South Ruislip is an area of west London in the London Borough of Hillingdon.

South Ruislip
South Ruislip library
South Ruislip is located in Greater London
South Ruislip
South Ruislip
Location within Greater London
OS grid referenceTQ115855
London borough
Ceremonial countyGreater London
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townRUISLIP
Postcode districtHA4
Dialling code020
PoliceMetropolitan
FireLondon
AmbulanceLondon
UK Parliament
London Assembly
List of places
UK
England
London
51°33′27″N 0°23′35″W / 51.55737°N 0.39304°W / 51.55737; -0.39304

A 2017 estimation put the population of South Ruislip ward as 13,150 residents.[1]

The population, according to the 2001 UK census, was 10,823. By 2008, this had reached 11,116.[2]

Education

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Schools in South Ruislip include Bourne Primary, Deanesfield, Field End, St Swithun Wells and Queensmead.

Sports

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McGovern Park is located on West End Road and is the headquarters of London GAA. It is the primary venue for playing hurling and Gaelic football in Britain.

Transport

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South Ruislip station is served by the Central line of the London Underground. Chiltern Railways serve hourly, with trains to London Marylebone and High Wycombe. Although no bus route directly serves the station, London Buses route E7 serves one end of nearby Station Approach and route 114 serves the other.

 
Entrance to RAF Northolt in South Ruislip

The Royal Air Force station, RAF Northolt, is situated in South Ruislip near the A40 and the tube station. Most early RAF airfields were named after the nearest railway station; in this case Northolt Junction, the original name of South Ruislip station.the ruislip tube

Demography

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Shops in Long Drive

In the 2011 UK census, the racial makeup of South Ruislip was: 73% White, 16% Asian, 5% Black. 75.8% of the working age population was economically active. 38% of residents lived in semi-detached houses; 28% in terraced houses; 27% in flats/maisonettes/apartments; and 8% in detached houses. 69.4% of households owned their homes, 19% were privately rented, 10.1% were socially rented.[1]

Landmarks

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Polish War Memorial in South Ruislip

Polish fighter pilots during the Battle of Britain were based at RAF Northolt, and the Polish War Memorial was built later after the conflict. The memorial stands next to the A40 adjacent to the airfield, and is dedicated to the memory of the Polish airmen who fought with the Royal Air Force during the Second World War.[3]

A damaged Vickers Wellington, attempting to land at RAF Northolt, crashed in Station Approach in October 1942. The resulting fire caused the remaining ammunition on board to detonate, and 21 people were killed.[4]

In the 1950s and 1960s RAF South Ruislip supported by RAF West Ruislip was Headquarters, 7th Air Division of the Strategic Air Command (SAC), supporting SAC operations in the UK until 1958 when the 7th Air Division relocated to RAF High Wycombe, and the station became Headquarters, 3d Air Force and transferred to United States Air Forces, Europe. In 1972 HQ, 3d Air Force relocated to RAF Mildenhall and the buildings remained empty until 1995 when they were demolished.[5]

In 2012, the BBC announced it would be moving the Digital Media Services branch of BBC Studios and Post Production from BBC Television Centre to the Odyssey Business Park opposite RAF Northolt between February and March 2013.[6]

References

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Citations
  1. ^ a b "South Ruislip Ward Profile" (PDF). London Borough of Hillingdon. June 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 August 2017.
  2. ^ "A focus on South Ruislip" (PDF). London Borough of Hillingdon. January 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 February 2011. Retrieved 23 June 2011.
  3. ^ "Polish War Memorial". London Borough of Ealing. Archived from the original on 9 November 2010. Retrieved 8 March 2011.
  4. ^ Bowlt 1994, p.135
  5. ^ Bowlt 2007, p.91
  6. ^ Drewett, Zoe (31 October 2012). "BBC moving to Ruislip to preserve classic television". Uxbridge Gazette. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
Bibliography
  • Bowlt, Eileen. M. (1994) Ruislip Past. London: Historical Publications ISBN 0-948667-29-X
  • Bowlt, Eileen. M. (2007) Around Ruislip, Eastcote, Northwood, Ickenham & Harefield. Stroud: Sutton Publishing ISBN 978-0-7509-4796-1
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