Lake, Isle of Wight

Name

Lake is named after the Old English "Lacu" referring to the creek that ran along, and has been artificially widened into what is now Scotchells Brook, which is between the Isle of Wight Airport, the Morrisons Superstore and the Spithead Industrial Park - the former "Temperatures" air conditioning factory.

Facilities

There is a Primary School at Blackpan (Broadlea), and an academy (Sandownbay) at the bottom of the Fairway. There are several pubs including The Stag, plus The Porter Club (formerly Lake Working Men's Club) and a Townswomens' Guild. The Lions have a centre in the car park (first hour free), behind the former Co Op store.

There is a Methodist Chapel, a Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses and an Anglican Church of the Good Shepherd. Local businesses include Downer & White undertakers, Swinton Insurance, Lesley A Kemp solicitor, Allegri accountants, RSPCA charity shop, Lake Barber Shop, Sparkle hairdressers, Rite-Price Hardware Store, Lake Stores, a veterinary practice and Karen Denley Chiropodist. The village also features an Indian and Chinese Restaurant plus two Chinese takeaways, a kebab shop and Lake Fish Bar. There is a doctor's surgery and pharmacy near the Co Op. There is a public phone box between the Co Op and the public toilets and another set of toilets on the Revetment and Cliff Bridge. The disused medical clinic at the corner of Lake Hill and the Fairway is now a Co-Operative funeral parlour. Until 2015, there was a Co-Op Food Store present, but it closed after being out competed and forced out of business by the new Tesco Express, much to the disdain of residents. There were recently two pubs in the village - The Stag and the Manor House. The Manor House was closed and has since reopened as a Tesco Metro. However, another pub, "The Merrie Garden" has recently opened near the Morrison's store. The thatched building at Merrie Gardens dates from the 17th century and is the oldest surviving building in Lake. Alongside The Merrie Garden pub, a new Premier Inn has recently been built. It opened in late 2015. Lake or 'Welcome Beach' is reached by a steep path down the sandstone cliffs to the Revetment, which contains two cafes (Hinks and Strollers), beach huts, a Sea Scout hut and inshore lifeboat.

The village war memorial has been relocated behind the Fairway Bus Shelter due to having been run down twice by carelessly driven lorries. A large public park called Los Altos starts at the boundary between Lake and Sandown. Another large park called Lake Cliff Gardens borders the cliffs that back onto the beach, and stretches between Lake and Shanklin.

Local wildlife includes Pipistrelle bats at Los Altos, kestrels along the Cliff Path and Common Toads which spawn in the disused reservoir behind the Mall. Sandown & Shanklin Golf Course is behind the High School and the Rugby Club in front. The wetlands of the River Yar are an SSSI supporting newts, voles and wildfowl. Recent improvements have overcome the problem of persistent flooding near the Co-Op, caused by rainwater run-off from Lake Hill and the Mall.

Transportation

Public transport is provided by Southern Vectis bus routes 2, 3 and 8, which run between Newport, Ryde, Sandown, Shanklin, Ventnor and Bembridge. Night buses operate on Friday and Saturday nights.

Having opened in 1987, Lake railway station was the newest on the island until the construction of a station at Smallbrook Junction in 1994. The station is placed in the heart of a quiet residential area close to Lake Cliff Gardens, and the sounds of the antique whistles mounted on the trains is a familiar sound to the village's residents.