St. Mary's Church

Fairford Leys is a village of 1,900 exclusive homes, West of Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, England, with its own village type centre hosting a number of traditionally fronted shops, award-winning hair salon, supermarket, three restaurants, a nursery, an ecumenical church and a community centre. It also has a private health club with swimming pool which opened in October 2003. The civil parish for Fairford Leys is Coldharbour which is an Aylesbury Vale district. It also forms part of the Aylesbury Urban Area. It is however not an independent village yet despite being connected to the market town of Aylesbury. Fairford Leys was one of the last villages in Buckinghamshire to have no social housing. The intention in planning the development was to create an environment similar to that of a high end village, with architecture inspired by traditional Aylesbury housing styles and pastiche Victorian lamp posts and railings. The centre of the village is surrounded by the city wall, a concept originating from the masterplanner John Simpson and inspired by mediaeval city walls, such as York. This consists of three- and four-storey townhouses and the main entrance to the centre is marked by two towers, loosely modelled on mediaeval gate towers. The centre contains a higher density of housing, with larger detached properties at the edge of the village. The design includes play areas, open spaces, playing fields and a golf course. The development is planned around a masterplan and design code which were drawn up by John Simpson & Partners Architects, to maintain the general appearance of the development. The design codes are enforced by the landowner through private covenants with individual householders, and contain restrictions on alterations to properties. Although these are time limited in part. Fairford Leys is one of the first two developments in the UK to be planned around a design code, the other being Poundbury in Dorchester. The village is built on land previously owned by the Ernest Cook Trust—a nationally operated, charitable foundation with interests in land ownership, conservation, architecture, design and community development. To ensure that these concerns are reflected in the achievement of Fairford Leys, the Trust has worked with Aylesbury Vale District Council for over 14 years — largely through its masterplanner, the well-known architect John Simpson — and with the builders Taylor Woodrow, Bellway and George Wimpey Homes. Although Aylesbury Vale District Council ultimately granted planning permission for the development, they took a back seat role in the design and planning of the village; the driving force behind which is the Ernest Cook Trust. Fairford Leys contains housing up to five-bedroom detached properties, which has ensured its population is representative of multiple life stages, from young singles, through young and growing families, to the retired. The hope is that people want to stay in Fairford Leys, moving house within the village as needs change, this is already being realised in many cases. Some residents work locally, while many others commute to London, and some of those that are around during the day have found time to develop such initiatives as the Mother and Toddler Group and the Friendship Club, which may play a significant role in helping to build a sense of community.
Continue reading...
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.