1.
Reading, Berkshire
–
Reading is a large, historically important town in Berkshire, England, of which it is the county town. The 19th century saw the coming of the Great Western Railway, Today Reading is a major commercial centre, with involvement in information technology and insurance, and, despite its proximity to London, has a net inward commuter flow. The first evidence for Reading as a settlement dates from the 8th century, by 1525, Reading was the largest town in Berkshire, and tax returns show that Reading was the 10th largest town in England when measured by taxable wealth. By 1611, it had a population of over 5000 and had grown rich on its trade in cloth, the 18th century saw the beginning of a major iron works in the town and the growth of the brewing trade for which Reading was to become famous. During the 19th century, the town rapidly as a manufacturing centre. It is ranked the UKs top economic area for economic success and wellbeing, according to such as employment, health, income. Reading is also a regional retail centre serving a large area of the Thames Valley. Every year it hosts the Reading Festival, one of Englands biggest music festivals, sporting teams based in Reading include Reading Football Club and the London Irish rugby union team, and over 15,000 runners annually compete in the Reading Half Marathon. In 2015, Reading had an population of 232,662. The town is represented in Parliament by two members, and has been continuously represented there since 1295, for ceremonial purposes the town is in the county of Berkshire and has served as its county town since 1867, previously sharing this status with Abingdon-on-Thames. It is in the Thames Valley at the confluence of the River Thames and River Kennet, and on both the Great Western Main Line railway and the M4 motorway. Reading is 75 miles east of Bristol,25 miles south of Oxford,42 miles west of London,17 miles north of Basingstoke,13 miles south-west of Maidenhead and 20 miles east of Newbury. Reading may date back to the Roman occupation of Britain, possibly as a port for Calleva Atrebatum. However the first clear evidence for Reading as a settlement dates from the 8th century, the name probably comes from the Readingas, an Anglo-Saxon tribe whose name means Readas People in Old English, or less probably the Celtic Rhydd-Inge, meaning Ford over the River. In late 870, an army of Danes invaded the kingdom of Wessex, on 4 January 871, in the first Battle of Reading, King Ethelred and his brother Alfred the Great attempted unsuccessfully to breach the Danes defences. The battle is described in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, and that account provides the earliest known record of the existence of Reading. The Danes remained in Reading until late in 871, when they retreated to their quarters in London. After the Battle of Hastings and the Norman conquest of England, William the Conqueror gave land in, in its 1086 Domesday Book listing, the town was explicitly described as a borough
2.
Her Majesty's Prison Service
–
Her Majestys Prison Service is a part of the National Offender Management Service of Her Majestys Government tasked with managing most of the prisons within England and Wales. The CEO of the National Offender Management Service, currently Michael Spurr, is the administrator of the prison service, the CEO reports to the Secretary of State for Justice and also works closely with the Prisons Minister, a junior ministerial post within the Ministry of Justice. It has its office in Clive House. It formerly had its office in Cleland House in the City of Westminster. The British Overseas Territory of Bermudas HM Prison Service was a separate organisation, in 2004, the Prison Service was responsible for 130 prisons and employed around 44,000 staff. As of 2009 the number of prisons had increased to 131, the Services statement of purpose states Her Majestys Prison Service serves the public by keeping in custody those committed by the courts. Our duty is to look after them with humanity and help them lead law-abiding and useful lives in custody, the Ministry of Justices objective for prisons seeks Effective execution of the sentences of the courts so as to reduce re-offending and protect the public. Population statistics for the Service are published weekly, statistics available for 24 June 2016 showed the service housed 85,130 prisoners,81,274 males and 3,856 females. The over 60s are the fastest growing age category and Professor David Wilson, early in 2004, it was announced that the Prison Service would be integrated into a new National Offender Management Service later in the year. As of 2008, rationalisation of the management system is underway with the advent of the Titan Prison concept. Six new reform prisons are to be built with prison governors in charge of operation, Penal charities claimed reforms would fail if prisoners were crammed into filthy institutions with no staff. In 2015 the Justice Select Committee, following a long prison inquiry, were critical of Justice ministers for apparent complacency about a 38% rise in prison deaths since 2012. The committee concluded that efficiency savings and staffing shortages had made a significant contribution to the deterioration in safety in prisons. Prison officer numbers had reduced from about 23,000 in 2012, already reduced from about 25,000 in 2010. The government had announced an intention of recruiting 2,500 extra prison officers by the end of 2018. Prisons are overcrowded and understaffed leading to riots, prison escapes and it is suggested that alternative punishments should be found for less serious offenders. Also mental health issues of prisoners are not addressed. Prison assaults have been increasing year on year reaching 22,195 from March 2015 to March 2016, assaults by prisoners on staff are rising with just under 700 causing serious injury
3.
