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Corby
Shown in Northamptonshire
Corby Location in the UK
Coordinates: 52°29′14.47″N 0°42′0.68″W / 52.4873528, -0.7001889
Country	United Kingdom
Region	East Midlands
County	Northamptonshire
Status	Borough
ONS code	34UB
Government
- Leadership	Alternative - Sec.31
- Control	Labour
- MP	Phil Hope
Area
- Total	31 sq mi (80.28 km²)
Population (2005)
- Total	53,500
- Density	1,724.9/sq mi (666/km²)
Time zone	GMT (UTC0)
- Summer (DST)	BST (UTC1)
Postcode	NN17-NN18
Area code(s)	01536
Website: www.corby.gov.uk

Corby is an industrial town and a local government district located 13km north of Kettering in Northamptonshire, England. The district as a whole had a population of 53,174 at the 2001 Census; the town on its own accounted for 49,222 of this figure. Corby is in a triangle formed by Leicester, Peterborough and Northampton. The Borough of Corby borders onto the Borough of Kettering, the District of East Northamptonshire and the District of Harborough. The nearest towns are Kettering, Market Harborough, Desborough and Rothwell. Corby is approximately 24 miles north-east of the county town, Northampton.

Contents 1 History 1.1 Early history 1.2 From rural village to industrial town 1.3 The 1940s and 1950s 1.4 The decline of the steel industry 2 Local government 3 Politics 4 Elections 5 Society and culture 6 Transport 7 Employment and education 8 Regeneration and redevelopment 9 Notable 10 References 11 External links

Mesolithic and Neolithic artefacts have been found in the area surrounding Corby and human remains dating to the Bronze age were found in 1970 at Cowthick^[1]. The first evidence of permanent settlement comes from the 8th century when Danish invaders arrived and the settlement became known as "Kori's by" – Kori's settlement. The settlement was recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as "Corbei". Corby's emblem, the raven, derives from an alternative meaning of this word.

Corby was granted the right to hold two annual fairs and a market by Henry III in 1226. In 1568 Corby was granted a charter by Elizabeth I that exempted local landowners from certain taxes and gave all men the right to refuse to serve in the local militia.^[2] A popular legend is that the Queen was hunting in Rockingham Forest when she fell from her horse. Upon being rescued by villagers from Corby she granted the charter in gratitude for her rescue. Another popular explanation is that it was granted as a favour to her alleged lover Sir Christopher Hatton.

The Corby Pole Fair is an event that has taken place every 20 years since 1862 in celebration of the charter.

The local area has been worked for iron ore since Roman times. An ironstone industry developed in the 19th century with the coming of the railways and the discovery of extensive ironstone beds. By 1910 an ironstone works had been established. In 1931 Corby was a small village with a population of around 1,500. It grew rapidly into a reasonably-sized industrial town, when the owners of the ironstone works, the steel firm Stewarts and Lloyds, decided to build a large integrated ironstone and steel works on the site. The start of construction in 1934 drew workers from all over the country including many workers from the depressed West of Scotland and Irish labourers. The first steel was produced in October 1935 and for decades afterwards the steel works dominated the town. By 1939 the population had grown to around 12,000, at which time Corby was thought to be the largest "village" in the country, but it was at that point that Corby was re-designated an urban district (see the Local Government section below).

During World War II the Corby steel works were expected to be a target for German bombers but in the event there were only a few bombs dropped by solitary planes and there were no casualties. This may be because the whole area was blanketed in huge dense black, low lying clouds created artificially by the intentional burning of oil and latex to hide the glowing Bessamer converter furnaces at the steel works from German bomber crews.^[3] The only known remaining scars from German attacks can be found in the form of bullet holes visible on the front fascia of the old post office in Corby Village (now known as Maddisons Bar and Storm nightclub). Nobody really knows the exact circumstances under which the attack occurred, but a local apocryphal tale tells of a lone pilot making his way back to Germany after a successful raid on Coventry who spotted some lights so decided to finish off his already depleted stock of bullets. Sadly, the authenticity of this romanticised tale can neither be verified or denied, but it is certainly the most popular theory among locals. The Corby steel works made a notable contribution to the war effort by manufacturing the steel tubes used in Operation Pluto to supply fuel to Allied forces on the European continent.

