Chatteris
Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Template:Use British English Template:Infobox UK place
Chatteris (Template:IPAc-en) is a market town and civil parish in the Fenland district of Cambridgeshire, England, situated in the Fens between Huntingdon, March and Ely. The town is in the North East Cambridgeshire parliamentary constituency.
The parish of Chatteris is large, covering 6,099 hectares, and for much of its history was a raised island in the low-lying wetland of the Fens. Mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, the town has evidence of settlement from the Neolithic period.<ref name=enjoyengland>Enjoy England.com, URL accessed 18 May 2008</ref> After several fires in the 18th and 19th centuries, the majority of the town's housing dates from the late Victorian period onwards, with the tower of the parish church the only medieval building remaining.
Following the draining of the Fens, beginning in the 17th century and completed in the 19th century, the town's economy has been based on agriculture and related industry. Due to its proximity to Cambridge, Huntingdon and Peterborough, the town has emerged as a commuter town. The town had a population of 11,011 at the time of the United Kingdom Census 2021.
ToponymyEdit
The origin of the name Chatteris is uncertain. The name is first attested in a charter of 974 (in a fourteenth-century copy), as Cæateric and in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Catriz, Cietriz, Cetriz and Cateriz.<ref>Template:Usurped (London: Kelly's Directories Limited, 1900), p. 99.</ref><ref name=":0" /> The Cambridge Dictionary of English Place-Names derives the name from a putatively Old English personal name Ceatta and a word *{{#invoke:Lang|lang}} ("ridge"), thus meaning "Ceatta's ridge".<ref name=":0">Template:Cite book, s.v. Chatteris.</ref> Others have suggested, however, that the name derives from a Common Brittonic word corresponding to modern Welsh {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} ("wood") compounded with Common Brittonic *rïcc ("groove"), though Richard Coates and Andrew Breeze characterise this interpretation as "frankly [...] most uncertain").<ref>Template:Cite book.</ref>Template:Rp Others again suggest that name probably derives from the Celtic Cedrid – Ced meaning a wood and Rid, a ford, although it may also derive from "cader", meaning hill fort, suggesting a similar site to the nearby Stonea Camp.<ref>The Historic Towns of Cambridgeshire, An Extensive Urban Survey: Chatteris Template:Webarchive, Cambridgeshire County Council publication (draft, 2001), 9.</ref>
HistoryEdit
Prehistory and early historyEdit
Archaeological evidence has been found of Neolithic, Bronze Age and Iron Age settlements in the area, and Chatteris possesses what has been interpreted as the only upstanding Neolithic boundaries in Fenland.<ref>The Historic Towns of Cambridgeshire, An Extensive Urban Survey: Chatteris Template:Webarchive, Cambridgeshire County Council publication (draft, 2001), 14</ref> Saxon evidence is less well preserved, although in 679, Hunna, the chaplain to Æthelthryth of Ely built a hermitage on Honey Hill.<ref>The Historic Towns of Cambridgeshire, An Extensive Urban Survey: Chatteris Template:Webarchive, Cambridgeshire County Council publication (draft, 2001), 20</ref> More apocryphally, Chatteris is reputed to have been the last refuge of Boudica as she fled from the Romans.<ref name=enjoyengland/>
Medieval periodEdit
The miraculous story of the first known parishioner of the town, Bricstan, is documented in the Historia Ecclesiastica by the Chronicler Orderic Vitalis (1075 – c.1142).<ref>Full text of The Ecclesiastical history of England and Normandy at the Internet Archive (note: unedited)</ref> According to the legend, Bricstan was a pious free tenant from the town who had joined the monastery at Ely Cathedral in 1115 to begin training as a monk. However, he was accused of theft and imprisoned in London. The legend recounts that one night he had a vision of Saint Etheldreda coming towards him, and as if by a miracle, his heavy chains fell from him and he was shackled no longer. When he awoke from his dream, he discovered that this was indeed true and he was free of his chains.<ref>Lois L. Huneycutt, Matilda of Scotland: a study in medieval queenship (Woodbridge: Boydell Press) 91.</ref> The wife of Henry I, Matilda of Scotland, heard of the miracle, and she assured herself that he was no rogue or thief, issued a writ of pardon and declared him a free man.<ref>Revd John Towers, "Bricstan Hall? Who was “Bricstan”?" Chatteris Parish Magazine. Vol.33 Issue 6. June 2007</ref>
