Castleford
West Yorkshire
Castleford had its origins around a Roman settlement near the River Aire.
Already suffering from the end of coal mining, Castleford has suffered further blows from the relocating of other industries from the town. These include the closure of its Nestlé confectionery factory in 2012. One company which has stayed in the town, after having recently considered a move to Leeds, is fashion retailer Burberry, a company which has been established for more than 100 years and famous for its heritage trench coats which are made in Castleford.
Castleford has indoor and outdoor markets in its town centre, but in Glasshoughton village to the south of the town there is also a large outdoor outlet shopping centre near to Junction 32 of the M62 motorway and an indoor ski-slope and leisure complex with restaurants and multiplex cinema.
There are railway stations at both Castleford and Glasshoughton. While the present Castleford railway station consists of only a shelter, it is nevertherless a busy point where regular trains operating in both directions between Sheffield and Leeds, Knottingley and Leeds and Castleford and Huddersfield all reverse at one of the platforms of a line which continues towards York and Selby, but has no passenger services in that direction. The service to Huddersfield is a recent introduction and by changing there allows journeys to Manchester and its airport more quickly than the previous need to change at Leeds.
Two major Yorkshire rivers come together at Castleford where the River Calder joins the River Aire.
One of the oldest structures remaining in the town is its stone three-arch bridge across the River Aire, built in 1808 to replace one which had been used for many centuries. A new curved pedestrian bridge was opened nearby in 2008, close to the town's old flour mill, as part of a riverside regeneration project.
Castleford is the home of Rugby League team Castleford Tigers. The Superleague team won the League Leaders' Shield in 2017 for the first time in their 91-year history. In 2021, they are Rugby League Challenge Cup finalists.
Town features
The town is on the River Calder and River Aire.
Castleford is on the Aire and Calder Navigation. 
The town has a shopping centre among its range of shops.
Castleford offers bakery goods, butchers, clothes, flowers, furnishings, gifts, jewellery, indoor and outdoor markets#(Mon Thu Fri Sat).
The town has a Post Office.
Castleford has bank and building society branches.
The town has pharmacies.
The town has pubs and social clubs.
Castleford has a selection of places to eat.
A wide range of takeaway food outlets can be found in Castleford. 
The town has a library. 
Castleford has a museum.
There is a multi-screen cinema in the area.
Castleford has a theatre. 
The town has a leisure centre with swimming pool.
Castleford has a community centre. 
There are public toilets in the town - including at bus station (20p).
Places of worship: Anglican, Catholic, Methodist, Islamic, other.
The town has a historic bridge, mill and buried Roman remains.
Travel
Castleford station Powell Street
⇆
⇆ - most trains to Knottingley return to Leeds via Featherstone (and vice-versa).
!! - only one service a day operates east beyond Knottingley. None on Sunday.
Station managed by: NORTHERN. Operator/s: NORTHERN.
NATIONAL RAIL - Departure and station infoExternal link to National Rail live departure board for services at this station (opens in new tab).
Castleford bus station Albion Street
Metro - Castleford Bus Station
Metro - Castleford Bus Station Link to Metro - external web page with details of services and buses at this bus station.
Road travel
Castleford can be reached via the (M62) A639 A655 A656 A6032 A6539 Places to Visit
Sandal Castle
Manygates Lane, Sandal Magna, near Wakefield, West Yorkshire
About two miles south of the city centre, the ruins of the medieval motte and bailey castle are freely open to the public and overlook the River Calder and the city. Some walkways at the castle, including steps to the keep, have recently been undergoing renovation and repairs following a £700,000 investment by Wakefield Council. The castle stood just above the site of the War of the Roses Battle of Wakefield in December 1460. Its damage, however, was ordered by Parliamentarians after the surrender of a Royalist garrison there in October 1645 during the English Civil Wars. More information at the 
Wakefield Council - Sandal Castle
Wakefield Council - Sandal Castle Find on map: 
Sandal Castle
Sandal Castle 
The Hepworth, Wakefield
Gallery Walk, Wakefield
A modern building next to the River Calder in Wakefield provides purpose-built gallery space for a collection donated by the family of Wakefield-born artist and sculptor Dame Barbara Hepworth, who died in 1975, together with visiting contemporary art exhibitions. Find out more at The Hepworth website.
