag United Women F.C.

For rugby, Basildon R.F.C. represents the town. Local cricket is played by Basildon and Pitsea C.C. Basildon is also home to the South Essex Gymnastics Club, where Olympic champion Max Whitlock trains.

The main sports center is the Basildon Sporting Village, which opened in 2011. It has an Olympic-sized swimming pool, a large sports hall, a climbing wall, and an athletics track. Many people visit this center, with over 3.5 million visitors since it opened. Basildon also has a golf course in the Kingswood area.

Fun and Culture in Basildon

In 2024, a study by The Economist said Basildon was the "most typical place in Britain."

Shopping in Basildon

Basildon Town Square looking West

Shops in the Eastgate Shopping Centre

Basildon town center has many popular shops. You can find shops and cafes in the open-air East Walk and Town Square. There is also the Eastgate Shopping Centre, which is covered and has over 100 shops.

When Eastgate opened in 1985, it was the largest covered shopping center in Europe for a while. It has been updated several times, with a big renovation in 2007. More shops can be found at Westgate Shopping Park. There is also a market in St. Martins Square that sells fresh food and household items.

Outside the town center, there are retail parks at Pipps Hill and Mayflower. Smaller shopping areas are in Laindon and Pitsea, which has a famous market that started in the 1920s.

Festival Leisure Park

Festival Leisure Park, also known as "Bas Vegas"

Festival Leisure Park is a big entertainment area in northern Basildon. It has 15 restaurants, a bowling alley, an arcade, a family entertainment center, two hotels, a bar, a sixteen-screen Cineworld cinema, two health clubs, and a nightclub called Unit 7. People often call it "Bas Vegas." This nickname came from a plan to build a casino there. The site used to have a park with a zoo and ski slope.

A wakeboarding complex also opened here in 2012.

Theatre in Basildon

Basildon's first theatre, The Arts Centre, opened in 1968. It was later renamed 'The Towngate Theatre and Arts Centre'. In 1989, a new, purpose-built Towngate Theatre opened. To celebrate the town's 40th anniversary, the theatre put on a play called "Boerthel's Hill." It was about Basildon's history and performed by 125 local people.

Movies in Basildon

Basildon has one cinema, Cineworld, at the Festival Leisure Park. It used to be an Empire Cinemas, but Cineworld bought it. Before that, it was a UCI cinema.

Basildon also had an ABC Cinema that opened in 1971. It changed names several times before closing in 1999. A new ten-screen Empire cinema was planned for the town center. It opened in July 2024 under Vue's management.

Books and Museums

Basildon Central Library is in the Basildon Centre. There are also smaller libraries in Vange, Pitsea, Fryerns, and Laindon.

Basildon is home to the Haven Plotlands Museum. This museum shows what life was like in small rural homes in the mid-20th century. There isn't a museum just for Basildon's history yet, but people are working to create one.

Parks and Green Spaces

• 

  Pitsea War Memorial in Howards Park

• 

  Northlands Park

• 

  Langdon Nature Reserve

Basildon was designed with many green spaces. Gloucester Park is a large park in the town center. Other big green areas include Kent View Recreation ground in Vange and Northlands Park in Pitsea. Mopsies Park and Howards Park are also popular.

Basildon also has Wat Tyler Country Park, Marks Hill Nature Reserve, Vange Hill, One Tree Hill Country Park, and Langdon Hill Country Parks. The RSPB Nature Reserve at Bowers Marshes and the Essex Wildlife Trust reserve at Langdon are great for nature lovers.

Old Buildings and History

Even though Basildon is a new town, you can still see parts of its past. Old roads like Clay Hill Road and Dry Street are still used. Dry Street is a good example of old Basildon, as it's a quiet country lane with old buildings.

Many old parish churches still stand. St Nicholas (from the 13th century) overlooks Laindon. St Peter's (also 13th century) in Nevendon is hidden behind a supermarket. St Michael's at Pitsea was rebuilt in 1870, and only its bell tower remains. Holy Cross Church, the parish church of the original Basildon village, is in Church Road. Vange's 14th-century All Saints church was updated in the 19th century.

Other interesting old buildings include the Barge Inn at Vange and the Broadway at Pitsea. Cromwell Manor, a pub in Tyefields, dates back to the 15th century. Nevendon Hall was built in 1789. Little Coopers Farmhouse, an old building from another town, was moved and rebuilt at Wat Tyler Country Park.

The Dunton Plotlands area, once small rural homes, is now the Langdon Nature Reserve. In 2008, a special trail was created to show off Basildon's 1960s buildings.

Media in Basildon

Basildon has local radio stations like BBC Essex and Gateway 97.8, which broadcasts from the Eastgate Shopping Centre. The town is also covered by BBC London and ITV London TV.

The local newspaper, The Evening Echo, has had offices in Basildon since 1969. The Yellow Advertiser newspaper has been here since 1976.

Basildon on TV and in Music

Basildon was the setting for the BBC show White Gold. The character Nellie Bertram from the U.S. TV show The Office was said to be from Basildon.

Basildon had a big impact on 1980s music. Famous bands like Depeche Mode and Yazoo started here. Later, Alison Moyet and Vince Clarke (from Erasure) also came from Basildon.

Basildon in Film and Art

The documentary film New Town Utopia is all about Basildon. Basildon also has Europe's only underwater film studio! It has been used for shows like The Tunnel and the movie 47 Meters Down.

The town was also the focus of a photography project called Magic Party Place by CJ Clarke.

Modern Buildings and Design

• 

  Church Garden: the area in front of St. Martin's Church in Basildon Town Centre is landscaped.

• 

  St. Martin's Bell Tower

• 

  Brooke House, showing its V-shaped pylons

• 

  Man Aspires by A. J. Poole

St. Martin's Church in Basildon town center is a modern building. It was opened in 1962. A tall glass bell tower was added in 1999 and opened by Queen Elizabeth II.

One of the largest buildings in the town center is Brooke House. It's a 14-story apartment building built in 1962. It has a 1960s Brutalist design, with eight huge V-shaped concrete supports. It was designed to make the town center feel lively even after shops closed. Brooke House was given special protection as a Grade II listed building in 1998.

East of Brooke House is East Square, an open public area. On one wall, you can see the oldest public sculpture in the new town, called Man Aspires. It was put up in 1957. The whole area was designed to look grand with Brooke House.

Inside the Eastgate Shopping Centre, there is a special clock called the Cats Cradle Pussiwillow III Clock. It was made in 1981.

The Barstable School building, opened in 1962, was designed by a famous Finnish architect. It is also a Grade II listed building and is now part of the Basildon Academies.

Basildon's Future Plans

Basildon has been updated many times. Some recent improvements include:

• Investing in the Basildon Enterprise Corridor, a large business area.
• Creating a new wetland nature reserve in the Thames Marshes for birds and wildlife.
• Improving housing areas like Craylands and Five Links to make them safer and better designed.
• Updating the Pitsea town center.

Future plans include:

• Further improvements to Basildon and Laindon town centers.
• Building a new health and education center near Basildon University Hospital.
• There is a plan for a new housing area called Dunton Garden Suburb between Basildon and Brentwood. This could include 6,000 homes and shops.

Twin Towns

Basildon is twinned with:

• Heiligenhaus (Germany)
• Meaux (France)

Healthcare

Basildon has its own hospital, Basildon University Hospital, which provides healthcare services for the town and surrounding areas.

Famous People from Basildon

Basildon's Weather

The weather in Basildon is generally mild, meaning it doesn't get too hot or too cold. There is also enough rain throughout the year. This type of weather is called an "Oceanic climate."

See also

In Spanish: Basildon para niños