Radlett | |
---|---|
Radlett shown within Hertfordshire | |
Population | 8,163 (2011 census) |
OS grid reference | TQ165995 |
Civil parish | |
District | |
Shire county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | RADLETT |
Postcode district | WD7 |
Dialling code | 01923 |
Police | Hertfordshire |
Fire | Hertfordshire |
Ambulance | East of England |
EU Parliament | East of England |
UK Parliament | |
Radlett is a large affluent village in the county of Hertfordshire between St Albans and Borehamwood on Watling Street with a population of approximately 8,000. It is located in the council district of Hertsmere and is covered by two wards, Aldenham East and Aldenham West. It is located inside the M25 motorway.
Radlett lies in the valley of Tykes Water, a stream that runs north from Aldenham Reservoir to the River Colne. Now entirely surrounded by the Metropolitan Green Belt, it is seeing significant 'infill' development and pressure to relax the Green Belt restrictions.
Radlett is one of the most prosperous places in Britain. The town contains many substantial detached houses with large gardens. In the older centre there are also a few streets with Victorian semi detached and terraced houses. Over the past few years, the combination of its proximity to London and good transport links have meant that Radlett has become a property hotspot with majority of roads with an average price of over £1,000,000.
Watling Street, which is the main road through Radlett, has a wide variety of local shops and restaurants, as well as some national chain stores, a Post Office inside the local Budgens supermarket, and the Radlett Centre with a 300-seat auditorium for various performances. Attached to the Radlett Centre is the local Public Library.
There are three public houses in Radlett, the "Cat and Fiddle", "O'Sullivan's Bar" and the "Red Lion Hotel".
Radlett is situated on the ancient Watling Street, one of the oldest trackways in Britain. Various archaeological finds of Mesolithic and Neolithic flints provide evidence that the Radlett area was inhabited in the Stone Age; the land was densely wooded and remained so until the Middle Ages. The Catuvellauni tribe settled in parts of Hertfordshire, near St Albans and Wheathamstead in about 80BC, although no trace of settlement has been found in or near Radlett itself. The name Radlett appears to come from the Old-English rad-gelaete meaning a junction of the roads and it is likely that the settlement grew at the point where the ancient route from Aldenham to Shenley crosses Watling Street.