During the Medieval period, the town was dominated by Chatteris Abbey, a small Benedictine nunnery dedicated to St Mary, built in 980 by Eadnoth the Younger for Aelfwyn<ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia, p. 168.</ref> or Alfwen the niece of King Edgar and one of only eight nunneries mentioned in the Domesday Book. The first abbess of Chatteris was Eadnoth's sister, Aelfwyn. Throughout its existence, the abbey was comparatively poor compared to other foundations, due to a lack of royal patronage and a consequent lack of tithe estates. As a result, the abbey survived the first wave of closures during the Dissolution of the Monasteries, but was surrendered to the king's commissioners in 1538, by which time there were eleven nuns in residence.<ref>Claire Breay (ed.), The Cartulary of Chatteris Abbey , (Woodbridge: Boydell Press, 1999). Template:ISBN. p. 96.</ref>
At this date fourteen local families still used the abbey church as parochial but this, unusually, did not save it from demolition, the parishioners being transferred to nearby St Peter and St Paul's Church in the area. It has been conjectured that due to the short space between them, the parish church may have been the abbey church,<ref>The Historic Towns of Cambridgeshire, An Extensive Urban Survey: Chatteris Template:Webarchive, Cambridgeshire County Council publication (draft, 2001), 19</ref> although Claire Breay's Cartulary of Chatteris Abbey discounts this idea, citing that historical documentation clearly defines two separate churches. A range of the cloister buildings survived as part of a mansion known as Park House. This was demolished in 1847 and the site has now completely vanished beneath streets and housing, although the "Park Streets" of Chatteris mark the boundary of its walls and several buildings contain stone originating from the abbey.<ref>Claire Breay (ed.), The Cartulary of Chatteris Abbey , (Woodbridge: Boydell Press, 1999). Template:ISBN, p.92</ref> A large portion of the town was destroyed by a great fire in 1310, which destroyed the nunnery and a large portion of the church, leaving only sections of the base of the tower.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Early modern and contemporaryEdit
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Later fires in 1706 and 1864 destroyed most medieval and Georgian architecture, and a large proportion of the town's listed buildings date from the Victorian period onwards.<ref>The Historic Towns of Cambridgeshire, An Extensive Urban Survey: Chatteris Template:Webarchive, Cambridgeshire County Council publication (draft, 2001), 13</ref> However, many of the pasture fields on the outskirts of the town have evidence of ridge and furrow farming practices, although these are under threat by current building proposals.
To the north of the town runs the Forty Foot Drain, a large river also called Vermuyden's Drain, after the Dutch engineer whose name is associated with the fen drainage works of the middle of the 17th century. Several of the older buildings of the town show evidence of the Dutch architectural style.<ref>Chatteris History, URL accessed 18 May 2008 Template:Dead linkTemplate:Cbignore</ref>
Chatteris is a market town and has possessed this designation since 1834, although an earlier market existed in the town, which was discontinued due to poor roads in 1808.<ref>Fenland District Council website Template:Webarchive, URL accessed 22 May 2008</ref> A small market is still held every Friday.
Following the Beeching Axe, Chatteris railway station, formerly on the St Ives extension of the Great Eastern Railway, was closed in March 1967.<ref>Kelly's Directory of Cambridgeshire Template:Webarchive, (London: Kelly's Directories Limited, 1900), pp.99.</ref><ref>Chatteris Town History Template:Webarchive, URL accessed 22 May 2008</ref> The station buildings no longer exist.
GeographyEdit
Chatteris is situated between Huntingdon, St Ives, Peterborough, March and Ely, in the middle of the Fens—the lowest-lying area in the United Kingdom—with most of the land surrounding the town being below sea level, although the highest point in the Fens (36 feet above sea level) is within Chatteris's parish boundaries.<ref>Malcolm Moss MP constituency page, URL accessed 8 September 2009 Template:Webarchive</ref> The peaty land surrounding the town is largely used for agriculture, drained by numerous ditches and dykes, and there are two large drainage rivers near the town – the Forty Foot Drain, also known as Vermuyden's Drain, and the Sixteen Foot Drain.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Chatteris is a key turning point on the A141 road (known as the Isle of Ely way)<ref>Template:Cite map</ref> and the starting point of the A142 road to Ely and Suffolk (known as Ireton's Way<ref>Template:Cite map</ref>). The town also has important links to Cambridge and the A14 via the B1050 to Bar Hill. The town centre traffic was bypassed in 1986, with the disused route of the former St Ives extension of the Great Eastern Railway being used to build the A141 to March and Guyhirn.<ref>Fenland District Wide Local Plan: Chatteris Template:Webarchive (Adopted August 1993), Fenland District Council</ref>
ClimateEdit
There are no Met Office recording stations in the Fens, but an indication of rainfall and temperature of the county town Cambridge on the edge of the Fens shows that rainfall is below the national average, and in a wider study of East Anglia, the region had temperatures comparable with London, the warmest part of the UK.<ref>Climate: Eastern England Template:Webarchive, Met Office.gov, URL accessed 8 September 2009.</ref> Template:Cambridge weatherbox Template:Notelist
GovernanceEdit
There are three tiers of local government covering Chatteris, at civil parish (town), district, and county level: Chatteris Town Council, Fenland District Council, and Cambridgeshire County Council. The district and county councils are also members of the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority, led by the directly elected Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough. The town council is based at 14 Church Lane.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
The town is part of the North East Cambridgeshire parliamentary seat, whose Member of Parliament is currently Steve Barclay, a Conservative.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Administrative historyEdit
Chatteris was an ancient parish in the North Witchford hundred of Cambridgeshire.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It was administered by its vestry and manorial courts until 1873, when the parish was made a local government district, with an elected local board. Such local government districts were reconstituted as urban districts under the Local Government Act 1894.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
The North Witchford hundred formed part of the Isle of Ely, which was historically a liberty under the secular jurisdiction of the Bishop of Ely. The bishop's jurisdiction was ended by the Liberty of Ely Act 1837 (7 Will. 4 & 1 Vict. c. 53). Between 1889 and 1965, the Isle of Ely was an administrative county with its own county council, whilst also forming part of the wider geographical county of Cambridgeshire. Between 1965 and 1974, the administrative county covering Chatteris was called Cambridgeshire and Isle of Ely.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Chatteris Urban District was abolished in 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972. District-level functions passed to the new Fenland District Council. A successor parish called Chatteris was created covering the area of the abolished urban district, with its parish council taking the name Chatteris Town Council.<ref>Template:Cite legislation UK</ref>
PolicingEdit
Under the Police Act 1964 and local government reform in 1974, the Isle of Ely Constabulary became part of the Mid-Anglia Constabulary until the present Cambridgeshire Constabulary was formed in 1974.<ref>Cambridgeshire Constabulary History Template:Webarchive The Badgers Lair (retrieved 11 December 2005).</ref> A small police station is situated in East Park Street, but it is no longer open to the public.<ref>Cambridgeshire Constabulary Template:Webarchive, URL accessed 17 July 2016.</ref>
EconomyEdit
OverviewEdit
Chatteris is sited in particularly fertile agricultural land, and as such, the town's local economy is largely based on this industry.<ref>Fenland District Council report Template:Webarchive, URL accessed 17 July 2009</ref> Alan Bartlett and Sons Ltd, a major British grower and packer of root vegetables has a large facility in the town with over 2,500 hectares under cultivation, much of it growing parsnips and the Chantenay and Bushytops carrot.<ref>Alan Bartlett website, URL accessed 17 July 2016</ref> The company is a demerger of Albert Bartlett & Sons, which are now based in Scotland.<ref>Albert Barlett website, URL accessed 17 July 2009 (Cached)</ref> Rustler Produce Ltd, also based in Chatteris, is another major player in this industry, and a number of smaller vegetable producers and processors operate in the Chatteris area.