The Hepworth Find on map: The Hepworth, Wakefield
The Hepworth, Wakefield National Coal Mining Museum for England
The National Coal Mining Museum for England is mid-way between Wakefield and Huddersfield , about 6 miles from each, on the main
More details at the
National Coal Mining Museum Yorkshire Sculpture Park
West Bretton
The Yorkshire Sculpture Park is the UK's leading open-air sculpture gallery, situated at More information at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park website.
Yorkshire Sculpture Park Find on map: Yorkshire Sculpture Park
Yorkshire Sculpture Park 
Nostell
off Doncaster Road, Wragby , near Wakefield
The site of a medieval priory, Nostell features a mid-18th century Palladian-style house which has been described as an architectural masterpiece. It includes interiors added by Robert Adam and furniture by Yorkshire-born furniture designer Thomas Chippendale. The house, 6 miles south-east of Wakefield and 5 miles south-west of Pontefract , is set in more than 120 hectares of parkland, including lakeside walks. Feature gardens include a kitchen garden with many varieties of rhubarb and vegetables typical of those grown in the 18th and 19th centuries and also the Menagerie Garden, created in 1743 and once the home of several exotic species. Nostell is managed by the National Trust. More information can be found on the National Trust - Nostell web pages.
National Trust - Nostell Pontefract Castle
Castle Garth, Pontefract
Once the most impressive castle in Yorkshire, Pontefract Castle has been a ruin for nearly 380 years. It is believed to be the place where King Richard II died in 1400, the king having been imprisoned there in 1399. The castle was referred to (as Pomfret) in William Shakespeare's play Richard III as the place where Richard II was 'hack'd to death', although many historians put starvation as the likely cause. Mystery still surrounds the death as there were also stories of Richard's escape to Stirling in Scotland. The castle was visited in August 1541 by King Henry VIII with his queen of the past year, Catherine Howard, and also Thomas Culpeper. Culpeper was at the end of that year beheaded in London for his alleged adultery with the queen, who was herself executed a few weeks later. Pontefract Castle was a royalist stronghold in the English Civil War and was beseiged several times by Parliamentarian forces before its remains were destroyed in 1649. Low and excavated sections of the castle's once formidable walls and towers and parts of the cellars of the castle are all that remain today. The castle is managed by Wakefield Council. More information at the Experience Wakefield - Pontefract Castle website.
Experience Wakefield - Pontefract Castle Find on map: Pontefract Castle
Pontefract Castle Fairburn Ings
Near FairburnSituated 2 miles north-east of Castleford (3.5 miles by road), the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds reserve at Fairburn Ings offers hides, trails and a visitor centre. It has a variety of birdlife habitats, including lakes, woodland and wet grassland with resident and migrating birds depending on the season. The visitor centre is open each day except Christmas Day. The reserve holds events and discovery days through the year and there are also opportunities for pond-dipping.
Emergency services
West Yorkshire Police West Yorkshire Police West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service
West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust
Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust 
Local government
Metropolitan district council
Wakefield CouncilWakefield Council covers an area extending many miles beyond the city of Wakefield itself. The area includes many separate small towns and villages, among them Castleford , Featherstone , Hemsworth , Horbury , Knottingley , Normanton , Ossett , Pontefract ,
The council is made up of 63 councillors elected 3 per ward across 21 wards. Elections held in 3 in every 4 years elect one councillor per ward for 4-year terms.
Political composition after May 2024 election:
63 members
Link to Wakefield Council website .
Wakefield Council County strategic authority
West Yorkshire Combined AuthorityCovers some combined services of the five metropolitan district councils of
Bradford , 
Calderdale , 
Leeds , 
Kirklees and 
Wakefield — which were at one time provided by a West Yorkshire metropolitan county council, with the addition of the non-contiguous unitary authority area of the City of 
York council as well as the unelected Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership. Since 2021 it has operated with an elected mayor as chairman and decision-maker for some responsibilities. These include transport, housing and planning and finance powers. The responsibilities also include those of Police and Crime Commissioner, a role substantially delegated to an appointee deputy mayor. Elected mayor:
West Yorkshire Combined Authority Police and Crime Commissioner
The Police and Crime Commissioner for West YorkshireThis role has become one of the many responsibilities of the West Yorkshire elected mayor since May 2021.
West Yorkshire Combined Authority National government region
Yorkshire and the HumberFire Authority
West Yorkshire Fire AuthorityThe fire authority is made up of elected members of each of the five metropolitan district councils of West Yorkshire - Bradford, Calderdale, Leeds, Kirklees and Wakefield.
West Yorkshire Fire Authority Parliamentary constituency
Pontefract, Castleford and KnottingleyElected MP: