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Heritage

Heritage Means Business Heritage and business working together for

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A heritage Four decades ago the sound of diggers and cranes filled the air to be proud of as builders moved in to create the planners’ vision for a bold new city that would set the bar for modern living and create a blueprint for city building across the globe.

Yet one thing the ‘new city’ of Milton Keynes wasn’t was new. For millennia this corner of North Bucks has echoed to the sounds of people’s lives: to communities making tools; Roman legions marching along ; monks chanting at Bradwell Priory; and the tapping of codebreakers at Park.

From Milton Keynes’ beginnings its creators – and citizens – have been determined to preserve the area’s rich and revealing past for the benefit of present and future generations.

It’s a heritage of which we can all be proud, and which relies on our continuing support. In this short brochure we hope to surprise you with its variety, report on successes to date, introduce you to a new partnership dedicated to maintaining and sharing that heritage, and inspire you to get involved.

Front Cover: Volunteers, Bradwell Windmill Fun Day event at MK City Discovery Centre, Connected Earth @

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Contents Introducing The Milton Keynes Collection

The Milton Keynes Collection is a new partnership of five museums and heritage organisations who are collaborating in order to:

Raise awareness of the rich history of this area; • Part 1: Valuing the Past Win community and commercial A brief 4 support for its conservation, History on the doorstep 6 • interpretation and development; Part 2: Enriching the Present Share resources and expertise in Thriving heritage, thriving economy 8 collections handling, governance Growing our community 9 • and volunteering; Providing a place for work, rest and play 10

Encourage greater public Part 3: Creating the Future involvement in Milton Keynes’ Priorities for heritage in Milton Keynes heritage. • Fantastic collections 11 Events large and small 12 www.mkcollection.co.uk Taking part as a volunteer 13

Part 4: The Way Forward Securing our city’s heritage 14

Contacts for more information Milton Keynes Collection 15 16

City centre at night Medieval chapel at Bradwell Abbey Bletchley Leisure Centre 3 MK Heritage Developer SMA pics_GHA 17/04/2012 19:30 Page 4

PART 1: Valuing the Past A brief history of Milton Keynes

Milton Keynes is a unique place where modern city living combines with attractive rural landscape; where new developments rub shoulders with fourteen historic towns and villages; where twenty per cent of the land is retained as parks and open space; and where local people can be rightly proud of their history and heritage.

PRE-HISTORY TO BRONZE AGE ROMAN TO MEDIEVAL CIVIL WAR TO WORLD WAR II 175m BC 43 AD 1643 Milton Keynes covered by warm tropical Small Roman town established at Parliamentary army captures Newport sea – containing creatures such as the Magiovinium (near ) on Pagnell in Ichthyosaur recovered from Caldecotte Watling Street; villas built at Bancroft, 1767 Lake in 1982 (now in the Central Library) Gayhurst, Lavendon, and William Cowper, poet and hymn writer, 200,000 BC Haversham moves to Olney to join John Newton, Excavations at gravel pit in Stoke 410-1066 author of Amazing Grace and later Goldington reveal evidence for Early Anglo-Saxon settlements at influential in abolition of slavery mammoth, horse and vole living around , Pennylands and Newport 1800 meadow pond Pagnell Grand Junction (now Union) Canal opens 9500-4000 BC c.914 linking the Midlands and London Mesolithic hunter-gatherers follow Secklow Mound recorded as Milton 1810 livestock along the fertile Ouse and Ouzel Keynes’ first seat of democracy, where Tickford Street Iron Bridge constructed river valleys leaving behind a scattering of elders meet to discuss taxes and dispense over River Lovat, flint tools justice 1817 4000-2200 BC c. 1154 Bradwell Windmill erected Early farmers clear woodland and settle Benedictine Priory of St Mary founded 1838 in river valleys – sites at Broughton, at Bradwell Abbey London & Railway establish Heelands and Stacey Bushes c. 1250 works at Wolverton, the world’s first 2100 BC Earliest known windmill erected at Great planned railway town Tribal chieftain buried in substantial earth Linford (excavated in 1977) 1886 mound along with remains of around 300 1290 Herbert Akroyd Stuart invents oil engine cattle in Ouse valley near Gayhurst Queen Eleanor’s body rests at Stony at Bletchley, forerunner of modern diesel 1150-800 BC Stratford on way to burial at London engine (model at Milton Keynes Museum) Bronze Age Gold buried at Monkston 1464 1900 Park, (Discovered in 2000) Edward IV secretly marries Elizabeth Cowper and Newton Museum opens in Wydville at Grafton Regis, the first English Olney king to marry a ‘commoner’, sparking a 1939 new chapter in the Wars of the Roses Government Code and Cipher School 1483 takes over Bletchley Park to work on Edward V, one of the ‘Princes in the Tower’ decoding German military captured at on orders of communications Duke of Gloucester (later Richard III)

