Woodgate, Leicester facts for kids
Woodgate is an important area in Leicester, England. It is located in the Fosse Ward, west of the River Soar. Woodgate serves as a key entrance to the city, leading towards Frog Island. Its western end meets the 'Fiveways Junction', a busy meeting point for several roads. To the south, you'll find the Rally Park, which used to be a railway yard. The eastern end of Woodgate finishes at the North Bridge, which crosses the old River Soar.
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History of Woodgate
The name "Woodgate" comes from the Middle Ages. It likely refers to a road used to bring timber into the town from nearby forests. This area was connected to places like 'Frith', which were parts of Leicester Forest. In these areas, people from the medieval town had rights to collect firewood.
Housing and Development
Most of the houses in Woodgate were built around the early 1900s. A local builder named Orson Wright developed many of these homes, similar to the Newfoundpool area. Before this time, the area north of Woodgate, called St Leonard's, was the main place where people lived for many centuries. In the late 1980s, Leicester City Council improved many properties in Woodgate. The area is still part of plans to make the city better.
Factories and Businesses in Woodgate
In the past, Woodgate had many active factories. These included places that made hosiery (socks and tights), dyed fabrics, and even biscuits. There were also iron foundries and light engineering businesses. Over time, many factories closed down, leading to job losses in the area.
Some old buildings, like former pubs, were no longer used and caused problems. The old Nabisco factory site, which once housed small businesses, was taken down in 2008. A new Aldi supermarket now stands there, opened in November 2008. Other local shops and businesses can be found on Storey Street.
The old St Leonard's Parish Church was taken down in 1983 and replaced by a car service station. The vicarage (the home of the church's priest) was also replaced by a car showroom. Today, Woodgate is still a busy shopping street with many different local businesses. These include a bank, a butcher, a florist, hairdressers, and various restaurants. Woodgate also has two primary schools for children.
St Leonard's Church History
For many centuries, the Woodgate area was part of the St Leonard's parish. This parish had a church that existed since at least 1220. It might even have been there before Leicester Abbey was founded in 1134. The church and the area were often poor. Sometimes, they were too poor to have a full-time priest.
In 1517, the church building was in bad shape. By 1611, it was so broken that people asked for permission to take parts of it down to fix the rest. There were so few people living in the parish that they could all fit in the smaller church. During the English Civil War in 1645, the church tower was taken down. This happened because Royalist forces were attacking the city, and the tower overlooked the North Bridge. For the next 230 years, St Leonard's was a parish without a church building. However, the burial ground was still used until 1849.
During the time without a church, other nearby churches helped with parish duties. In 1846, a school was built in the old St Leonard's Churchyard. As more houses were built nearby, a new priest was appointed for the parish in 1874. Church services were first held in the school. In 1876, work began on a new church building. It was built in a simple Gothic Revival architecture style, mostly from Mountsorrel granite. The church cost £7,600 to build. It had a main hall (nave), a special area for the altar (chancel), and a side aisle. Plans for a tower and another side aisle were made, but there wasn't enough money to build them.
In 1970, a report suggested closing the church and joining its parish with another one. Even though people tried to stop this for 11 years, the last service was held on April 26, 1981. The church building was taken down in October 1984. Some of the church's beautiful stained glass windows, which showed the life of St Leonard, found a new home in St Leonard's Church in South Ormsby.
Places of Interest in Woodgate
Woodgate is part of the Fosse Ward for local government. It is also part of the Leicester West area for national government. The local Member of Parliament (MP) since May 2010 is Liz Kendall.
The Woodgate Resources Centre is a place where local people can gather for social events. It used to be a library.
Near Woodgate, you can find the Woodgate Adventure Playground on the Rally Park. This playground is a fun place for local children to play. The old Midland railway line has been turned into a path for walking and cycling. This path goes towards Glenfield and Groby to the north, and towards Leicester city centre to the south.
The 'Fiveways Junction' is a well-known intersection in Woodgate. In 2023, it was called 'Leicester's most confusing junction'. A big project costing £10.4 million started in autumn 2023 to improve the layout of this junction. This work will continue until spring 2024 and will sometimes require parts of Woodgate to be closed to traffic.