Another major employer in the town is Metalcraft (Stainless Metalcraft (Chatteris) Ltd).<ref>Stainless Metalcraft website, URL accessed 17 July 2009</ref> The company was established in the town in the late 19th century and over the years has manufactured diamond mining equipment and overhead cranes. The company is now part of the Avingtrans Group and specialises in creating engineered products for the oil, gas, nuclear and medical industries.<ref>Avingtrans Group Template:Webarchive, URL accessed 17 July 2009</ref>
An Aldi supermarket located on Bridge Street opened in 2016.<ref>Aldi store in Chatteris, Cambs Times, 23 February 2016</ref> It was formerly a large Co-op which opened in 1990, trading under a variety of brandnames until its closure in 2014.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Another supermarket constructed on the A141 Fenland Way became the first of Tesco's discount Jack's-branded stores in the UK and hosted the press launch on 19 September 2018, opening to the public the following day.<ref name="bbc-19-sept-2018">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It is located within a larger building intended as a Tesco supermarket, constructed at a cost of £22 million but left mothballed following the company's decision to halt the opening of 49 out-of-town supermarkets following poor financial results in October 2014.<ref>Zoe Wood, Vast ghost store on the road to nowhere symbolises problems haunting Tesco, The Guardian 3 October 2014</ref> In 2022 Jack's closed and converted to a Tesco store as originally intended.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The other half opened as a Poundstretcher in 2018<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> which closed in 2023 and re-opened as a B&M store.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Alongside the two big stores is a smaller Screwfix store opened in 2020.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
The traditional town centre stretches from Park Street through Market Hill to the High Street and generally features more specialist non-branch shops. The town centre has a post office but no banks following the closure of Barclays in 2019.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The Petrou Brothers fish and chip shop in West Park Street won the 2006 National Fish and Chip Shop of the Year competition;<ref>Seafish.org Template:Webarchive, URL accessed 18 May 2008</ref> the owners were presented with the award by chef Ainsley Harriott.<ref>"Award: Fish and chip shop scales new heights", Peterborough Evening Telegraph, 15 November 2007. Retrieved 14 January 2014</ref>
There are a number of small restaurants, pubs, tea shops and several members' clubs.
| Economic status | Count 2001 | Percentage 2001 | Count 2011 | Percentage 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Employed | 3,588 | 57.2% | 5,040 | 66.4% |
| Self-employed | 562 | 9.0% | 701 | 9.2% |
| Working/full-time students | 82 | 1.3% | 162 | 2.1% |
| Unemployed | 150 | 2.4% | 276 | 3.6% |
| Retired | 912 | 14.5% | 1,161 | 15.3% |
| Students | 148 | 2.4% | 89 | 1.2% |
| Looking after home/family | 395 | 6.3% | 335 | 4.4% |
| Sick/disabled | 297 | 4.7% | 263 | 3.5% |
| Other | 139 | 2.2% | 107 | 1.4% |
TransportEdit
Chatteris was well served by local bus routes, with regular buses to the nearby towns of March, St Ives, Ely and the city of Cambridge. There are also occasional services to Huntingdon and Peterborough. However the decline in bus usage associated with Covid and more generally has led to the potential ending of all services.<ref>Chatteris: The town to be scrubbed from the bus route map, BBC News, 28 September 2022</ref>
The nearest railway stations are in March and Manea.
DemographicsEdit
The United Kingdom Census 2011 found the population of Chatteris to be 10,453.<ref>Chatteris at City Population. URL accessed 17 July 2016</ref> This was an increase of 1163 since 2001 which recorded 8,820 people living in 3,809 households, with the average number of people per dwelling 2.31.<ref name=census>Chatteris Parish Template:Webarchive in the 2001 Census. The Research Group. Cambridgeshire County Council, October 2003</ref> The 2001 census found that 98.9% of the population of the town were of the white ethnic group.<ref name=census/> The parish of Chatteris is large, covering 6,099 hectares, equalling an average population density of 1.45, although most of the dwellings are concentrated in a smaller area, the outskirts of the town consisting of farmland.<ref name=census/> 99.6% of residents lived in households, the remaining 0.4% lived in communal establishments.<ref name =NOMIS>NOMIS Chatteris Parish Local Area Report Census 2011. URL accessed 28 December 2018</ref>
Ethnic groupsEdit
The majority of the population in Chatteris state their ethnic group as "White". At 97.2% this is higher than the average of 94.1 for England and Wales.<ref>Census Ethnicity and National Identity in England and Wales: 2011. URL accessed 28 December 2018.</ref> Since 2011 diversity in Chatteris has increased slightly and all ethnic groups have increased in size except for "Other" but this is likely due to the addition of "Mixed" as an option in the 2011 census.