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Bradwell Windmill, Bradville

MODERN DAY MILTON KEYNES 1967 22,000 acres of North designated for new Milton Keynes 1969 OU, the world’s first distance learning university, formed at Walton Hall 1978 Liz Leyh creates at Stacey Hill Farm (now Milton Keynes Museum) 1979 The first ‘shopping mall’ in the UK opens at 1980-85 Central library, railway station and The Point, the first multiplex cinema in the UK, open for business 1980 The Nipponzan-Myohoji monks and nuns establish the first in the Western World above north Lake 1984 Living Archive established at Wolverton, one of the most successful ‘people’s’ history archives 1997 Milton Keynes Council becomes a unitary authority 2000 Milton Keynes Heritage Association is set up 2010 The city hosts its first ever International Festival of Arts

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History on the doorstep

From the outset Milton Keynes’ planners were determined to integrate the area’s rich history into their new city, creating a community where ancient monuments neighbour with technology parks. Their ambition did not end there, for alongside historic features they were also creating a new heritage: landmarks, artworks, festivals that are as much a part of the story of Milton Keynes. Below we offer just a taste of where to go and what to see and do. For more, visit: www.mkheritage.co.uk

CENTRAL AREA MILTON KEYNES SOuTH NORTH EAST MILTON KEYNES City Centre Bletchley Newport Pagnell Although the city centre is less than 50 It was the advent of rail travel that Once a Civil War garrison town Newport years old, there are signs of what lay transformed Bletchley from a hamlet to a Pagnell grew to be one of the largest before in street names such as Saxon Gate busy town in1845. The town’s second towns in Buckinghamshire, boasting six and Secklow Gate – named for the mound expansion came in the 1960s when the fairs a year. It was, until recently, home to behind the Central Library where 10th Council created ‘overspill’ the prestigious Aston Martin factory and century elders met to govern their housing at Water Eaton. Regeneration has its iron bridge is the oldest iron bridge in community. Nearby Campbell Park is seen the arrival of Bletchley Park – home the world that is still in constant use. home to the Chain Reaction sculpture of the WW11 codebreakers – on the Olney commemorating all those who played a international tourist circuit. Located in the north east of the borough, role in Milton Keynes’ creation. The huge Fenny Stratford Olney is a Georgian town world famous glass shopping building, thecentre: mk, Long before railways, Fenny Stratford was for its Pancake Race and as home of the was not only the first mall of its kind in the a significant part of the nation’s transport hymn Amazing Grace. Its author, John UK but was designed to align perfectly network. The remains of Magiovinium, the Newton and friend the poet William with the rising sun on the summer solstice small defended Roman town that grew up Cowper, are celebrated at the Cowper & – hence Midsummer Boulevard. alongside Watling Street, can be found in Newton Museum. The Villages the Roman gardens of Dobbies’ Garden The Villages Just outside the city centre lie some of the Centre. While the Bull and the Swan are Now owned by the Royal Society, prettiest local villages. In the East is Milton two survivors of the 40 inns and coaching Chicheley Hall is one of the UK’s finest Keynes Village, which gave the city its houses that opened in Fenny between examples of an 18th century Baroque name (though the planners liked the 1750-1810 to cater for travellers. country house. Nearby the villages of accident of it combining both a great The Villages Stoke Goldington and Gayhurst have British poet and economist). Willen village In the south east the busy villages of made their own mark on history: given by boasts a Grade 1 listed church designed and Bow Brickhill both a grateful Queen Elizabeth I to Sir Francis by ’s Da Vinci – the multi-talented border the Bedford Estate, linked to its Drake in 1581 (and quickly sold on by him Robert Hooke. While further down the owners at Woburn Abbey by extensive to raise funds); a few decades later the Ouzel valley remains of Medieval villages woodland providing wonderful walks and beautiful house at Gayhurst was home to and traditional ridge and furrow farming rides. To the south west, the small St Giles’ Everard Digby, one of the principal can be seen at Woolstones and Church at Tattenhoe survives from the gunpowder plotters. Much of their Woughton. To the west of the city centre 16th century. Nearby planning took place in the yew-lined lies Loughton with its historic inns built to is home to remains of a 13th century walkway behind the house. supply coaches along Watling Street. motte and bailey castle, Shenley Toot.

