Kingswood Area Guide: Modern Living on Hull's Northern Edge

Kingswood has become one of the most popular residential areas in Hull, and it's easy to see why. Sitting on the northern fringe of the city, it offers modern housing, strong transport links, and more or less everything a family needs on its doorstep — shops, schools, parks and leisure facilities included.

What started out as farmland thirty-odd years ago is now home to thousands of houses and a community that's grown into its own identity. For anyone weighing up Hull, Beverley or the wider East Riding, Kingswood is well worth a look.

Location and Connectivity

Kingswood sits roughly three to four miles north of Hull city centre, with the River Hull to the west and Wawne Road forming its eastern boundary.

The A1033 (Raich Carter Way) links the area to west Hull and on to Beverley via the A1079, while the A63 and M62 corridor are also within easy reach for anyone commuting further afield.

Rough driving times from Kingswood:

• Hull city centre – around 10–15 minutes
• Beverley – around 15–20 minutes
• Humber Bridge – around 25 minutes
• York – around an hour
• Leeds – around 1 hour 20 minutes

Regular bus services run between Kingswood and the city centre, so it's a manageable area to live in even without a car. Given its position, Kingswood works well for anyone employed in Hull, Beverley, the Humber ports, or one of the business parks dotted around the region.

A Bit of History

Kingswood is a genuinely modern development — there's no centuries-old village here. The land was farmland until the late 1980s, when Hull City Council and developers agreed to build on it; the first planning permission followed in 1994, with a second phase added in 2004.

The Ennerdale Link Bridges, built over the River Hull in 1997, were a turning point, connecting the new estate properly to the rest of the city. An Asda superstore opened in 1996, and through the late 1990s and 2000s the retail park, leisure facilities and housing all grew up around each other.

By 2011 there were roughly 2,270 houses built, and by 2016 that figure had passed 3,600, with planning in place for several thousand more over the following years. It's still expanding now, with newer phases such as Wawne View adding hundreds of additional homes.

Community and Lifestyle

Despite being a relatively young development, Kingswood has built a genuine sense of community. It's popular with a real mix of people — young families, professionals, retirees and first-time buyers — and that variety gives the area a pretty welcoming, settled feel.

Residents tend to point to the same things when asked why they like living there: it's clean, it feels safe, and the wide streets and landscaped green spaces make it a pleasant place to walk around. As the area has matured, independent cafés and local businesses have added a bit more character alongside the bigger retail names.

Schools

Education is one of Kingswood's strong points, and it's a big part of the area's appeal for families.

Kingswood Parks Primary School opened in 2014 and sits right within the development itself.

Broadacre Primary School is actually older than Kingswood as a whole — it was the very first building on the site, opening in the late 1980s before the surrounding estate existed.

Kingswood Academy serves as the local secondary school. It opened in its current building in 2013, replacing the former Perronet Thompson School (later Kingswood College of Arts) on the same site.

For further and higher education, Hull College and the University of Hull are both a short drive away.

Shopping and Everyday Amenities

Kingswood Retail Park is the commercial heart of the area, and it's a proper one-stop shop for day-to-day needs. You'll find an Asda superstore, an M&S Simply Food, TK Maxx, Matalan, Next, Boots and Sports Direct, alongside food outlets including McDonald's, Costa Coffee, Greggs and Pizza Hut.

It means most errands can be done without heading into the city centre at all — handy for anyone short on time.

Dining and Entertainment

Beyond the retail park, there's a decent spread of places to eat and drink — family restaurants, coffee shops, pubs and the usual takeaway options.

For entertainment, the Kingswood Leisure Park has a Cineworld cinema and a Hollywood Bowl, plus a David Lloyd club for anyone after a gym or swimming pool. And if residents fancy a change of scene, Hull city centre's restaurants and nightlife are only a short drive away.

Green Spaces and Outdoor Living

Green space was built into Kingswood's design from the start, and it shows. There are landscaped parks, ponds and walking and cycling routes throughout the estate, along with several children's play areas.

Kingswood Parks itself is a good focal point for residents — useful for everything from a quick walk to a proper family day out — and pockets of older woodland, like Ings Plantation, have been kept within the development rather than cleared for housing.

Sport and Leisure

Beyond the cinema and bowling alley, there's a fair range of sporting options nearby — gyms, swimming, football clubs, running and cycling groups, and activity programmes for children. The flat, pedestrian-friendly layout makes it an easy area to stay active in, on foot or by bike.

Healthcare

GP surgeries, pharmacies, dentists and opticians are all available locally, and Hull Royal Infirmary and Castle Hill Hospital are both within easy reach for anything more serious.

Employment

Kingswood's location puts residents within commuting distance of Hull city centre, the Humber ports, and various business and logistics hubs across East Yorkshire. The development itself has also created a fair number of local jobs through its retail and leisure businesses.

The Property Market

Kingswood has one of the more active and varied property markets in Hull, with everything from modern apartments and starter homes to detached executive properties and townhouses. New-build phases are still being added, generally with energy-efficient construction, off-street parking and private gardens as standard.

It's an area that appeals to a broad mix of buyers — first-timers, growing families, young professionals, investors and downsizers alike — which keeps demand fairly consistent.

Nearby Attractions

• Hull city centre – museums, The Deep aquarium, Hull Marina and the historic Old Town
• Beverley – independent shops, restaurants, the racecourse and Beverley Minster
• East Park – one of Hull's largest parks, with lakes and family attractions
• The Yorkshire coast – Hornsea and Bridlington, both manageable for a day trip
• The Yorkshire Wolds – rolling countryside, good for walking and cycling

In Short

Kingswood has grown from open farmland into one of Hull's most established residential areas in the space of a few decades. Good schools, a genuinely comprehensive retail park, decent transport links and plenty of green space make it a sensible choice for families and professionals alike — and with further building phases still in the pipeline, it doesn't look set to slow down any time soon.