| Ethnic croup | Count 2001 | Percentage 2001 | Count 2011 | Percentage 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| White | 8,715 | 98.9% | 10,165 | 97.2% |
| Mixed/multiple ethnic groups | NA | NA | 107 | 1.0% |
| Asian/Asian British | 27 | 0.3% | 109 | 1.0% |
| Black/African/Caribbean/Black British | 9 | 0.1% | 60 | 0.6% |
| Other ethnic group | 26 | 0.3% | 12 | 0.1% |
LanguagesEdit
In the 2011 Census 2.3% of households in Chatteris reported to have no people in household who have English as a main language.<ref name="NOMIS"/>
ReligionEdit
Christianity is the majority religion in Chatteris. From 2001 to 2011 it fell from 74.8% to 62.6%, partly due to a decrease in numbers but mostly due to population growth of which the majority have no religion. Despite the reduction in numbers the Christian population of Chatteris is above the average for England and Wales at 59.3%.<ref>Census Religion in England and Wales 2011. URL accessed 28 December 2018</ref>
| Religion | Count 2001 | Percentage 2001 | Count 2011 | Percentage 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Christian | 6,596 | 74.8% | 6,429 | 62.6% |
| No religion | NA | NA | 3,142 | 30.1% |
| Hindu | NA | NA | 23 | 0.2% |
| Muslim | NA | NA | 22 | 0.2% |
| Buddhist | NA | NA | 19 | 0.2% |
| Sikh | NA | NA | 14 | 0.1% |
| Jewish | NA | NA | 2 | 0.0% |
| Other religion | 54 | 0.6% | 33 | 0.3% |
| Not stated | NA | NA | 769 | 7.4% |
| No religion/Religion not stated | 2,163 | 24.5% | NA | NA |
The parish church of St Peter & St Paul is situated in the centre of the town. A church has been on the site since at least 1162, although the current tower dates from 1352. The building had fallen into disrepair during the 19th century, and the majority of the building is the result of an intensive restoration in 1910. This included restoring a pitched roof and adding new aisles, although the nave arches are original.<ref>St Peter & St Paul Chatteris at the Cambridgeshire Churches website, URL accessed 27 August 2009</ref> The church of St Peter & St Paul is a Grade I listed building.<ref name="NHLE">Template:NHLE</ref> In 1935, a new two-manual Harrison & Harrison organ was installed, a fine example of a pneumatic action instrument.<ref>Harrison & Harrison organ catalogue Template:Webarchive, URL accessed 27 August 2009</ref> Recent years have seen the construction of several new facilities, such as the Bricstan room extension.<ref>Chatteris Parish Church history Template:Webarchive, URL accessed 19 May 2008</ref> The church lists itself as of the low church branch of the Church of England.<ref>St Peter & St Paul at A Church Near You, URL accessed 20 August 2009</ref> The church also hosts Catholic Church services.<ref>St Peter & St Paul website Template:Webarchive, URL accessed 20 August 2009</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
The Emmanuel Church in East Park Street was created through the union of the Methodist, United Reformed and Baptist Union churches in Chatteris in 1990. It is based in the former United Reformed building in East Park Street. Several former chapel buildings exist around the town.<ref>Emmanuel Church Template:Webarchive, URL accessed 19 November 2010</ref> The town has a Salvation Army citadel, also in East Park Street,<ref>Salvation Army website Template:Webarchive, URL accessed 19 May 2008</ref> and a Grace Baptist church, founded in 2010 and called Chatteris Community Church, meets in the King Edward centre on King Edward Street.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
MigrationEdit
The majority of the population of Chatteris was born within the UK. 6.4% of residents were born outside the UK. This is below the national average of 13%.<ref>Census 2011 Detailed country of birth and nationality analysis from the 2011 Census of England and Wales, URL accessed 29 November 2018</ref>
| Country | Count 2011 | Percentage 2011 |
|---|---|---|
| England | 9,521 | 91.1% |