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NORTH WEST MILTON KEYNES Stony Stratford Stony is an elegant former coaching town whose High Street retains many historic buildings, including the Cock and Bull inns, said to have been the source of cock and bull story as travellers on the Watling Street spread news and gossip. The ‘town on the road’ is where Saxon King Edward the Elder fought the Danes and several monarchs including King John, held court. Wolverton From its public Bath House to the Iron Trunk carrying the Grand Union Canal over the river and fields below, Wolverton is unmissable for anyone interested in our industrial past. It was one of the UK’s most significant railway towns. Much of that past has been preserved through creative conversions. Both the Living Archive people’s history project and Milton Keynes Museum have huge collections enabling us to relive those historic times. The Villages Hanslope is one of several villages forming Milton Keynes’ northern border with a rich history of their own. Granted market town status in medieval times, it became known in the Victorian age for the quality of its lace. At Bancroft, there’s a reconstruction of a Roman villa whose A brilliant mathematician and widely considered to be the father of science, Alan Turing helped develop the remains were found there. Bombe at Bletchley Park – the machine that greatly speeded up the time taken to break the daily-changing Enigma keys.

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PART 2: Enriching the Present Thriving heritage, thriving economy

From hotels and to restaurants, taxis, leisure services and high street shops – a successful heritage sector depends on and benefits hundreds of businesses in and around Milton Keynes. With its Peace Pagoda, labyrinth, medicine wheel, high ropes course and special events, Willen Lake attracts • more than one million visitors from around the region every year. The visitor books at the Cowper & Newton Museum, Bletchley Park and • the City Discovery Centre show people coming from as far afield as North America and Australia, Africa and the Far East, to see Milton Keynes’ heritage attractions. The variety and rich heritage of Milton Keynes’ unique green landscape has been a major factor in attracting • business to relocate – and in helping George Price’s Brick Kilns, existing business attract and retain staff to live and work here. “Heritage is extremely important for the local economy because it brings in visitors CASE STuDY: The which creates jobs. It gives depth to Milton Keynes, and gravitas, and therefore provides To coincide with its 40th anniversary, The Open University credibility.” commissioned Discover Milton Keynes to produce a special exhibition celebrating its achievements. The Stewart Elsmore, Chair, Association of MK Hoteliers decision to site the pioneering distance learning university and Director, Destination MK at Walton Hall was a major coup for Milton Keynes, helping to build its reputation as a place that encouraged innovation.

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Growing our community

Forty five years after its’ creation, the continuing success of Milton Keynes depends on new generations of citizens playing an active part in the city’s life and work. Growing those future citizens is a key role for our heritage organisations, encouraging them to get involved, broadening their skills and understanding, offering them work experience and volunteering opportunities and fostering a sense of pride in their home area. In 2011 around 1,000 volunteers donated 96,514 hours of their time, • supporting the work of heritage partners in Milton Keynes. They were able to develop skills in everything from visitor management • and conservation to social media and customer service. History, human geography, sociology, Children learning science, maths and computing are just a lace-making at the few of the subject areas brought to life Cowper and • by hundreds of school visits to heritage Newton Museum. sites in Milton Keynes each year. “Heritage brings to life the curriculum. It CASE STuDY: Campbell Park makes sense of history and shows our place in society and how important it is for The largest city centre park in the UK outside everyone to be able to contribute.” London, Campbell Park was designed as a sculpture park and holds events all year round. As the city Debbie Gockelen, Milton Keynes Academy centre grows, the challenge for The Parks Trust is to retain the park’s heritage value whilst delivering the needs of new local residents.

