- Cuffley
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Coordinates: 51°42′39″N 0°06′48″W / 51.7109°N 0.1134°W
Cuffley 
Church of St Andrew, Cuffley
Cuffley
Cuffley shown within HertfordshirePopulation 4,295 [1] OS grid reference TL305035 District Welwyn Hatfield Shire county Hertfordshire Region East Country England Sovereign state United Kingdom Post town POTTERS BAR Postcode district EN6 Dialling code 01707 Police Hertfordshire Fire Hertfordshire Ambulance East of England EU Parliament East of England UK Parliament Broxbourne List of places: UK • England • Hertfordshire Cuffley is a village in the Welwyn Hatfield district of south-east Hertfordshire located between Cheshunt and Potters Bar. It has a population of just over 4,000 people.[1] Politically, Cuffley is part of Broxbourne Constituency in the House of Commons, and sends a Councillor to Hertfordshire County Council.
Contents
History
The railway had an important impact on the development of the village. Cuffley was reached by the Great Northern Railway in 1910, as part of the plan to create the Hertford Loop Line, as a strategic alternative to the main line out of Kings Cross to the North, by extending the line from Enfield Chase.
The early history of Cuffley is recounted by one of its residents, Molly Hughes, in her autobiographical book "A London Family Between the Wars."
On September 3, 1916 the German airship SL-11 was shot down and crashed in Cuffley during an aerial bombardment intended for London. This incident is commemorated by a Memorial on East Ridgeway to Lieutenant W. Leefe Robinson, the pilot who shot the airship down. He was awarded the Victoria Cross. There is also a model of the airship in the village hall. Contrary to many reports of the incident, the SL-11 airship was not a Zeppelin but an army Schütte-Lanz airship. Regardless, the local football team is still nicknamed 'The Zeps' after this event.
In 1939, the Scout Association purchased part of the Tolmers Park Estate that lies within the Parish of Cuffley. Tolmers Scout Camp, was opened on Whit Saturday 1940 by Lord Wigram.[2] Today, Tolmers hosts thousands of young people annually from all over the UK and across Europe; not only Scouts and Guides but schools and youth groups as well.
Transport
Cuffley is near to the M25 motorway and is part of the London commuter belt. Cuffley railway station provides a commuter service to Moorgate and connects to King's Cross in the evenings and at weekends.
Facilities
Cuffley has a primary school, Cuffley School, which was built in 1938 to replace the original Victorian school room situated where St Andrew’s Church now stands. This modern church, built in 1965, replaced the ‘tin church’ built next to the old village green in 1911. The village also has a lively and well attended Baptist Church, known as Cuffley Free Church. In May 2011 it changed its name to Life Church and started an additional campus of the church in Potters Bar. There is also a Catholic church.
Famous residents
Its most famous current resident is Sir Terry Leahy, former CEO of Tesco, although this has not prevented other locals from objecting vehemently to plans to build a "Express" store in the village.[3] Other famous residents include Premier League footballers Ledley King, Jermain Defoe, Niko Kranjcar, David Bentley and Armand Traoré; and also former Sugababes singer Keisha Buchanan, and Myleene Klass.
References
- ^ a b United Kingdom Census 2001
- ^ The Scout Magazine: June 1940 issue p.162
- ^ Daily Telegraph on-line 23rd July 2007
External links
Media related to Cuffley at Wikimedia CommonsCategories:- Villages in Hertfordshire
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