Robin Hood: what to know before moving day
The village centre is taken to be the Halfway House pub at the junction of the A61 and the A654, named because it stands 4 miles from both Leeds and Wakefield. Robin Hood Colliery, known as Jane Pit, stood opposite, on the land between the A61 and Thorpe Lower Lane. It closed in the 1960s, and a large housing estate was built on the site in the 1990s. The Hopefield streets (Hopefield Drive, Hopefield Crescent, Hopefield Way and more) fill much of this part of the map, and Hopefield Walk was once Matty Lane.
Robin Hood grew as part of Carlton, housing miners and quarrymen, and had about 3,573 people in its built-up area in 2011. The quarries by Thorpe Lower Lane and Middleton Lane closed in the 1950s, and the M1 now runs across much of the old brickworks land. Robin Hood Primary School, the post office and the Coach and Horses on the A61, with Robin Hood Athletic's ground behind it, are easy points for a driver.
How the van gets to Robin Hood
From Bradford, the M62 east to junction 29 at Lofthouse and a short run on the A61 (named Wakefield Road and Leeds Road here) brings the van to the Halfway House junction. From there the A654 leaves as Thorpe Lower Lane on one side and Leadwell Lane on the other. Sharp Lane and Copley Lane are the other main roads through the village.
The drive from Bradford is roughly 30 to 40 minutes. That is an estimate from route data, not a timed run, and traffic changes it.
Services for Robin Hood
Each service below links to its Rothwell page, which covers how the job works in and around Rothwell.
Robin Hood: questions before you book
Is Robin Hood named after the outlaw?
Not directly. The name was first given to a spring or well near the old quarries, with an iron ladle chained to its trough. Some local accounts link the area with the legends, which mention an Outwood and Barnsdale, but the well came first.
What happened to the railway through Robin Hood?
The village had a passenger station from 1904, but it lasted only six months and later closed completely. The old embankment from the A61 to Leadwell Lane is now part of the Rothwell Greenway.
Nearby areas
Where the local details on this page come from
Checked on 28 September 2026 against:
- Postcode lookup (postcodes.io, ONS data): WF3 3AW is in Ardsley & Robin Hood ward, Leeds, unparished
- Robin Hood, West Yorkshire (Wikipedia): village near the Wakefield boundary, Ardsley and Robin Hood ward, Halfway House at the A61 and A654 junction 4 miles from Leeds and Wakefield, part of Carlton, miners and quarrymen, 3,573 in 2011, name from a well, Robin Hood Colliery (Jane Pit) and the 1990s estate, quarries closed 1950s, M1 over the brickworks, 1904 station, Matty Lane now Hopefield Walk, Rothwell Greenway, Robin Hood Athletic at the Coach and Horses
- OpenStreetMap map view (checked 2026-09-28): Leeds Road and Wakefield Road (A61), Thorpe Lower Lane and Leadwell Lane (A654), M1, Sharp Lane, Copley Lane, the Hopefield streets, Robin Hood Primary School, post office, The Old Halfway House, The Coach and Horses