Coordinates: 52°13′44″N 0°07′59″E / 52.22889°N 0.13312°E / 52.22889; 0.13312

Arbury
Church of the Good Shepherd
Arbury  Arbury shown within Cambridgeshire
OS grid reference	TL457611
Shire county	Cambridgeshire
Region	East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	CAMBRIDGE
Postcode district	CB4
Dialling code	01223
Police	Cambridgeshire
Fire	Cambridgeshire
Ambulance	East of England
EU Parliament	East of England
UK Parliament	Cambridge
List of places: UK • England • Cambridgeshire

Arbury is a district and electoral ward of the city of Cambridge, England. The ward borders the following other wards (from North, proceeding clockwise): Histon, King's Hedges, West Chesterton, Market and Castle.

History[link]

The area has been occupied since at least Roman times. In the 1950s, stone coffins from the 2nd century were discovered, as well as the remains of a Roman villa and mausoleum.^[1] In medieval times, a decaying circular earthwork of unknown age was visible just to the north of where Arbury Road meets Histon Road (now part of Orchard Park) and was known as Hardburgh Camp by the 13th century. This later corrupted to Arborough and then Arbury. The earthwork was formerly around 100 metres in length, though its western half (extending into Impington) was no longer visible by the start of the 19th century.^[2] It is thought to have been an undefended Iron Age enclosure to protect animals from predators.^[3]

In medieval times, the area was common land, and local peasants were permitted to graze their sheep on the meadow between Lammas to Lady Day. In the 17th and 18th centuries the meadows were dug for earth to make bricks.^[2]

Arbury was historically part of the parish of Chesterton, the area was developed by Cambridge City Council from 1957 as a housing estate of around 100 acres.^[2]

Local life[link]

The community are served by the parish church of the Good Shepherd, a red brick church designed by S. E. Dykes Bower. The chancel was built in 1958 and the nave in 1963-4. Opened in 1963, it became the parish church of its own parish in 1969. The Arbury community centre opened in 1974, which is also home to the Arbury Community Church.^[2][4]

Arbury Court houses a post office, library, supermarket and other local shops. The Carlton Way public house lies on its namesake road, which follows the route of the Roman Akeman Street. Not all areas of Cambridge are as prosperous as many believe and Arbury is an example of a lower income neighbourhood. Crime rates however are lower here than in many parts of central Cambridge.^[5] Isaac Pearson, the uncle of the Victorian novelist George Eliot lived in Arbury.

References[link]

See also[link]

• Electoral Wards map
• Arbury Community Centre