By 1950 the population of the town stood at 18,000. In that year Corby was designated a new town and the town underwent its second wave of expansion, mainly from Scotland, which resulted in a car-friendly layout with many areas of open space and woodland.

In 1967 the British steel industry was nationalised and the Stewarts & Lloyds steel tube works at Corby became part of British Steel. In 1973 the government approved a strategy of consolidating steel making in five main areas: South Wales, Sheffield, Scunthorpe, Teesside and Scotland, several of which are coastal sites with access to economic supplies of iron rich imported ores, and in 1975 the government agreed a programme that would lead to the phasing-out of steel making in Corby.^[4] In November 1979 the end of iron and steel making in Corby was formally announced. By the end of 1981 over 5,000 jobs had been lost from British Steel in Corby, and further job losses took the total loss to 11,000 jobs, leading to an unemployment rate of over 30%.^[5][6] Steel tube making continued, initially being supplied with steel by rail from Teesside and now from South Wales.

New industry was subsequently attracted to the town and by 1991 unemployment had returned to the national average.^[7]. The recovery of Corby was explained in 1990 by John Redwood, then a junior minister in the Department of Trade and Industry, as being a result of the establishment of an Enterprise Zone, the promotion of Corby by the government, the work of private investors and the skills of the work force. In such a staunchly working class town few give the Conservative party credit for the recovery. Most blame them for the decline in the first place. Others believe the town's recovery was significantly assisted by its central location and good transport infrastructure.^{[citation needed] [8]}.

As mentioned above, prior to the 1930s Corby was not an especially large village. A Corby urban district was created in 1939 from the parish of Corby. This expanded various times, most recently in 1974 when the existing Corby urban district was abolished and replaced with a new local government district which covered both the area of the old urban district along with the parishes of Cottingham, East Carlton, Gretton, Middleton, Rockingham, Stanion and Weldon, Northamptonshire. ^[9] The district obtained borough status in 1993.

The current Member of Parliament for Corby is Phil Hope MP (Labour). The Corby constituency contains parts of traditionally Conservative East Northamptonshire that balance the traditionally Labour town of Corby leading to a marginal constituency that has gone to the party forming the national government in every general election since the creation of the constituency in 1979. In the 2005 General Election, Labour won Corby by a majority of just over 1,000. Corby Borough Council has been controlled by the Labour party since 1979. In 2007 the council had 16 Labour representatives, 8 Conservatives and 5 Liberal Democrats.

• Corby Borough Council Elections 2007
• European Parliament Elections 2004 (East Midlands Constituency)
• United Kingdom General Election 2005 (Corby Constituency)

Scottish migration, and the migration to Corby has created a unique population in the borough, evidenced most clearly in the 'Corby accent', referred to as 'Corbyite', which is often described as sounding Glaswegian. The link with Scotland is a strong feature of the area: according to the 2001 Census, there were 10,064 Scottish-born in the Corby Urban Area – 18.9 per cent of the population. A further 1.3 per cent was born in Northern Ireland. It has been estimated that a further third of the population are Scottish or of Scottish descent.^[10]

The Scottish heritage is cherished by many inhabitants – there are Scottish social and sporting clubs and there are many fervent supporters of the Celtic and Rangers football clubs (indeed, Corby is home to the largest Rangers Supporters' Club outside of Glasgow and Northern Ireland). Many shops sell Scottish foods and a supermarket even introduced Gaelic signs^[11] to their Corby store (but they have since removed them). An annual Highland Gathering featuring traditional Scottish music and dancing is held in the town.

According to the 2001 Census only 1.7% of the population is non-white and the average age of the population (37.2) is slightly lower than the average for England and Wales (38.6). In the UK Government's 'indices of multiple deprivation' Corby ranks within the 25% most deprived areas in England and some areas of the town are within the 5% most deprived areas.^[12] Rates of violent crime, thefts of motor vehicles, teenage pregnancy and ASBOs are significantly higher than the average for England and Wales.

The town is located along the A43, A427, A6003 and is six miles from the A14 at Kettering. Corby lies within two hours’ drive of four international airports: Birmingham, Luton, Stansted and Nottingham East Midlands.

