Sunningdale

This article is about the village. For the school, see Sunningdale School. For the political agreement regarding Northern Ireland, see Sunningdale Agreement.

Sunningdale
Level crossing on the A30
Population	4,875 (2001)
OS grid reference	SU955675
Civil parish	Sunningdale
Unitary authority	Windsor and Maidenhead
Ceremonial county	Berkshire
Region	South East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	Ascot
Postcode district	SL5
Dialling code	01344
Police	Thames Valley
Fire	Royal Berkshire
Ambulance	South Central
UK Parliament	Windsor

Sunningdale is a large village and civil parish in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in Berkshire, England.

Location

Sunningdale is located close to the present border with Surrey, and is not far from Ascot, Sunninghill and Virginia Water. It is situated 24 miles (38 km) west of Central London and 7 miles (11 km) northeast of Camberley on the A30 old trunk road. Sunningdale has a railway station on the Waterloo to Reading line which has a level crossing on the A30.

History

The present-day civil parish of Sunningdale came into existence in 1894 under the provisions of the Local Government Act 1894; the village had previously been part of Old Windsor. It was, until 1995, partly in Berkshire and partly in Surrey. The Surrey area of the village, known as Broomhall, was also split between the boroughs of Surrey Heath and Runnymede. This original arrangement caused problems and was resolved only after much consultation locally between the two county councils, three borough councils and four parish councils. As a result, Sunningdale is now situated entirely in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, in the Royal County of Berkshire. The area is popular with professional golfers due to the proximity of Sunningdale Golf Club and Wentworth Golf Club.

Mansions

Sunningdale is home to many large and expensive dwellings.

Charters

Charters is a Grade-2 listed art deco mansion, built in 1938 for the industrialist Frank Parkinson by the architects Adie, Button and Partners. It was built on the site of an earlier house built in the late 1860s by William Terrick Hamilton. Parkinson’s guests included Winston Churchill and the Duke and Duchess of Windsor. In 1949, the house was bought by Sir Montague Burton. It later became a corporate headquarters and has since been redeveloped as an apartment complex and spa.

Coworth House

Main article: Coworth House

Now the Coworth Park Hotel, this is a late 18th-century country house. It was the home of Edward Stanley, 17th Earl of Derby, the early 20th century Secretary of State for War and British Ambassador to France.

Sunningdale Park

Main article: Sunningdale Park

The Sunningdale Agreement was signed at Sunningdale Park, at the Civil Service Staff College (now the National School of Government) on 9 December 1973, a precursor of the Northern Ireland peace process.

Notable people

• Joseph Dalton Hooker lived and died in Sunningdale.
• Agatha Christie
• Darren Clarke
• Paul McGinley
• 20th century famous residents have included Richard Beckinsale, Cliff Richard, former footballer Gary Lineker, Music Business Executive Marcus Österdahl, British pop group Five Star who resided at the Stone Court estate, London Road, between 1987 and 1990, Chesney Hawkes, Brian Blessed, Diana Dors, Nanette Newman and her daughter Emma Forbes and Billy Ocean.

External links

• Sunningdale Parish Council Web Site