Kidlington

From open-encyclopedia.com - the free encyclopedia.

Kidlington is a village in Oxfordshire in the United Kingdom. It is located just north of Oxford.

Kidlington is the largest village in England (and, indeed, in Europe), with a population of over 17,000. It has so far resisted all proposals to become a town. Nevertheless, the village is expanding in all directions.

At the centre of the village lies a church dating from the 13th century. The settlement grew steadily from an ancient village with the aforementioned church. There are many 18th century (Georgian) buildings, as are there modern houses.

A major event in the Kidlington Calendar is the annual barge race held thrice yearly. This tradition dates back to the late 1800's where the barges were pulled by a large group of pack donkeys.

The village headquarters the fire services of the county, as well as the Thames Valley Police. Kidlington is also home to Oxford Airport, which has had a pilot training school since 1962. It has trained thousands of pilots for many airlines in over 40 different countries.

Unfortunately the community would be better served if it was given town status which has been refused in previous ballots.

One secondary school exists (Gosford Hill) and a handful of primary schools to deal with the ever expanding populous...