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Welcome to Castlethorpe

Castlethorpe is a village with a population of around 1,100 set in rolling countryside seven miles north of Milton Keynes city centre and close to the boundary with Northamptonshire. It lies on the northern edge of the Tove River Valley, which is designated as being landscape of Special Character. 
The surrounding area is thought to have first been inhabited in the Bronze Age but the village itself started out in life as a Norman castle belonging to the lord of the manor of nearby Hanslope which was destroyed in 1215 during the Barons' Revolt against King John. 

The parish church is dedicated to St Simon and St Jude, and dates back to Anglo-Saxon times, though the present church is of mainly Norman design.
There are a number of other listed buildings in the village, some dating back to the 15th Century, with fine examples of homes from the 18th, 19th, 20th and 21st centuries as well. 
Click here to find more information about the village's history, including pictures and a video, and there's even more on the Milton Keynes Heritage Association website at www.mkheritage.org.uk/cv.

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No Parking during South Street
roadworks on Monday

Milton Keynes Highways will be marking out eight new parking bays on the stretch of South Street between Bens Close and New Road opposite Acorn Nursery on Monday (20 January).
Please do not park in the area shown in red on the map between 8:30am and 1:30pm as the work cannot be carried out if it is obstructed.
The parking bays on the Acorn Nursery side of the street will not be affected during the work and can be used.

Navigation road to be closed for five days

West Northants Council will be carrying out resurfacing and lining works on the road from Castlethorpe to the Navigation from the bridges over the river to Thrupp Wharf (The Marina) from Monday 3rd - Friday 7th February. The road will be closed to all traffic, including emergency vehicles and those belonging to residents, from 08:00-16:00 every day and drivers will need to follow the diversion route. Access to farm entrances will be limited and only allowed when safe to do so.

Villager Clare to run The Pavilion

We are delighted to let everyone know that The Pavilion, Castlethorpe’s new Community Space at the Sports Ground, will open as a Café and bar run by Clare Vachell, who many of you will already know as not only a villager but also the owner of the successful Lodge Farm Café.
Due to delays with some furniture and equipment deliveries The Pavilion will open a little later than was hoped but Clare is keen to be up and running in March with a café service during the day and a bar and restaurant service in the evenings and weekends.

There is a lot of work getting ready to open and Clare willlet us know nearer the time on an exact opening date. The formal opening, originally scheduled for 22nd February, will also be put back until we are confident everything is ready.
This is a very exciting development for the village and we all wish Clare every success as we get ready to support her in opening the café, restaurant and long awaited bar.
Philip Ayles, Chair, Castlethorpe Parish Council
Lawrence Chapman, Chair, Castlethorpe Community Space 

Click here for more news about The Pavilion

Changes to 33 bus timetable

The 33 bus service has had more changes to the times buses arrive in Castlethorpe from 5 January. You can download the new timetable here. and get live updates on the Get Around MK journey planner by clicking here.

The village's weekly refuse collection day is normally Friday, even after Bank Holidays. The only change is over the Christmas and New Year period. The black (general waste) and green bins (garden waste and food) are collected every week and the red (cardboard and paper) and blue (plastic, metal and glass) bins on alternate weeks, as shown in the schedule above. You can find out more information on what goes in each bin here.

* All three household recycling centres in Milton Keynes are open seven days a week, except for Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's Day, but entry is by appointment only (same day appointments are available) and anyone without an appointment will be turned away. To book your slot phone 01908 252811 or apply online here.

* Under their contract the new waste contractor Suez is obliged to return bins properly and there are penalty payments payable to Milton Keynes City Council if they don't. If your bin goes missing you should complete a form at https://mycouncil.milton-keynes.gov. uk /service/Non_Return_of_Bins 

Have your say on a new ward map for MK 

Due to the growth of the city since its electoral wards were last set in 2014, the Local Government Boundary Commission is undertaking a boundary review of Milton Keynes City Council’s electoral wards.
The Commission is the independent body that draws these boundaries. It is proposing that the number of city councillors should be increased from 57 to 60, and the number of wards be increased from 19 to 20.
Most ward boundaries will change with the exception of Tattenhoe. All wards will be represented by three councillors, who will represent about the same number of electors.
Following an initial consultation earlier this year, the Commission has drawn up further proposals and is encouraging residents and local organisations to share their feedback. The consultation is now live and ends on 24 February 2025.
Further information can be found on the review website at https://www.lgbce.org.uk/all-reviews/milton-keynes, including an interactive map. Feedback can be submitted via the website or by emailing reviews@lgbce.org.uk. Submissions can also be sent by

