Donington, Lincolnshire

Donington is a town and civil parish in the South Holland district of Lincolnshire, England. It is 8 miles (13 km) north from the market town of Spalding on the A152, is bypassed by the A52, and sits between the A16 and A17. The parish includes the hamlet of Northorpe,[2] and falls within the drainage area of the Black Sluice Internal Drainage Board.[3] Donington is the birthplace of the explorer Matthew Flinders.[4]

Donington
Church of St Mary and the Holy Rood, Donington
Donington is located in Lincolnshire
Donington
Donington
Location within Lincolnshire
Population2,805 (2011 census)[1]
OS grid referenceTF212355
• London100 S
Civil parish
  • Donington
District
Shire county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townSpalding
Postcode districtPE11
Dialling code01775
PoliceLincolnshire
FireLincolnshire
AmbulanceEast Midlands
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Lincolnshire
52°54′15″N 0°11′54″W / 52.904035°N 0.198246°W / 52.904035; -0.198246

History edit

Donington was large enough in the C18th to attract the travelling theatrical companies. In 1784 Mathew Flinders, father of the famous navigator, wrote "in the latter half of October and beginning of November we have a small Company of Comedians with us. I went 3 or 4 times and once or twice was tolerably entertained".[5]

Governance edit

As well as having its own parish council, Donington is part of the electoral ward of Donington, Quadring and Gosberton within the South Holland district of Lincolnshire. The total population of the ward taken at the 2011 census was 7,102.[6]

It also forms part of the Donington Rural electoral division of Lincolnshire County Council.

Parish church edit

Donington's Church of England parish church is dedicated to St Mary and the Holy Rood. It is a Grade I listed building.[7] The church is almost a complete combination of early Decorated and late Perpendicular style. Its chancel, however, is mainly Early English. The church tower and spire rise to 240 feet (73 m).[8]

Matthew Flinders' remains were identified in London in January 2019. Permission has been granted for him to be re-buried in the north aisle of the Church of St Mary and the Holy Rood where he was baptised.[9][10][11]

Community edit

 
Statue of Matthew Flinders (and Trim)

Local amenities include a park, a playpark, and a teen skatepark. Donington businesses include The Black Bull public house, Coop and Budgens stores in the Market Place, an independent opticians, a butchers, a hair stylist, a flower shop, and a pets & produce outlet. A timber windows manufacturer, employing approximately 100 people, is one of the main employers,[citation needed] while a fire prevention and security company has its head office in Donington.

There are two schools: the Donington Cowley Endowed Primary School, and Cowley Academy, a non-selective secondary school for pupils aged 11 to 16, and partly Grade II listed.[12][13]

Donington is on an operating passenger rail line with stopping services, but has no station. In 2008 Hull Trains proposed reopening it as a railhead to nearby Boston for a direct Lincoln to London service.

Donington has football teams for two age groups: Old Doningtonians for over eighteens, and Young Dons (established in 1996) for anyone under that age; Old Dons play in the Saturday Boston League and Young Dons on a Sunday in the Mid-Lincolnshire Junior League.

References edit

  1. ^ "Parish population 2011". Retrieved 24 August 2015.
  2. ^ "Northorpe hamlet". Genuki.org.uk. Retrieved 2 August 2011.
  3. ^ "The Black Sluice Internal Drainage Board".
  4. ^ Matthew Flinders – his life in Donington Archived 21 September 2017 at the Wayback Machine South Holland Life. Retrieved 2 October 2020
  5. ^ Neil R Wright (2016). Treading the Boards. SLHA. p. 93.
  6. ^ "Donington, Quadring and Gosberton ward population 2011". Retrieved 24 August 2015.
  7. ^ Historic England. "Church of St Mary and the Holy Rood (1064449)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 21 July 2011.
  8. ^ Cox, J. Charles (1916) Lincolnshire pp. 117, 118; Methuen & Co. Ltd
  9. ^ "He's coming home! The remains of Captain Matthew Flinders will be buried in Donington". Archived from the original on 18 October 2019. Retrieved 18 October 2019.
  10. ^ Bishop, Mark. "In the Consistory Court at Lincoln; In the matter of St Mary and the Holy Rood, Donington; Judgment (25 April 2020)" (PDF). Ecclesiasticallawassociation.org.uk. Ecclesiastical Law Association. Retrieved 26 November 2020.
  11. ^ "The final voyage of Captain Matthew Flinders". Archived from the original on 17 October 2019. Retrieved 18 October 2019.
  12. ^ Historic England. "Old School Building at Cowleys School (1064457)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 21 July 2011.
  13. ^ Historic England. "North Wing of Cowleys School (1166210)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 21 July 2011.

External links edit