For other locations with the same name, see Shenley.
Shenley (which consists of the villages/areas named Shenley Wood, Shenley Lodge, Shenley Brook End, and Shenley Church End) is one of the parts of Buckinghamshire that went to make up the "new city" of Milton Keynes in the 1960s. It is located to the west of the city centre, on the Roman road Watling Street between Stony Stratford and Fenny Stratford.
The village name 'Shenley' is Anglo Saxon in origin, and means 'bright clearing'. In the Domesday Book of 1086 the area was collectively known as Senelai.
The distinction between the Brook End and the Church End happened in the 12th century when a new manor was constructed in Shenley Brook End by the Mansell family. However by 1426 the two manors were owned by the same person and the distinction between the two places was in name only.
Shenley Church End
Shenley Church End houses Denbigh School, whereas Shenley Brook End houses a school that takes the name of the village. Shenley Church End is a major hub of local commerce.
The local centre contains not only the school, but the (local council-run) Shenley Leisure Centre, Watling Vale Surgery, and a shopping area comprising Reg and Jill's Traditional Fish and Chips, an Off License, the Netto Supermarket (re-opened in late 2005 after being destroyed by fire), a Jardines Chemist, Shenley News, an estate agents, the Macintyre Bakery, Chaineys Bike shop, a bookies, a charity shop, a Chinese restaurant and Aspects Dental Care.
Shenley Church End is also home to the Shenley Toot, an ancient motte. Being fenced off in a field now it is now used as a common land enclosure oddly enough.
The village contains Glastonbury Thorn First School, named after a thorn bush in a random park. According to its residents, Shenley Church End is one of the most interesting villages in Milton Keynes.