| Northern Ireland | 29 | 0.3% |
| Scotland | 157 | 1.5% |
| Wales | 79 | 0.8% |
| UK not specified | 0 | 0.0% |
| Ireland | 44 | 0.4% |
| EU member countries in March 2001 | 107 | 1.0% |
| EU accession countries April 2001 to March 2011 | 245 | 2.3% |
| Other countries | 271 | 2.6% |
EducationEdit
The town has three primary schools, Kingsfield Primary School (created in 2003 by the amalgamation of the former Burnsfield School and King Edward School),<ref>Kingsfield Primary School Template:Webarchive, URL accessed 18 May 2008</ref> Glebelands School, which opened in the early months of 1994 and Cromwell Primary which opened in 2021.<ref>Glebelands Primary School, URL accessed 18 May 2008</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Cromwell Community College is an all-through school admitting primary school and secondary school age pupils. It was founded in 1939.<ref>Cromwell Community College website, URL accessed 18 May 2008</ref> The Isle College used to have a presence in the town, with a base in Grove House.<ref>Grove House Template:Webarchive, URL accessed 7 September 2009</ref> However, this closed following the college's merger with the College of West Anglia.<ref>College of West Anglia minutes 5/3/05 (item 9)Template:Dead link</ref> The town has a library run by Cambridgeshire County Council.<ref>Chatteris Library Template:Webarchive at cambridgeshire.gov, URL accessed 20 August 2009</ref>
SportEdit
The town's football club, Chatteris Town, known as The Lillies were founded in 1920 and are currently members of the Peterborough and District Football League Premier Division. They play at the West Street ground.<ref>Chatteris Town F.C. Template:Webarchive, URL accessed 21 November 2010</ref> The women's team, Chatteris Town Lillies Ladies, was re-established in 2021, and are currently competing in Division Two of the Cambridgeshire Girls and Women's League. The youth section The Young Lillies has teams up to the age of U18.
The town also has a cricket club, Chatteris Cricket Club, which was founded in 1879. The club has five senior teams and four youth teams that compete in both the Fenland and Cambridgeshire leagues. Chatteris CC won the St Ivo Midweek League in 2008 and 2009 going both seasons unbeaten.<ref>Chatteris Cricket Club Template:Webarchive, URL accessed 21 May 2008</ref> The town also has a bowls club and a tennis club (St Peters). Chatteris Airfield is about Template:Convert north-northeast, which is mainly used for skydiving, and is the base of the North London Skydiving Centre. A flying school is also based at the airfield.<ref>Chatteris Airfield, URL accessed 21 March 2009</ref><ref>North London Parachute Centre, URL accessed 21 March 2009</ref>
The town has one swimming pool, the Empress, which is privately owned and is a registered charity run by three trustees. It is open to season ticket holders and can also be booked for private hires or group sessions.<ref>Chatteris Business Directory, URL accessed 18 May 2008 Template:Webarchive</ref> It is home of the Chatteris Kingfishers swimming club. Plans for a public swimming pool and leisure centre have been proposed by the council since 1990, but have yet to be approved. A new gym situated in the grounds of Cromwell Community College opened in 2013.<ref>The Chatteris Centre Template:Webarchive, New Vision Fitness, URL accessed 17 July 2016</ref>
Fen skating was very popular in the past. An illustration from 1823 by George Cruikshank shows the Wisbech coach in the background of a skating match.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
CultureEdit
Community activities and eventsEdit
The town is noted for its annual display of Christmas lights, which are entirely funded by community donations and have been featured on BBC Look East.<ref>chatterischristmaslights.co.uk, URL accessed 19 September 2010</ref><ref>Template:Usurped, URL accessed 21 August 2009</ref> In June each year the town has a traditional festival weekend.