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Cycle Trail going through Ouzel Valley

Providing a place for work, rest and play

With 27 conservation areas, 49 scheduled ancient monuments and more than 600 heritage interest areas, Milton Keynes’ heritage provides a fascinating backdrop for many of the city’s high days and holidays – an endless source of things to do and see, from a breath of fresh air during a lunch break to fun family outings. In 2011 an estimated 10,000 people attended 51 heritage open day events • across the Milton Keynes region. These included everything from canal history talks to a Milton Keynes At War • exhibition. There really is something for all ages and interests, from the children’s • activity days at Milton Keynes Museum to 1940s revivals at Bletchley Park. “Our heritage is what sets Milton Keynes apart from other cities.” Jonathan Bailey, Chairman, Institute of Directors, Milton Keynes

CASE STuDY: Heritage Trails Project There are more than 1,000 listed buildings in Milton Keynes ranging from medieval churches to red phone boxes – and many can be seen from one of four fantastic heritage cycling trails. Research, text and pictures for these were provided by young volunteers supported by Make a Difference. The trails can be downloaded free of charge from www.milton-keynes.gov.uk/cyclemk

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PART 3: Creating Milton Keynes Museum the future Priorities for heritage – and how you can get involved

PRIORITY PROGRAMME 1 FANTASTIC COLLECTIONS Milton Keynes is fortunate to have archive documents and museum objects of significant local and national importance in its collections. These collections are interpreted and displayed in many fun and interesting ways, and many more documents and objects lie in our stores waiting to be catalogued and put on display. The Milton Keynes Collection is working with all partners in the area to enable us to do even more of this, to find more easily accessible venues where we can display our shared heritage, and extend that access to a wide range of online channels. PARTNER WITH uS Talk to us about sponsoring an area of this work • Assist us with help in kind or loan us your expertise – technology, staff • volunteering, materials and more CASE STuDY: Discover Milton Keynes Invite us to bring our displays into your premises Based in the Central Library and programmed by Living Archive for the MK Heritage Association, this • Act as ambassadors for the richness of exhibition aims to raise the profile of heritage in the our local heritage by helping us city centre where footfall is at its highest - and • promote it signpost people to other venues. www.mkcollection.co.uk

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PRIORITY PROGRAMME 2 EVENTS LARGE AND SMALL Heritage organisations work hard to put on a variety of lively exhibitions, activities and events throughout the year. Milton Keynes Council co-ordinates an annual Heritage Events Calendar, available from its heritage website and from Destination MK. www.milton-keynes.gov.uk/heritage These events offer a great opportunity for local business to get involved with the community, build their profile and actively involve staff through sponsorship and in- kind support. Among a wide range of high profile events to choose from are: May Arts and Heritage Open Places July Cultural Weekend September Heritage Open Days December Christmas Festivities Family fun day at MK City Discovery Centre, PARTNER WITH uS Bradwell Abbey Talk to us about sponsoring an event Help us promote our events to your CASE STuDY: Heritage Open Days • staff and visitors Places for People, developers of the new Wolverton Park • Offer us support in kind: print, housing, based on an historic site including the former materials, helping hands and other Royal Train shed, worked with Milton Keynes Council to resources • host a fun day for local people and showcase their new www.mkcollection.co.uk housing. Organised as part of the annual Heritage Open Day programme, over 3,000 people attended, showing how heritage and local business can work together.