Listed building
–
A listed building or listed structure, in the United Kingdom, is one that has been placed on the Statutory List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest. The statutory bodies maintaining the list are Historic England in England, Cadw in Wales, Historic Scotland in Scotland, however, the preferred term in Ireland is protected structure. In England and Wales, an amenity society must be notified of any work to a listed building which involves any element of demolition. Owners of listed buildings are, in circumstances, compelled to repair and maintain them. When alterations are permitted, or when listed buildings are repaired or maintained, slightly different systems operate in each area of the United Kingdom, though the basic principles of the listing remain the same. It was the damage to caused by German bombing during World War II that prompted the first listing of buildings that were deemed to be of particular architectural merit. The listings were used as a means of determining whether a building should be rebuilt if it was damaged by bombing. Listing was first introduced into Northern Ireland under the Planning Order 1972, the listing process has since developed slightly differently in each part of the UK. In the UK, the process of protecting the historic environment is called ‘designation’. A heritage asset is a part of the environment that is valued because of its historic. Only some of these are judged to be important enough to have legal protection through designation. However, buildings that are not formally listed but still judged as being of heritage interest are still regarded as being a consideration in the planning process. Almost anything can be listed – it does not have to be a building, Buildings and structures of special historic interest come in a wide variety of forms and types, ranging from telephone boxes and road signs, to castles. Historic England has created twenty broad categories of structures, and published selection guides for each one to aid with assessing buildings and these include historical overviews and describe the special considerations for listing each category. Both Historic Scotland and Cadw produce guidance for owners, in England, to have a building considered for listing or delisting, the process is to apply to the secretary of state, this can be done by submitting an application form online to Historic England. The applicant does not need to be the owner of the building to apply for it to be listed, full information including application form guidance notes are on the Historic England website. Historic England assesses buildings put forward for listing or delisting and provides advice to the Secretary of State on the architectural, the Secretary of State, who may seek additional advice from others, then decides whether or not to list or delist the building. In England and Wales the authority for listing is granted to the Secretary of State by the Planning Act 1990, Listed buildings in danger of decay are listed on the Historic England Heritage at Risk Register
4.