Corby is served by the Corby Star bus service and there are direct bus and coach services to Northampton, Milton Keynes, Peterborough operated by |stagecoach and Glasgow by National Express. Plans to build a new bus station in Corby are being considered by the council following the closure of the old bus station in August 2002.

The nearest railway station is at Kettering, seven miles south of Corby. It is on the Midland Main Line between London and Nottingham. Corby once had its own rail station on the Midland Railway's "alternative route" between London and Nottingham, bypassing the present main line via Market Harborough, Leicester and Loughborough and passing through Corby, Oakham and Melton Mowbray instead. However, Corby station closed in April 1966 and much of the line lost its remaining passenger services in May 1967. (The Oakham to Melton Mowbray section remains open to passengers as part of the Peterborough to Leicester line.) The Kettering - Corby - Melton Mowbray section remains open for freight, passing through the 1,756 metre (1,920 yard) Corby Tunnel and crossing the River Welland on the colossal 82-arch Welland Viaduct). A new Corby rail station is due to open in late 2008 to replace the shuttle bus service that currently runs to Kettering railway station.

Since the 1980s the unemployment rate has returned to a level closer to the national average (2.7% in October 2005).^[13] Employment is biased towards manufacturing (36.8% compared to a regional average of 18.5%) and against public administration, health and education (10.0% compared to the regional average of 25.9%).^[14] Much of industry is concentrated in purpose-built industrial estates on the outskirts of the town.

According to the 2001 Census the proportion of the working age population with degree-level qualifications (8.5%) is the lowest of all areas in England and Wales. 39.3% have no GCSE-equivalent qualifications at all^[15].

The Corby campus of Tresham Institute of Further and Higher Education provides a range of vocational courses for post-16 students and adult learners. The nearest universities are the University of Northampton, 37km (23 miles) to the south and both the University of Leicester and De Montfort University in Leicester, 40km (25 miles) to the west.

Brooke Weston City Technology College ("the CTC"), one of only 15 CTCs in England, opened in 1990. Brooke Weston CTC has consistently achieved examination results in the top 5% of English state schools.

Since 1990 several of Corby's other secondary schools have fared less well with a series of poor examination results and critical inspection reports leading to mergers and closures, the most recent being the closure of Our Lady and Pope John School in 2005. Currently there are four secondary schools in Corby: Brooke Weston CTC, Lodge Park Technology College, Corby Community College and The Kingswood School. Corby Community College has a special unit for children with severe special educational needs. All four schools have Sixth Forms for post-16 students. As part of the regeneration programme it is planned to close Corby Community College and open an academy situated on one of the new developments. It is also planned to change Brooke Weston to an Academy.^[16] Corby has 17 primary schools of which two are Church of England schools, three are Roman Catholic and one for children with severe behavioural and emotional difficulties.

Land Securities (Corby town centre owners) and Corby Borough Council is currently working with Urban Regeneration Company North Northants Development Company (NNDC) (formerly Catalyst Corby), the East Midlands Development Agency (EMDA), the Government Office for the East Midlands (GOEM), English Partnerships and the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) to regenerate the town centre as part of the masterplan for the whole town. The population of Corby town is expected to double in the next 30 years, to around 100,000, through large new residential developments such as Priors Hall, Little Stanion and Oakley Vale.

In October 2007, Corby's new shopping centre Willow Place opened. The owners, Land Securities expect to submit plans for further development soon.^[17] In addition, Parkland Gateway the Borough's £50m investment situated adjacent to Willow Place and comprised of a new Olympic-sized swimming pool and Civic Hub will be built in the town centre within the next three years following their approval in January 2007. Work has begun on the project in October 2007.

Stephen Fry is currently doing the voice-over work for a campaign running in London to entice people to move to Corby. The campaign is centred around advertisements in newspapers, on the London Underground and on local radio. An example of one of the posters in the 'More for your Money' campaign (photographed on the London Underground) can be found here (willj.net).

Corby does not have a passenger rail service. Midland Mainline, the train operating company (TOC), once ran bus services from Kettering, providing a half-hourly shuttle to Corby Town Centre, but the service was taken over by the Corby Star brand of the Stagecoach Group. This link proved to be successful and Midland Mainline are conducted a feasibility study to see if a passenger rail service to Corby would be viable.

