Telford

Telford is a new town in the ceremonial county of Shropshire, England. It is administratively located in the West Midlands region, and is now by far the largest town in Shropshire, being the residence for some 130,000 people.

Understand

Telford was built in the 1960s and 1970s as a new town, bringing together a number of mining villages, farms and market towns. As the town develops, the areas between these towns are becoming increasingly filled. The resulting town is virtually one large conurbation from Wellington to Shifnal and from Donnington to Dawley. As a result of the new town's component towns, Telford has several distinct centres, although the Telford Shopping Centre and Telford Town Park area is the de facto administrative centre of entire town.

Get in

By car

It is linked to the West Midlands conurbation by the M54 motorway; it has four exits labelled Telford East, Telford Centre, Telford West and Wellington. The town is also serviced north-south by the A442 Queensway (locally known as the Eastern Primary or EP).

By train
Wikivoyage has a guide to Rail travel in Great Britain

🌍 Telford Central station. Situated on the Birmingham International (Birmingham Airport and the NEC) → Birmingham New Street → Wolverhampton → Shrewsbury line. Frequent services to surrounding areas. (updated May 2019)

Between Telford Central Station and Shrewsbury, there are two stations, named Wellington and Oakengates. These areas are considered part of Telford, although are much older than Telford itself.

By bus

Telford can also be accessed by bus from many nearby areas. The Telford bus station has regular buses to and from Shrewsbury (X5), Bridgnorth (8), and Wolverhampton. From Telford itself, many buses run within it - see below section.

Get around

The M54 motorway and A5 main route pass through Telford giving access from North Wales, the South, East and North East. The A49 passes nearby to give access from the North West, the South West and South Wales.

A train line runs between the main Telford train station and Wellington, via Oakengates.

There are also buses that run throughout Telford - most notably, the 4 (Leegomery-Wellington-Telford Center-Madeley). As of 2023, there are two bus providers that provide buses in Telford: Arriva and the Telford and Wrekin Council (whose buses start from the number 100). Most built up areas have buses running between them.

See

Telford has a long history (see Understand section). As a result there are many attractions including the remains of a Bronze Age fort, Roman ruins, medieval markets, examples of Victorian industry and living, and the new town created nearly 40 years ago.

  • 🌍 Boscobel House and The Royal Oak, Brewood, Bishop's Wood, ST19 9AR (12 miles east of Telford), ☏ +44 1902 850244. adults £6.20, children £3.70, concessions £5.60. 
  • 🌍 Exotic Zoo, Lakeside Plant Centre, Priorslee, TF2 9UR, ☏ +44 1952 371570. 11AM-4PM. (updated Feb 2018)
  • 🌍 Hoo Farm, Hoo, TF6 6DJ, ☏ +44 1952 677917. 8 Feb-24 Dec: 10AM-5PM. (updated Feb 2018)
  • 🌍 The Wrekin. A local hill and landmark, with the remains of a Bronze Age fort on it. Found just southwest of Wellington. (updated Dec 2016)
  • 🌍 Ironbridge. The place where the industrial revolution started and a World Heritage Site as a result of the first ever Iron Bridge being built there. There are many museums around Ironbridge. They are centred on the industrial revolution and Coalport china business, and are well worth a visit. (updated Dec 2017)
  • 🌍 Wellington. A pleasant market town with a market dating back to 1244. The market is open on Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday. The National Trust's Sunnycroft house is a good example of how local Victorian gentry lived. (updated Dec 2017)
  • 🌍 Blists Hill Museum, Madeley. A living history museum and reconstructed Victorian town. 

Do

Buy

Telford's town centre is the commercial centre of the town and is home to the largest indoor shopping centre in Shropshire. The various towns engulfed by Telford have their own commercial centres, which are far smaller than the Telford Shopping Centre.

  • 🌍 Telford Shopping Centre, TF3 4BX, ☏ +44 1952 230032. Features Sports Direct, JD Sports, Next, Wilko, HSBC, Barclays, Lloyd's, TSB, Halifax, M&S, House of Fraser (former Beatties), Druckers, ASDA, The Entertainer, Primark. (updated Dec 2016)
  • Wellington Market, 11 Market St, Wellington, Telford TF1 1DT. Tu Th F 9AM-4PM, Sa 9AM-4:30PM. Contains various cafes and shops, with a nice friendly atmosphere. (updated Mar 2023)
  • Wellington Centre. Wellington's center contains a lot of shops, about half of which can be called chains rather than local. (updated Mar 2023)

Eat

Drink

Sleep
  • 🌍 Hadley Park House Hotel, Hadley Park, TF1 6QJ, ☏ +44 1952 677269, fax: +44 1952 676938, . Doubles: £85/100 (F-Sa/Su-Th). 
  • 🌍 International Hotel Telford, St Quentin Gate, TF3 4EA, ☏ +44 1952 521600. Check-in: 2PM, check-out: 11:45AM. With 101 bedrooms over 4 floors. Doubles: £45. 
  • 🌍 Ramada Hotel (formerly Grays Hotel), Forge Gate, TF3 4NA, ☏ +44 1952 425000. Check-in: 2PM, check-out: 11:45AM. £55. 
  • 🌍 Holiday Inn Telford / Ironbridge (Holiday Inn Telford), The International Centre, St Quentin Gate, TF3 4EH, ☏ +44 1952 527000. Check-in: 2PM, check-out: 11:45AM. from £75. 
  • 🌍 Mercure Telford Madeley Court Hotel, Castlefields Way, Madeley (From the M54 exit at Junction 4 and take the second exit at the roundabout and proceed along the A464 to Telford (not Shifnal). At the next roundabout take the second exit and follow to Randlay Interchange Roundabout. Take the first exit - the slip road will lead you down onto the A442 dual carriageway. Continue on this road (do not turn off for Madeley / Kidderminster A442) until it narrows into a single lane (A4169). Follow this to the Castlefields Roundabout and take the very first exit - B4373 - the hotel drive is located about 200 metres on the left), ☏ +44 1952 680068. The Mercure Telford Madeley Court Hotel is a 16th-century manor house steeped in history offering both the facilities of a modern hotel and the ambience of a beautiful manor house in countryside surroundings. From £41.30. 

Go next

Map of places with Wikivoyage articles nearby

  • Shrewsbury (via the M54 then A5) - Pleasant county town of Shropshire
  • Birmingham – Britain's second largest city and capital of the Midlands
  • Wellington
  • Shifnal – Lots of pubs and good restaurants, situated just on the outskirts of Telford with rail links to Telford Central and Wellington.
  • Ironbridge – UNESCO World Heritage Site with 10 main attractions (and a few others) including the world's first cast-iron bridge. The Malt House has live music every Thursday night, as well as a restaurant and bar overlooking the River.
Routes through Telford
Shrewsbury ← merges with ←  W  E  → Shifnal → Birmingham
Shrewsbury ←  W  E  → Weston-under-Lizard → Cannock
END ←  N  S  → Ironbridge → Bridgnorth


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