The town is an unparished borough, a two-tier area, also coming under the remit of West Sussex County Council. It encompasses the original West Sussex parishes of Ifield and part of Worth. The borough is divided into fifteen wards for local government purposes.
The area now known as Crawley was peopled by Stone Age, Bronze Age and Iron Age settlers, as remains show. During the Roman times the iron industry flourished. The Saxons first named the settlement craw leah (crow infested clearing); both Ifield and Worth are mentioned in the Domesday Book; Worth church is Saxon. A weekly market charter was granted in 1203.
Crawley's position on the turnpike to Brighton helped to boost its population. It was, however, the coming of the railway in 1848, when the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway opened the line from Three Bridges on the line to Brighton to Horsham railway station that started the real town growth. Some 900 houses were added between the two world wars, bringing to population to around 10,000 people by World War II, mainly clustered around the main London to Brighton road (by then the A23).
Crawley area was considered far enough away from London to be a safe place, a few children and some businesses moved into the town. Later in the war Crawley suffered only two fatal attacks: * 4 February1943 a line of bombs fell on the town centre killing two people. This area has yet to be rebuilt. * 10 July1944 two V-1 flying bombs landed on the town. One caused seven deaths, but the other failed to explode.
Nearby Gatwick Airport was requisitioned by the RAF and mainly used for aircraft maintenance and repair.
In 1947, Crawley was designated as a New Town area under the New Towns Act of 1946. Its development then ballooned during the 1950s and 1960s, bringing it to a population of around 60,000. Crawley New Town was based around three communities: Crawley itself, Ifield and Three Bridges. The Act allowed expansion as required: and since its beginnings, the town has continued to grow, incorporating neighbouring settlements. Six square kilometres were added in 1983; and a further neighbourhood to the north-east of the town is planned.
During the boom of the 1980s the town boasted the lowest level of unemployment in the UK.
Other areas within Crawley include: * Manor Royal - An industrial zone (part of the Northgate ward) * Worth - A disputed area falling within Pound Hill. The historic parish of Worth also falls in Mid Sussex, which contains the whole of the modern parish of Worth. * Gatwick - The area surrounding London Gatwick Airport (part of Langley Green ward). Includes the old village of Lowfield Heath which was largely cleared to make way for the airport. The old church building survives within the airport boundary.
* The Hawth - a theatre. * CineWorld - a multi-screen cinema. * Tilgate Park - a large forest, with a rare breeds centre and many visitor facilities. * Crawley Leisure Park - an area with Bowling, Cinema, restaurants, bars and a health club. * Broadfield Stadium - football stadium owned by Crawley Borough Council. Also the home of Crawley Town F.C.. * Crawley Library and Broadfield Library. * County Mall - A large covered shopping area, the main retail area of the town. * K2 Crawley - Leisure centre and sports complex. * LaserHub - Lasertag gaming centre. * Central Sussex College - Crawley campus of the Further Education College (formerly Crawley College), in the town centre, specialising in hairdressing, technology and vocational subjects. * Holy Trinity School, Crawley - Church of England Secondary School with Science Specialist Status, in Gossops Green * Hazelwick School - Comprehensive School, in Three Bridges. * Thomas Bennett Community College - Comprehensive School, in Tilgate. * Ifield Community College - Comprehensive School, in Ifield. * St Wilfrids - Comprehensive School, in West Green. * Oriel High School - Comprehensive School, in Maidenbower.
A large influence on the town's recent development has been the nearby international airport, London Gatwick, which is contained within the borough's boundaries. The airport is now the busiest single-runway airport in the world, and the sixth busiest overall. Crawley also has 3 railway stations; Crawley, Three Bridges, and Ifield. Crawley is located on the southern end of the M23 motorway, which bypasses the town. The M23 motorway ends just to the south of Crawley near Pease PottageService station.