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Heritage Open Days at Rectory Cottages, Bletchley

PRIORITY PROGRAMME 3 TAKING PART: VOLuNTEERING BRINGS BENEFITS Volunteers are the lifeblood of heritage organisations in Milton Keynes, giving their time and expertise across a range of venues such as museums, archives, in parks and at events. Working on everything from collections and catering to websites and wood clearing, their efforts help to make our heritage even more accessible for everyone. But volunteering is a two-way process, providing opportunities for training, developing new skills, teamworking, confidence-building and broadening experience – often leading to recognised qualifications. Many businesses have corporate social responsibility (CSR) schemes. Our heritage sector offers many opportunities for them to participate benefitting both individuals and employers. PARTNER WITH uS Talk to us about arranging team CASE STuDY: Milton Keynes Museum building activities on our heritage sites Like other heritage venues in Milton Keynes, the museum is • Consider whether your business would almost entirely run by volunteers. For young people it like to adopt a heritage project in MK provides a fun environment to learn and develop skills that • Encourage staff volunteering help them gain experience for the future. For older people it provides a stimulating and friendly environment to stay www.mkcollection.co.uk active, continue learning, and put something back into the • community.

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PART 4: The Way Forward Securing our city’s heritage

At a time of funding challenges for many vital organisations, we want to ensure future generations will be able to enjoy and feel as proud of the city’s heritage as we do today.

That means increasing visitor numbers HOW YOu CAN HELP and other kinds of income-generating Become an ambassador for us, tell activities to provide the resources that will everyone you know, share this enable us to maintain our historic brochure with others; collections, buildings and other assets, • develop new ones and continue to create Invite us into your company, carry our the future. leaflets, become a friend; It means encouraging new generations of • Use it or lose it: learn more about our volunteers on board. local heritage by visiting the sites in this brochure; It means developing new and imaginative • ways to enable more people to get Tell us how we’re doing, give feedback involved with our shared heritage. to individual attractions, to the Milton Keynes Collection partners and to And it means helping the whole Milton • Milton Keynes Council’s heritage Keynes community understand why development team; heritage matters. Help us develop the next five-year plan for heritage in Milton Keynes, 2013-18. • An extensive two-year consultation is underway: find out more about it, comment on it, contribute to it and help us ensure it will be an ambitious routemap for a thriving heritage in Milton Keynes. www.milton-keynes.gov.uk/heritage

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www.mkcollection.co.uk

Contact The Milton Keynes Collection partners

Bletchley Park Living Archive Related links The Mansion, Bletchley Park The Old Bath House, Milton Keynes MK3 6EB 205 Stratford Rd, Wolverton Milton Keynes Heritage Association Tel: +44(0)1908 640404 Milton Keynes MK12 5RL www.mkheritage.co.uk www.bletchleypark.org.uk Tel: +44(0)1908 322568 [email protected] Arts and Heritage Alliance Milton Keynes City Discovery Centre www.livingarchive.co.uk www.aha-mk.org Alston Drive, Bradwell Abbey Milton Keynes MK13 9AP Milton Keynes Museum Destination Milton Keynes Tel: +44(0)1908 227229 McConnell Drive, Wolverton www.destinationmiltonkeynes.co.uk [email protected] Milton Keynes MK12 5EL www.mkcdc.org.uk Tel: +44(0)1908 316222 Milton Keynes Parks Trust [email protected] www.theparkstrust.com Cowper and Newton Museum www.mkmuseum.org.uk Orchard Side, Market Place Milton Keynes Community Foundation Olney MK46 4AJ www.mkcommunityfoundation.co.uk Tel: +44(0)1234 711516 [email protected] www.cowperandnewtonmuseum.org.uk

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Produced with the support of: More Information

The Arts, Heritage and Libraries Team is responsible for co-ordinating the strategy and delivery of heritage in Milton Keynes. To register your comments and to find out more about the Heritage Strategy and its Plan for the Future, please contact: Milton Keynes Council The Arts, Heritage and Libraries Team Saxon Court, Avebury Boulevard, Milton Keynes MK9 3HS T 01908 253884 E [email protected] www.milton-keynes.gov.uk/heritage

The Conservation and Team is responsible for the protection and enhancement of historic environment within Milton Keynes. To find out more about heritage assets in the area or advice in relation to development proposals please contact: Milton Keynes Council Conservation and Archaeology Civic Offices, 1 Saxon Gate East, MK9 3EJ T 01908 252599 E [email protected] [email protected] www.milton-keynes.gov.uk/conservation-archaeology

M91003 April 2012 01908 253884