Berkshire
–
Berkshire is a county in south east England, west of London. It was recognised as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of Windsor Castle by the Queen in 1957, Berkshire is a county of historic origin and is a home county, a ceremonial county and a non-metropolitan county without a county council. Berkshire County Council was the main county governance from 1889 to 1998 except for the separately administered County Borough of Reading, in 1974, significant alterations were made to the countys administrative boundaries although the traditional boundaries of Berkshire were not changed. The towns of Abingdon, Didcot and Wantage were transferred to Oxfordshire, Slough was gained from Buckinghamshire, since 1998, Berkshire has been governed by the six unitary authorities of Bracknell Forest, Reading, Slough, West Berkshire, Windsor and Maidenhead and Wokingham. It borders the counties of Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Greater London, Surrey, according to Asser, it takes its name from a large forest of box trees that was called Bearroc. Berkshire has been the scene of notable battles through its history. Alfred the Greats campaign against the Danes included the Battles of Englefield, Ashdown, Newbury was the site of two English Civil War battles, the First Battle of Newbury in 1643 and the Second Battle of Newbury in 1644. The nearby Donnington Castle was reduced to a ruin in the aftermath of the second battle, another Battle of Reading took place on 9 December 1688. It was the only military action in England during the Glorious Revolution. Reading became the new county town in 1867, taking over from Abingdon, boundary alterations in the early part of the 20th century were minor, with Caversham from Oxfordshire becoming part of the Reading county borough, and cessions in the Oxford area. On 1 April 1974 Berkshires boundaries changed under the Local Government Act 1972, Berkshire took over administration of Slough and Eton and part of the former Eton Rural District from Buckinghamshire. 94 Signal Squadron still keep the Uffington White Horse in their insignia, the original Local Government White Paper would have transferred Henley-on-Thames from Oxfordshire to Berkshire, this proposal did not make it into the Bill as introduced. On 1 April 1998 Berkshire County Council was abolished under a recommendation of the Banham Commission, unlike similar reforms elsewhere at the same time, the non-metropolitan county was not abolished. Berkshire divides into two distinct sections with the boundary lying roughly on a north-south line through the centre of Reading. The eastern section of Berkshire lies largely to the south of the River Thames, in two places the county now includes land to the north of the river. Tributaries of the Thames, including the Loddon and Blackwater, increase the amount of low lying land in the area. Beyond the flood plains, the land rises gently to the county boundaries with Surrey, much of this area is still well wooded, especially around Bracknell and Windsor Great Park. In the west of the county and heading upstream, the Thames veers away to the north of the county boundary, leaving the county behind at the Goring Gap
5.
Reading Abbey
–
Reading Abbey is a large, ruined abbey in the centre of the town of Reading, in the English county of Berkshire. Reading Abbey is currently the focus of a major £3 million project called Reading Abbey Revealed and this project is conserving the ruins so that they can be re-opened to the public. Alongside the conservation, new interpretation of the Reading Abbey Quarter will be installed, Abbey Ward of Reading Borough Council takes its name from Reading Abbey, which lies within its boundaries. The abbey was founded by Henry I in 1121, as part of his endowments, he gave the abbey his lands within Reading, along with land at Cholsey. He also arranged for land in Reading, previously given to Battle Abbey by William the Conqueror, to be transferred to Reading Abbey. Following its royal foundation, the abbey was established by a party of monks from Cluny Abbey in Burgundy, the abbey was dedicated to the Virgin Mary and St John the Evangelist. The first abbot, in 1123, was Hugh of Amiens who became archbishop of Rouen and was buried in Rouen Cathedral, the adjacent rivers provided convenient transport, and the abbey established wharves on the River Kennet. The Kennet also provided power for the water mills, most of which were established on the Holy Brook. When Henry I died in Lyons-la-Forêt, Normandy in 1135 his body was returned to Reading, other royal persons buried in the abbey include parts of Matilda of Scotland, William of Poitiers, and Constance of York. The abbey also held over 230 relics including the hand of St James, a shrivelled human hand was found in the ruins during demolition work in 1786 and is now in St Peters RC Church, Marlow. The song Sumer is icumen in, which was first written down in the abbey about 1240, is the earliest known six part harmony from Britain, the original document is held in the British Library. Reading Abbey was frequently visited by kings and others, most especially by Henry III who often visited three or four times a year staying several weeks on each visit, the abbey was largely destroyed in 1538 during Henry VIIIs Dissolution of the Monasteries. The last abbot, Hugh Cook Faringdon, was tried and convicted of high treason and hanged, drawn. After this, the buildings of the abbey were extensively robbed, with lead, glass, some twenty years after the dissolution, Reading town council created a new town hall by inserting an upper floor into the former refectory of the hospitium of the abbey. The lower floor of this continued to be used by Reading School. For the next 200 years, the old building continued to serve as Readings town hall. Between 1785 and 1786, the old hall was dismantled and replaced on the site by the first of several phases of building that were to make up todays Reading Town Hall. St Jamess Church and School was built on a portion of the site of the abbey between 1837 and 1840 and its founder was James Wheble, who owned land in the area at that time
6.
