Sitting on the western side of Leicester, New Parks is a residential suburb within the Leicester district, which falls under the ceremonial county of Leicestershire. The Western Park ward borders it to the south, Beaumont Leys to the north, and the Fosse ward to the east. The area is well served by local shops positioned alongside residential streets, along with leisure centre facilities.
Community Facilities
One of the most notable additions to New Parks in recent years was the opening of the New Parks Centre Library on 16 March 2010. The £1.5 million facility was funded jointly by the Big Lottery Fund and Leicester City Council, and was officially opened by Councillor Andy Connelly alongside local residents Karen Berry and Sally Kibble. Education provision in the suburb includes several primary schools: Braunstone Frith Primary School, Forest Lodge Academy, Inglehurst Primary School, Fosse Primary School, Parks Primary School, and Stokes Wood Primary School. Secondary education is provided by New College Leicester.
History and Administration
New Parks has an interesting administrative history. It was originally an extra-parochial tract before becoming a civil parish in its own right from 1858. That status came to an end on 1 April 1935, when the parish was abolished and merged with Leicester, with part of its territory also going to form Glenfields. At the time of the 1931 census, the parish held a population of just 704 people. By the 2011 Census, the electoral ward of New Parks recorded a population of 17,128, reflecting the substantial growth the area experienced over the twentieth century. The ward is currently represented by Labour councillors Dawn Alfonso, Stephen Corrall, and Malcolm Unsworth. Past councillors for the ward have included George Billington, Ross Willmott, John Blackmore, and Colin Hall.