Uppingham is a

market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rura ...

and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

in the ceremonial county of

Rutland Rutland is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Leicestershire to the north and west, Lincolnshire to the north-east, and Northamptonshire to the south-west. Oakham is the largest town and county town. Rutland has a ...

, England, off the A47 between

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

and

Peterborough Peterborough ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in the City of Peterborough district in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire, England. The city is north of London, on the River Nene. A ...

, south of

Oakham Oakham is a market town and civil parish in Rutland (of which it is the county town) in the East Midlands of England. The town is located east of Leicester, southeast of Nottingham and northwest of Peterborough. It had a population of 12,14 ...

. It had a population of 4,745 according to the 2011 census, estimated at 4,853 in 2019. The town is known for its eponymous public school. With its art galleries Uppingham has become a popular destination for art lovers. Uppingham was named "best place to live in the Midlands in 2022" by ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'' newspaper, who commented on the town by calling it "a discerning market town with art, heart and smarts — plus the magnificent Rutland Water".

Toponymy

The name of the town means 'Homestead/village of the Yppingas (upland people)'. It stands on a high ridge near Beaumont Chase, hence "upland".

History

A little over to the north-west at Castle Hill are the earthwork remains of a medieval

motte and bailey A motte-and-bailey castle is a European fortification with a wooden or stone keep situated on a raised area of ground called a motte, accompanied by a walled courtyard, or bailey, surrounded by a protective ditch and palisade. Relatively easy ...

castle. Uppingham became a

in 1281 when the lord of the manor was given the right to hold a weekly market. The town has two active churches; The Church of St Peter and St Paul, a largely 14th-century

Church of England parish church A parish church in the Church of England is the church which acts as the religious centre for the people within each Church of England parish (the smallest and most basic Church of England administrative unit; since the 19th century sometimes ...

and the

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

Church on Orange street, built as a Wesleyan Chapel in 1819 and expanded in the 1870s and 1880s. Uppingham

Workhouse In Britain and Ireland, a workhouse (, lit. "poor-house") was a total institution where those unable to support themselves financially were offered accommodation and employment. In Scotland, they were usually known as Scottish poorhouse, poorh ...

was first recorded in 1777 with space for 40 inmates. Until 1834 it was a parish workhouse, but in 1836 the Uppingham

Poor Law In English and British history, poor relief refers to government and ecclesiastical action to relieve poverty. Over the centuries, various authorities have needed to decide whose poverty deserves relief and also who should bear the cost of hel ...

Union began and a Union workhouse was built in Leicester Road to house 158, to a design by architect

William Donthorne William John Donthorn (Donthorne in some sources) (1799 – 18 May 1859) was an English architect, and one of the founders of what became the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). He was born in Swaffham, Norfolk. He was a pupil of Sir ...

. In the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, the building was used as an auxiliary hospital staffed by a Voluntary Aid Detachment. The workhouse closed in 1929 and the building was taken over by

Uppingham School Uppingham School is a public school (English fee-charging boarding and day school for pupils 13–18) in Uppingham, Rutland, England, founded in 1584 by Robert Johnson, the Archdeacon of Leicester, who also established Oakham School. ...

, which uses it as a girls'

boarding house A boarding house is a house (frequently a family home) in which lodging, lodgers renting, rent one or more rooms on a nightly basis and sometimes for extended periods of weeks, months, or years. The common parts of the house are maintained, and ...

called Constables. The Eyebrook Reservoir near Uppingham was used by

Avro Lancaster The Avro Lancaster, commonly known as the Lancaster Bomber, is a British World War II, Second World War heavy bomber. It was designed and manufactured by Avro as a contemporary of the Handley Page Halifax, both bombers having been developed to ...

s flying from

RAF Scampton Royal Air Force Scampton or RAF Scampton (formerly ) is a former Royal Air Force List of former Royal Air Force stations, station located adjacent to the A15 road (England), A15 road near to the village of Scampton, Lincolnshire, and north-wes ...

on the final practice run for

Guy Gibson Wing Commander Guy Penrose Gibson, (12 August 1918 – 19 September 1944) was a distinguished bomber pilot in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. He was the first Commanding Officer of No. 617 Squadron, which he led in the "Dam ...

617 Squadron Number 617 Squadron is a Royal Air Force aircraft squadron commonly known as The Dambusters for its actions during Operation Chastise against German dams during the World War II, Second World War, originally based at RAF Scampton in Lincolnshire ...

Dambusters before

Operation Chastise Operation Chastise, commonly known as the Dambusters Raid, was an attack on Nazi Germany, German dams carried out on the night of 16/17 May 1943 by No. 617 Squadron RAF, 617 Squadron RAF Bomber Command, later called the Dam Busters, using spe ...

, the attack on the Ruhr valley dams on the night of the 16–17 May 1943.

Market

The weekly market is held on Fridays. The Market Place is transformed once a year in November into the only fatstock show still held in temporary penning in a traditional market town. The first recorded show was in 1889. In 2011, 140 sheep, 24 pigs and 20 cattle were entered. The event attracts farmers from the area to exhibit their prize livestock and then toast their acquaintances in ''The Falcon Hotel''.

Governance

There are two tiers of local government covering Uppingham, at

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

(town) and

unitary authority A unitary authority is a type of local government, local authority in New Zealand and the United Kingdom. Unitary authorities are responsible for all local government functions within its area or performing additional functions that elsewhere are ...

level: Uppingham Town Council and

Rutland County Council Rutland County Council, officially called Rutland County Council District Council, is the Local government in England, local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Rutland in the East Midlands of England. Since 1997 the council has been a ...