River Kennet
–
The Kennet is a river in the south of England, and a tributary of the River Thames. The lower reaches of the river are navigable to craft and are known as the Kennet Navigation. This, together with the Avon Navigation, the Kennet and Avon Canal, the former local government district of Kennet in Wiltshire was named after it. The River Kennet has been assigned as a Site of Special Scientific Interest from near its sources west of Marlborough down to Woolhampton and this is primarily because it has an extensive range of rare plants and animals that are unique to chalk watercourses. In these early stages it passes close by many sites including Avebury Henge, West Kennet Long Barrow. From there the river flows through Marlborough, Hungerford and Newbury before flowing into the Thames on the reach above Sonning Lock at Reading in Berkshire. The upper reaches of the River Kennet have two tributaries, the River Og which flows into the Kennet at Marlborough and the River Dun which enters at Hungerford, the Kennets principal tributaries below Marlborough are the River Lambourn, the River Enborne and the Foudry Brook. For six miles to the west of, and through, Reading, the Kennet supports a secondary channel, the Holy Brook, the Horseshoe Bridge at Kennet Mouth, a timber-clad iron-truss structure, was built in 1891 as a way for horses towing barges to cross the river. Originally this short stretch of river was under the control of the Abbey, today, including Blakes Lock. From High Bridge through to Newbury, the river was navigable between 1718 and 1723 under the supervision of the engineer John Hore of Newbury. Known as the Kennet Navigation, this stretch of the river is now administered by the Canal & River Trust as part of the Kennet, the River Kennet is a haven for various plants and animals. Its course takes it through the North Wessex Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, the protection that this status affords the Kennet means that many endangered species of plants and animals can be found here. Animal species such as the vole, grass snake, reed bunting, brown trout. Crayfish are very common in parts of the river, and not forgetting the foundation to supporting this varied wildlife food chain, there are the insects, many hundreds of species, common and rare, that can be found in and around the River Kennet. There are large hatches of mayflies, whose long-tailed, short-lived adults are a food of trout, many species of water beetle. Caddisflies are also numerous, especially in the late summer. Alongside the river, the beds, grasses and other vegetation support many other insect species, including the scarlet tiger moth, poplar hawk moths. Throughout its history, water mills on the Kennet have been a source of power for various pre-industrial and industrial activities, in places the river has been built up to provide an additional head of water to drive the mills
7.
George Gilbert Scott
–
Over 800 buildings were designed or altered by him. Born in Gawcott, Buckingham, Buckinghamshire, Scott was the son of a cleric and he studied architecture as a pupil of James Edmeston and, from 1832 to 1834, worked as an assistant to Henry Roberts. He also worked as an assistant for his friend, Sampson Kempthorne, who specialised in the design of workhouses, Scotts first work was built in 1833. It was a vicarage for his father, a clergyman, in the village of Wappenham and it replaced the previous vicarage occupied by other relatives of Scott. Scott went on to several other buildings in the village. In about 1835, Scott took on William Bonython Moffatt as his assistant, over ten years or so, Scott and Moffatt designed more than forty workhouses, during the boom in building such institutions brought about by the Poor Law of 1834. In 1837 they built the Parish Church of St John in Wall, at Reading, they built the prison in a picturesque, castellated style. Scotts first church, St Nicholas, was built at Lincoln, with Moffat he built the Neo-Norman church of St Peter at Norbiton, Surrey. Meanwhile, he was inspired by Augustus Pugin to participate in the Gothic revival, while still in partnership with Moffat. He designed the Martyrs Memorial on St Giles, Oxford, and St Giles Church, Camberwell and it did, however, like many churches of the time, incorporate wooden galleries, not used in medieval churches and highly disapproved of by the high church ecclesiological movement. In 1844 he received the commission to