post to Review Officer (Milton Keynes), LGBCE, 7th Floor, 3 Bunhill Row, London, EC1Y 8YZ.
The review will be completed before May 2026 when all Milton Keynes City Councillors will be up for election in accordance with the newly established wards.Following an initial consultation earlier this year, the Commission has drawn up further proposals and is encouraging residents and local organisations to share their feedback. The consultation is now live and ends on 24 February 2025.
Further information can be found on the review website at https://www.lgbce.org.uk/all-reviews/milton-keynes, including an interactive map. Feedback can be submitted via the website or by emailing reviews@lgbce.org.uk. Submissions can also be sent by post to Review Officer (Milton Keynes), LGBCE, 7th Floor, 3 Bunhill Row, London, EC1Y 8YZ.
The review will be completed before May 2026 when all Milton Keynes City Councillors will be up for election in accordance with the newly established wards.

Calling all cyclists ... MK needs your help!

Milton Keynes City Council has received funding from the Department for Transport’s Rural Transport Catapult to trial a new sustainable drainage product for rural cycle paths subject to flooding, such as the one between Castlethorpe and Wolverton, particularly the section alongside the railway line down towards Ouse Valley Park, and they are asking for help from regular users.
Last winter the route was particularly badly affected by flooding, so this new product could make the route more accessible in the winter months and be a significant step towards a full upgrade. However, just making the route usable after heavy rain would be a significant improvement over 
how it is now. MKCC is are working with the contractor who has developed the new product to start the installation of the product in the autumn, so it is in place for evaluation over the winter. The path will remain open during the works.
One of the key requirements of the Catapult programme is monitoring and evaluation of the research programme. MKCC’s highways and drainage teams will monitor and evaluate the technical performance of the product (such as flow rate etc) and its durability, maintenance requirements, ease of installation etc. and that is a key part of the programme.
However, in addition, they would really like to get the views of regular path users on the  
improvements, and if the path has improved from their perspectiveand have asked the Parish Council to help identify a group of regular path users that they can engage with about the drainage improvements.
There is not a need for a huge group of people to be found, but a small group of regular users, including those who use it for commuting and leisure would be very helpful as a focus group to help gauge the effectiveness of the product and whether it is worth rolling it out elsewhere – as they have a lot of rural paths and an increasing amount of flooding!
So if you would like to help please email clerk@castlethorpe-pc.gov.uk and we will pass your details on.

Castlethorpe has two defibrillators - one outside the Village Hall and the other on the Cricket Pavilion at the Sports Ground. Both are in code-locked cabinets which are registered with the emergency services and show up on their equipment maps. The defibrillators are fully automatic and will tell the user exactly what to do.

The village also has a Community Speed Watch programme, which uses a speed gun operated by volunteers. The speed gun is operated by a team of three - one to hold the gun and the other two to collect the details of the vehicle. If you'd like to help, please email clerk@ castlethorpe-pc.gov.uk or phone 07707 836973.

Your guide to staying well this winter 

  • As Covid, flu and norovirus cases rise throughout the UK, the Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes NHS Health and Care Partnership have produced two extremely informative guides on how you can stay well this winter.
  • One is for individuals which you can download here.  The other is for families with children which you can download here.
  • Please help to spread the information to your friends and relatives and on social media using the hashtag #BLMKWinter.


For detailed information on the latest developments in the COVID-19 pandemic and how to keep yourself safe go to the COVID-19 page on this website, the Government website or milton-keynes.gov.uk/coronavirus

Live travel updates

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Traffic and roadworks

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Buses

Live bus times or download the timetable for the 33 service through Castlethorpe

Trains

Live train arrivals and
departures at Milton Keynes Central station

Flights

Live arrivals and departures
at Heathrow, Luton, Stansted
and Gatwick airports

Castlethorpe statistics

Population                   1,112 (2021 Census)
OS grid reference      SP795445
Latitude/longitude  52.093°N   0.840°W
Civil parish                   Castlethorpe
Unitary authority      Milton Keynes
Ceremonial county   Buckinghamshire
Region                            South East
Post town                     Milton Keynes 
Postcode district      MK19
Dialling code                01908
Police                              Thames Valley
Fire                                  Buckinghamshire
Ambulance                   South Central
UK Parliament            Milton Keynes North 


© 2025 Castlethorpe Parish Council 
11 North Street, Castlethorpe, Milton Keynes MK19 7EW
Email: contact@castlethorpe-pc.gov.uk
Phone: 07707 836973
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