The town has a museum https://www.chatterismuseum.org.uk/ run by volunteers, with several permanent exhibitions about local history, the Fens, Victoriana and the railways.<ref>Chatteris Museum, URL accessed 21 May 2008</ref> Chatteris also has a Scout club, an Army Cadet Force and a youth football team.<ref>Clubs in Chatteris, URL accessed 21 May 2008 Template:Webarchive</ref><ref>Chatteris Town Youth Football Club Template:Webarchive, URL accessed 21 May 2008</ref>
Chatteris has morning and evening Women's Institutes, which both meet at the King Edward Centre,<ref>Chatteris Women's Institute, URL accessed 21 May 2008</ref> and a Rotary Club which meet at the local fire station.<ref>Chatteris Rotary Club Template:Webarchive, URL accessed 21 May 2008</ref>
Since 2012 Chatteris has a branch of the University of the Third Age (U3A) which caters for people no longer in full time employment, with a talk every month at the general meeting held at the King Edward Centre, plus over 20 interest groups of various kinds, and a number of trips and theatre visits are also provided during the year.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Chatteris in Bloom is a charity responsible for entering the town in to the annual "Anglia in Bloom" competition.<ref>Chatteris in Bloom, URL accessed 2 September 2016</ref> Chatteris achieved the highest gold award in 2017, 2018, 2019, 2022 and in 2023 was joint winner of Anglia in Bloom with Huntingdon.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
The town has a brass band, founded in 1882, which competes in the East Anglian Brass Band Association.<ref>Chatteris Town Band Template:Webarchive, URL accessed 18 May 2008</ref><ref>"The sound of success" in the Fenland Citizen, 17 May 2006</ref>
MusicEdit
In 2005, British indie band Half Man Half BiscuitTemplate:Sndperhaps best known for "The Trumpton Riots" and "Dickie Davies Eyes"Template:Sndincluded a song entitled "For What Is Chatteris..." on their award-winning Achtung Bono album. The song extolled the virtues of the town, offset against how unsatisfying the best place in the world can suddenly become when the one you love is no longer there: "a market town that lacks quintessence / that's Chatteris without your presence".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> News of the song made the headlines of the Cambridgeshire Times and the Peterborough Evening Telegraph during September 2005, a month before the album's official release.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
MediaEdit
Local news and television programmes are provided by BBC East and ITV Anglia. Television signals are received from the Sandy Heath TV transmitter.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Local radio stations are BBC Radio Cambridgeshire, Heart East, and Greatest Hits Radio East. The town is served by these local newspapers, Fenland Citizen and Cambs Times.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Notable residentsEdit
- Eric Boon, boxer; British Lightweight Champion 1938–1944.<ref>Eric Boon statistics Template:Webarchive, BoxRec.com, URL accessed 19 July 2010</ref>
- George William Burdett Clare, Victoria Cross recipient after whom the doctors' surgery is named.<ref>NHS – George Clare Surgery, URL accessed 18 May 2008</ref>
- Sir George Herbert Farrar, South African mining magnate, politician and soldier.<ref>John Pinfold. "Farrar, Sir George Herbert, baronet (1859–1915)", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, online edn, Oxford University Press, October 2007 accessed 21 August 2009</ref>
- John Percy Farrar, English soldier and mountaineer. President of the Alpine Club from 1917 to 1919 and a member of the Mount Everest Committee.<ref>Anglo Boer war.comTemplate:Dead link, URL accessed 21 August 2009</ref>
- John Dunn Gardner, MP and landowner, resident of Chatteris House.<ref>A.F. Wareham and A.P.M Wright (2002). 'Fordham: Manors and other estates', A History of the County of Cambridge and the Isle of Ely: Volume 10: Cheveley, Flendish, Staine and Staploe Hundreds (north-eastern Cambridgeshire) (2002), pp. 395–402. Retrieved 13 February 2008.</ref>
- Dave Boy Green, boxer.<ref>East Side Boxing.com, URL accessed 21 August 2009</ref>
- Dominic Mohan (former resident), former editor of The Sun newspaper.<ref>"Former Chatteris man is new Sun Editor" in the Fenland Citizen, 27 August 2009</ref>
- Joe Perry, snooker player.<ref>Joe Perry World Snooker Profile, URL accessed 21 May 2008 Template:Webarchive</ref>
- Joseph Ruston, engineer and MP.<ref>Jonathan Brown, "Ruston, Joseph" in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, online edn, Oxford University Press,accessed 21 August 2009</ref>
- Lindsay Shilling, Principal Trombonist at the Royal Opera House.<ref>Lindsay Shilling profile Template:Webarchive, URL accessed 21 August 2009</ref>