Conservation Report - Local Administration

Local Government Administration

As mentioned previously, Luddenden has always been in a slightly awkward position as far as local government administration has been concerned. Right from the time of the Domesday survey, Luddenden has straddled two administrative areas, with the Luddenden Brook being the dividing line. The area to the east of the river was in the Warley Township, whilst that part to the west was in the Midgley Township. The main administrative duties of the Townships were carried out by four main officials - the greave (or grave), constable, surveyor of highways and the overseer of the poor.

The job of the grave was to organise Township work, collect fines and rents and present offenders in the courts. Because Midgley Township was sub-let, there was a Township court for those who transgressed in a small way. More serious crimes were taken to the court of the Lord of the Manor of Wakefield. Those who transgressed in Warley would be taken to the Wakefield court, although there would be local sittings in Halifax. The last Midgley Township Court was held at the Clarence Hotel in Brearley (now14 Brearley Lane) when Thomas Riley was Lord of the Manor in the 1850s.

Minor misdemeanours would often be punished by the constable placing a person in the stocks. The Midgley stocks were along Towngate where the replica is positioned, and the Warley stocks were at the bottom of Stocks Lane. The constable would also place either seized animals or stray animals in the pinfold. The Midgley pinfold is on Chapel Lane at the top of the village, and the Warley pinfold at the top of Stocks Lane. The overseer of the poor was allowed to levy a rate on the annual value of land and buildings. An Act of 1723 allowed for the setting up of workhouses for the homeless and poor. Paupers who refused to enter the workhouse were then refused poor relief. The Midgley workhouse was just below the moor at New Earth Head farmhouse (still called Workhouse Farm by locals). The Warley workhouse was along Workhouse Lane just above Newlands Five Lane Ends.

The modern system of local government began to develop in the 1850s. Elected Local Boards of Health, usually known just as Local Boards, were set up to deal with drainage, highways, street lighting and building regulations. They were allowed to levy a rate. The Midgley Local Board was set up in 1863, but was abolished in 1894 when the Midgley Urban District Council (UDC) came into being, as did the Warley UDC. The latter only lasted until 1900, when it was absorbed into the Halifax Borough. Midgley UDC lasted until 1939, when it was absorbed mainly by Sowerby Bridge Urban District, thereby bringing to an end almost 900 years as a separate administrative unit. In 1974, the Borough of Calderdale was formed, which incorporated Halifax Borough and all the smaller urban and rural councils.

The division of Luddenden for so many years had quite strange consequences at times. Children who had been brought up together at Luddenden School would suddenly find, at the age of 11, that if they lived at the Warley side they would go to a Halifax School, whilst children from the Midgley side would go to Calder High.

Similarly, many other services were run separately leading to many similar situations - ambulance services, fire engines and so on. The advent of Calderdale certainly standardised this much more, although which way standards went depended on which of the previous authorities had the better service and which the worse.