Priory Vale is a community in the north of the town of Swindon, Wiltshire, England, which comprises the urban villages of Redhouse, Oakhurst and Haydon End. Although not strictly part of Priory Vale, the nearby village of Taw Hill completes this instalment of Swindon's northern expansion which began with Abbey Meads in the mid-1990s and continued at St Andrew's Ridge. The area was developed during the early 21st century.
Priory Vale is served by Thamesdown Drive, or the 'Northern Orbital Road', a dual carriageway which runs through the centre of the area and links Purton Road in West Swindon, itself an urban expansion area from the 1970s and 1980s, to the A419 Blunsdon bypass.
On completion, Priory Vale is expected to comprise just over 6,000 new homes spread over . The homes themselves take up , interspersed with of open space. Four primary schools and two secondary schools are provided.
Previously known as the Northern Development Area, the potential for development was identified by Swindon Corporation in the 1960s in planning documents known as the Gold and Silver books, and the scheme was confirmed in a "Vision for Thamesdown" in the 1980s.
Location
Although within the urban area of Swindon, Priory Vale falls outside the traditional area of Swindon proper (covered by the parishes of Central Swindon North and Central Swindon South). The bulk of the expansion area lies within Haydon Wick parish, which covers the areas occupied by earlier developments from the 1970s at Haydon Wick, Haydonleigh, Greenmeadow, Abbey Meads, Haydon End, parts of Redhouse, Taw Hill and large parts of Oakhurst west of the Tadpole Brook. Redhouse, the northern part of the development, is within St Andrews parish.
History of the area
Blunsdon, north of Priory Vale, is a village dating back to the Iron Age, where the earliest ancestors fortified and built a settlement. Blunsdon is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as 'Bluntesdone', at which time the settlements in the area had altogether ten households. In 1281, there was also a reference to 'Bluntesdon Seynt Andreu'. In recent years, archaeologists discovered a Roman travellers' resting place on the site of the present-day Cold Harbour pub a mile or so away from the 'northern expansion', and the A419 main road through Blunsdon follows the course of a Roman road known as Ermine Street that linked the historic towns of Cirencester and Silchester.
The recent Roman find at Groundwell Ridge Abbey Meads within the 'northern expansion' is believed to be a religious and ceremonial site.
Blunsdon Abbey was a grand Victorian house in the area, and its name inspired the title of the Abbey Meads development. The name 'Priory Vale' follows this monastic theme. Local tradition claims Blunsdon Abbey was originally an outpost of Godstow nunnery near Oxford. Apparently, the land was granted to the Brydges family during the reign of Henry VIII. In 1860, a wealthy sportsman, Clayton de Windt, purchased the estate and built a new house in the "latest Neo-Gothic style" to designs by E.Mantell of London. The builder was Thomas Barrett of Swindon, who created an imposing residence with forty bedrooms, grand interiors, entrance hall, billiards room and lavish furnishings. Clayton de Windt was killed in a riding accident in 1863, and in April 1904, fire destroyed the house and its contents.
The modern development occupies farmland and fields. The villages of Redhouse and Haydon End are named after these historical fields, while the village name of Oakhurst was taken from the name of the home at Haydon End Farm.
Prior to 1928, the parish of Haydon Wick was part of the parish of Rodbourne Cheney.
Timeline of development
April 1983: Developer Crest Nicholson invited to participate in scheme by Godfrey and Jeremy Francis, land owners at Manor Farm, and enter into contractual arrangements with the family.
July 1992: Planning Permission granted on Haydon 1, the first phase of the scheme.
September 1993: Works commence on first phase at Manor Farm.
November 2001: The Mayor of Swindon, David Cox, officially opened the Northern Orbital Road. The three-mile stretch of dual carriageway provided the first stage of an important bypass to the north of Swindon. The new road gave access to the new supermarket and provided the necessary infrastructure to begin work on the planned community of Priory Vale.
The Asda supermarket opened for business on 26 November.
2002: Chris and Tracy Barnes, with their daughters Natalie and Jessica, became the first residents of Priory Vale. The couple took up residence in a three-storey house built by Bloor Homes in their Saunders Brook development.