. The town council is based at Uppingham Town Hall at 49 High Street East. Most local government functions are provided by the county council. The town council is responsible for services such as allotments, cemeteries and open spaces. Uppingham was an

ancient parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

. When elected parish and district councils were created under the

Local Government Act 1894 The Local Government Act 1894 ( 56 & 57 Vict. c. 73) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales outside the County of London. The act followed the reforms carried out at county leve ...

, Uppingham was given a parish council and included in the Uppingham Rural District. The rural district council was abolished in 1974 and its functions passed to Rutland District Council (renamed Rutland County Council on becoming a unitary authority in 1997). Also in 1974, Uppingham Parish Council bought the former Church Rooms at 49 High Street East, which had been built in 1932. In 1980, Uppingham Parish Council formally declared the parish to be a town for the purposes of the

Local Government Act 1972 The Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974. It was one of the most significant acts of Parliament to be passed by the Heath Gov ...

, allowing it to change its name to Uppingham Town Council and appoint a mayor. The former Church Rooms were renamed the Town Hall at the same time.

Education

State schooling in Uppingham is covered by a state secondary school, Uppingham Community College, and two primary schools: Leighfield and Uppingham

C of E C, or c, is the third letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''cee'' (pronounced ), plural ''cees''. History "C ...

. A proposal to replace the primaries with a newly built school was rejected in 2007.

is an

independent school A private school or independent school is a school not administered or funded by the government, unlike a State school, public school. Private schools are schools that are not dependent upon national or local government to finance their fina ...

for boarders aged 13 to 18, founded in 1584, charging fees and mainly for boys. Girls have been admitted since 1975.

Art

Uppingham has several independent and internationally renowned art galleries. The Goldmark Gallery has been selling art from their Uppingham gallery for over 40 years and hold over 50,000 items in stock.

Media

Local news and television programmes are provided by BBC East Midlands and

ITV Central ITV Central, previously known as Central Independent Television, Carlton Central, ITV1 for Central England and commonly referred to as simply Central, is the Independent Television franchisee in the English Midlands. It was created following ...

. Television signals are received from the Waltham TV transmitter. Local radio stations are BBC Radio Leicester on 104.9 FM, Smooth East Midlands on 106.6 FM, Capital East Midlands on 105.4 FM, Hits Radio East Midlands on 106.0 FM, Greatest Hits Radio Midlands (which used to be Rutland Radio) on 107.2 FM, and Rutland and Stamford Sound, a community based radio station which broadcast on DAB. The ''Rutland Mercury'' and ''Rutland Times'' are the local newspapers that serve the town.

Transport

Rail

The nearest railway station is

– north – on the cross-country line between

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

and

. Alternatively,

Corby Corby is a town and civil parish in the North Northamptonshire district of Northamptonshire, England, northeast of Northampton. In 2021 it had a population of 68,164. From 1974 to 2021, it was the administrative headquarters of the Borough of ...

station south on the Oakham branch of the

Midland Main Line The Midland Main Line (MML), sometimes also spelt Midland Mainline, is a major Rail transport in Great Britain, railway line from London to Sheffield in Yorkshire via the East Midlands. It comprises the lines from London's St Pancras railway ...

provides frequent services to London. Uppingham railway station, at the end of a branch line from Seaton, was opened in 1894 and was located at the end of Queen Street. Passenger services were withdrawn in 1960 and the line closed completely in 1964. The station area has now been redeveloped as an industrial estate. Although the operational railway line runs closest to Uppingham at Manton Junction, it has no station.

Roads

An east-west A47 bypass opened in June 1982, providing a link to

and

. The A6003 runs through the town and links Uppingham with

and

Kettering Kettering is a market town, market and industrial town, industrial town in the North Northamptonshire district of Northamptonshire, England, west of Cambridge, England, Cambridge, southwest of Peterborough, southeast of Leicester and north- ...

Buses

Centrebus operates the majority of bus services. The main routes link the town with

(via the 747 Uppingham–Leicester),

and Stamford.

Sport

Uppingham plays host to a number of different sports; in particular football, where Uppingham Town F.C play their games at Tod's Piece. Uppingham Town Cricket Club's new ground opened in 2011. Uppingham School's new sports centre was opened by Lord Coe in 2010.

Town Partnership

'Uppingham Town Partnership' is a not-for-profit community group with the support of the Town Council and Rutland County Council, dedicated to ensuring the town is a great place to live, work and play. Its volunteers organise annual events including "Uppingham Feast Day" (a live music festival with street entertainment, food and drink) held in June and Christmas in Uppingham (a festive celebration with late night shopping in the local shops, visiting market-stalls and yuletide street entertainment). The group of volunteers also supports and raises funds for other events such "Uppingham Films" which screens movies in the Town Hall, and supports 'Uppingham in Bloom' which has become a multiple gold-medal winner with

Britain in Bloom RHS Britain in Bloom is the largest horticultural campaign in the United Kingdom. It was first held in 1963, initiated by the British Tourist Board based on the example set by Fleurissement de France (now Conseil national de villes et villages ...

. It is not to be confused with Uppingham First, which is an unelected business partnership.

References

External links

Uppingham SchoolUppingham Community CollegeLeighfield SchoolUppingham Church of England Primary SchoolUppingham Town CouncilChristmas in UppinghamUppingham FilmsUppingham in BloomLove UppinghamUppingham Town Council
{{Authority control Market towns in Rutland Towns in Rutland Civil parishes in Rutland