Belper
Belper is a town in Amber Valley, Derbyshire, England. It is 8 miles north of Derby, on the River Derwent, and has a population of 20,000. Being a relatively small town, it contains a small shopping area around King Street, several primary schools and a single secondary school - known as "Belper School".
Belper was known for its cotton mills during the Industrial Revolution. The town was developed by industrialist Jedediah Strutt around his Belper North Mill (built in 1786), which forms part of the Derwent Valley Mills.
Belper was the first place in the UK to get gas lighting, in 1820.
As of 2003, Belper's MP is Judy Mallaber (Labour), the MP for Amber Valley.
Belper School is notable in that it has no uniform and they call their teachers by their first name. It contains approximately 1300 pupils, and also contains a sixth form. It used to be named "Belper High School" when it was originally made in the 1970s.
The town's name is probably a corruption of the name Beaurepair (beautiful location), the name given
by Edmund Crouchback, son of Henry III of England, to his country seat in the 13th century.