As of June 22nd 2007 it was announced that Corby is to have a railway station, which will be located at the old bus depot adjacent to The White Hart public house. A petition with some 10,000 signatures was handed in to Whitehall as part of a public campaign to show support for the creation of a new train station. As of December 2008 Corby will have an hourly service which will run to nearby Kettering and then on to London. However, the service will not go north of Corby: residents wishing to travel north will still have to travel to Kettering station. Although successful in securing a southbound service, residents are nevertheless calling for northbound services, preferably to Glasgow or Edinburgh (reflecting the town's strong Scottish links).

Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines. The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones.

• The actor Brendan Coyle (Thief Takers, Rockface, Tomorrow Never Dies) was born and raised in Corby.
• Corby was mentioned at length on the BBC Comedy Panel Quiz, QI (Series 'C', Episode 8 - Broadcast 18th November 2005) where numerous facts about the town were mentioned including the crater on Mars, the non-existent railway station and the Porridge Eating Championships. Points were deducted from Phill Jupitus' score when he used the 'obvious' answer of 'the sainted trouser press' to the question 'Name something beginning with C that was invented in Corby'. The Corby Trouser press was in fact created by John Corby in Windsor, England and later manufactured in Andover.
  • Corby crater on Mars is named after the town of Corby.
• Corby was also mentioned by the Astronauts during the Apollo 11 Space Mission after resident John Coyle gained the world porridge eating record and the Astronauts said they were so hungry they'd give him a run for his money.
• Corby annually hosts the UK's most southerly Highland Gathering. To promote the event in the 1970s the town hosted the World Porridge Eating Championships.
• Corby has strong ties to Sir Matt Busby whose sisters lived in the town for many years. A lounge was named in his honour in Lodge Park sport centre, which he opened in 1974.
• Ex-footballer Eddie McGoldrick comes from Corby and managed Corby Town F.C. for a short period.
• Heavy metal band, Raging Speedhorn, were formed in Corby.
• TV Presenter Johnny Vaughan was a life-guard at the local swimming baths whilst attending the nearby Uppingham Public School.
• Author of the Inspector Morse books, Colin Dexter taught at Corby Grammar School (since Queen Elizabeth School, now Corby Community College).
• Award-winning Crime Novelist Jill McGown is a famous resident and based her first novel "A Perfect Match" around a murder located at the town's boating lake.
• Novelist Andrew Cowan was born and grew up in Corby. He attended Beanfield Comprehensive. His award-winning first novel 'Pig' is set in the town, though not named. Corby also features in his second novel 'Common Ground', where it is called 'Ravensby'.
• Novelist John Burnside set 'Living Nowhere' in Corby, where he lived in the 60s and 70s. It features in his memoir 'A Lie About My Father' as well.
• Mark Lawrenson and John Robertson both ended their footballing careers with brief spells with Corby Town F.C.
• Margaret Thatcher christened Corby as : "The Gateway to The North"
• The actor David McBride was from Corby and studied at Beanfield school.
• Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher, has family based in Corby.^{[citation needed]}
• The song 'Steeltown' by Big Country was written about Corby.

• Anecdotal stories that Corby Crater on Mars was so named after the 1969 porridge eating champion have even found there way onto the BBC. The story goes that details of the world porridge eating champion were relayed to Apollo 11 astronauts on their way to the moon - in 1969 In fact, Corby Crater was named in 1979, fully ten years AFTER the moon landings. In 1979 Corby was in the world news for the fight to save the Steelworks from closure. This fight included steelworkers being locked up in the dungeons of Westminster for throwing 'save our steelworks' badges into the House of Commons chamber. The porridge eating story continues to this day but is in fact a myth. Information from NASA confirm the date of naming as 1979 but do not record the reason other than the fact that town names on the planet Earth were used to name newly discovered craters on Mars in 1979. Corby was in the news in 1979, but not for porridge eating! Corby Crater

• More in Corby - place marketing site
• Corby Borough Council
• North Northants Development Company
• Local news
• Corby Radio
• BBC website about Corby
• The English town that's truly Scottish (Scotsman.com)
• WonderWorld, Corby, UK on h2g2
• Corby Crater website
• Corby Satellite map and weather
• Rockingham Racetrack
• Corby pictures and information