rebuild the Nikolaikirche in Hamburg, Scotts entry had been the only design in the Gothic style. In 1854 he remodelled the Camden Chapel in Camberwell, a project in which the critic John Ruskin took a close interest and he added an apse, in a Byzantine style, integrating it to the existing plain structure by substituting a waggon roof for the existing flat ceiling. Scott was appointed architect to Westminster Abbey in 1849, in 1853 he built a Gothic terraced block adjoining the abbey in Broad Sanctuary. Between 1864 and 1876, the Albert Memorial, designed by Scott, was constructed in Hyde Park and it was a commission on behalf of Queen Victoria in memory of her husband, Prince Albert. Scott advocated the use of Gothic architecture for secular buildings, rejecting what he called the absurd supposition that Gothic architecture is exclusively and intrinsically ecclesiastical and he was the winner of a competition to design new buildings in Whitehall to house the Foreign Office and War Office. Before work began, however, the administration which had approved his plans went out of office, palmerston, the new Prime Minister, objected to Scotts use of the Gothic, and the architect, after some resistance drew up new plans in a more acceptable style. Scott was awarded the RIBAs Royal Gold Medal in 1859 and he was appointed an Honorary Liveryman of the Turners Company and in 1872, he was knighted. He died in 1878 and is buried in Westminster Abbey, a London County Council blue plaque marks Scotts residence at the Admirals House on Admirals Walk in Hampstead
8.
Cruciform
–
Cruciform means having the shape of a cross or Christian cross. Christian churches are described as having a cruciform architecture. In the Western churches, a cruciform architecture usually, though not exclusively and this layout comprises the following, An east end, containing an altar and often with an elaborate, decorated window, through which light will shine in the early part of the day. A west end, which contains a baptismal font, being a large decorated bowl, in which water can be firstly, blessed. North and south transepts, being arms of the cross and often containing rooms for gathering, small chapels, or in many cases other necessities such as an organ. The crossing, which in later designs often was under a tower or dome, in churches that are not oriented with the altar at the geographical east end, it is usual to refer to the altar end as liturgical east and so forth. Another example of ancient cruciform architecture can be found in Herods temple, DNA can undergo transitions to form a cruciform shape, otherwise known as a Holliday junction. This structure is important for the biological processes of DNA recombination. A cruciform joint is a joint in which 4 spaces are created by the welding of 3 plates of metal at right angles. A cruciform manuscript was a form of Anglo-Saxon / Insular manuscript written with the words in a block shaped like a cross. In music, a melody of four pitches where a line drawn between the outer pair bisects a straight line drawn between the inner pair, thus forming a cross. In its simplest form, the melody is a changing tone. Often representative of the Christian cross, such melodies are cruciform in their retrogrades or inversions, johann Sebastian Bach, whose last name may be represented in tones through a musical cryptogram known as the BACH motif that is a cruciform melody, employed the device extensively. The subject of the fugue in c-sharp minor from The Well-Tempered Clavier Book I is cruciform, the plain sword used by knights, distinctive due to the flat bar used as a guard. The overall shape of the sword when held point down is that of a cross and it is believed this shape was encouraged by the church to remind Knights of their religion. It was however very popular due to the protection it offered to the hand, some airplanes use a cruciform tail design, wherein the horizontal stabilizer is positioned midway up the vertical stabilizer, forming a cruciform shape when viewed from the front or rear. Some examples are the F-9 Cougar, the F-10 Skyknight and the Sud Aviation Caravelle, cruciform web designs use a cross-shaped web page that expands to fill the width and height of the web browser window. There are a number of different approaches to implementing them, in addition to common cross-shaped products, such as key chains and magnets, certain designers have gone so far as to create cruciform devices and accessories
