Birstwith

Birstwith is a village and civil parish in the Harrogate district of North Yorkshire, England. It is part of the Nidderdale, and is situated on the River Nidd. According to the 2001 census, the parish had a population of 756[2] and increased to 868 based on the 2011 Census.[1]

Birstwith
Birstwith Location within North Yorkshire
Population	868 (2011 census)[1]
OS grid reference	SE239595
• London	185 mi (298 km) SSE
Civil parish	Birstwith
District	Harrogate
Shire county	North Yorkshire
Region	Yorkshire and the Humber
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	HARROGATE
Postcode district	HG3
Police	North Yorkshire
Fire	North Yorkshire
Ambulance	Yorkshire

Birstwith Mill on Wreaks Road is run by Kerry Ingredients, a food products manufacturer. The River Nidd provided water for the mill, and although sluice gates and a mill race exist, the water wheel no longer turns—an existing weir provides the mill with a head of water. The mill race rejoins the river downstream. About 1 mile (1.6 km) upstream is a packhorse bridge.

A mill race on the Nidd at Birstwith

Site of Birstwith station, 1976

The local public house is the Station Hotel which acts as a meeting place, and venue for organised charity events such as the Birstwith Coast 2 Coast Cycle Challenge.[3] The village has a store and post office, and a doctor's surgery which is part of a Nidderdale medical group. Sport facilities include a cricket pitch, tennis courts, and a snooker room.

The village had a railway station on the NER line running between Harrogate and Pateley Bridge.[4] The goods yard became Birstwith Grange, a housing development for commuters. The railway line continued along the Nidd Valley and was used in the construction of Scar House and Angram reservoirs.

A village primary school and a Reading Room, built and donated by the owner of the local Swarcliffe Hall around 1880, still exist today. In the mid-1970s Swarcliffe Hall was sold and the contents auctioned, the building became a private prep school. Today Birstwith has a Church of England primary school, and a private school which occupy Swarcliffe Hall.

In 2017 Birstwith In Bloom was established. Birstwith won a Silver-gilt at the Yorkshire in Bloom awards, this was the first time the village had entered the competition.[5]