White Lee: what to know before moving day
Coal mining in Batley is first recorded here: the town's earliest pits were at White Lee in the 16th century, and the last pit in Batley closed in 1973. Today White Lee is housing around the junction of White Lee Road and Carlinghow Lane, with Smithies Moor Lane, Brighton Close, Riding Street, Houldsworth Avenue and Leefield Road nearby, and Oakwell Avenue and Priestley Avenue a little further out.
Fairfield School is right at the junction, with Co-op Academy Smithies Moor a short walk away, so a move close to them is easier outside the school run. The Black Horse pub and White Lee Off Licence are the landmarks to give when describing your house. Ridings Wood and the Asquith Fields play area mark the green edge. On one of the closes, tell us whether there is room to turn at the end.
How the van gets to White Lee
The A62 passes a few hundred metres from White Lee as Leeds Road and Huddersfield Road, and it is the way in from Birstall and junction 27 of the M62. The B6122 is the local link, called Muffit Lane on the Gomersal side and White Lee Road through the neighbourhood, and Leeds Old Road runs close by.
The drive from Bradford is roughly 20 to 35 minutes. That is an estimate from route data, not a timed run, and traffic changes it.
Services for White Lee
Each service below links to its Birstall page, which covers how the job works in and around Birstall.
White Lee: questions before you book
Is White Lee in Batley or Heckmondwike?
Both, in a way. Batley counts White Lee among its districts, but part of White Lee lies in Heckmondwike. A White Lee postcode such as WF17 9AG is in the Batley West ward of Kirklees. Give your full postcode and the van is routed correctly either way.
Nearby areas
Where the local details on this page come from
Checked on 28 September 2026 against:
- Postcode lookup (postcodes.io, ONS data): WF17 9AG is in the Batley West ward of Kirklees, unparished
- Batley (Wikipedia): first records of coal mining at White Lee in the 16th century, last pit closed 1973, part of White Lee is in Heckmondwike
- OpenStreetMap map view (checked 2026-09-28): White Lee Road and Muffit Lane (B6122), Carlinghow Lane, Leeds Old Road, Leeds Road and Huddersfield Road (A62) about 250 m, Smithies Moor Lane, Brighton Close, Riding Street, Houldsworth Avenue, Leefield Road, Oakwell Avenue, Priestley Avenue, Fairfield School, Co-op Academy Smithies Moor, The Black Horse, White Lee Off Licence, Ridings Wood, Asquith Fields
- Carlinghow (Wikipedia): Carlinghow stretches up towards White Lee and Birstall