Four new street names for the new development at Rabley Wood View were chosen by councillors at the Town Council Planning Committee Meeting on Monday September 21. They are, in priority order, Portfields Road, Wolsey Avenue, Jebb Road and Fishponds Lane.
The names will be passed to Wiltshire Council and GreenSquare, the developers, before a final decision is made on which two street names will be used.
Councillors had received many ideas from the public ranging from names connected with the Civil War Battle of Marlborough, which took place near the site, to names of former town criers and mayors and names connected with the many blue plaques in the town.
Portfields was a top favourite as the area has long been referred to by this name. Cardinal Wolsey was ordained in St Peter’s Church in 1498 and the blue plaque commemorating this is by the main door to the church. Eglantyne Jebb, founder of Save the Children, also has a blue plaque on the town library commemorating her time teaching in the library building which in 1899 was a school. Fishponds was chosen as at one time there were stew ponds (ponds to store live fish ready for eating) near the area.
Stew ponds as a name was rejected after Cllr Fogg pointed out that ‘stew’ in old English referred to a brothel!
The GreenSquare development is being marketed as Hawthorn View and despite requests from the Town Council to change the name to one with local connections GreenSquare are unwilling to change it. However, Hawthorn View will not appear on the postal address of the new dwellings.
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