Burghfield
Burghfield /ˈbɜːrfild/ is a village and large civil parish in West Berkshire, England, with a boundary with Reading. Burghfield can trace its history back to before the Domesday Book, and was once home to three manors: Burghfield Regis, Burghfield Abbas, and Sheffield (or Soefeld). Since the 1980s the population of Burghfield has nearly doubled with the construction of housing estates, making it a dormitory for Reading, Newbury, Basingstoke and the M4 corridor (which crosses the north of the parish).
| Burghfield | |
|---|---|
| Village and civil parish | |
The Rising Sun, Burghfield Common, in 2005 | |
Burghfield Location within Berkshire | |
| Area | 17.11 km2 (6.61 sq mi) |
| Population | 5,923 Berkshire Public Health Shared Team |
| • Density | 346/km2 (900/sq mi) |
| OS grid reference | SU6668 |
| Civil parish |
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| Unitary authority |
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| Ceremonial county | |
| Region |
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| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | READING |
| Postcode district | RG7, RG30 |
| Dialling code | 0118 |
| Police | Thames Valley |
| Fire | Royal Berkshire |
| Ambulance | South Central |
| UK Parliament |
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Most of the former sparsely inhabited fields of the hamlet of Pingewood, in the north of the parish, are divided by the M4 motorway and have been converted, after gravel extraction in the mid to late 20th century, into lakes that are used for watersports, fishing, and other leisure activities. They are also a habitat for migrating geese, water fowl and other wildlife. A few higher gravel pits in this area have been drained, clay-lined and used as landfill sites.
Besides Burghfield and Pingewood, settlements in the parish include Burghfield Common, Burghfield Hill, Burghfield Bridge, Trash Green, Whitehouse Green and Sheffield Bottom.