Ashby-de-la-Zouch, frequently shortened to Ashby, is a little market town and civil parish in North West Leicestershire, England, in the National Forest. It's a sister city with Pithiviers in north-central France and is located near to the Derbyshire border. The civil parish consists of the hamlets of Shellbrook, to the of the town, and Boundary to its north-west. Nearby villages include Lount, Normanton le Heath, Smisby, Packington, Donisthorpe, Oakthorpe, Moira, Measham and Coleorton. The towns of Swadlincote, Burton-upon-Trent, Melbourne and Coalville are all within 10 miles of Ashby, with the city of Derby 11.5 miles due north. The town is located at the heart of the National Forest and roughly 24 miles south of the Peak District National Park. It lies on the A42 national route between Tamworth and Nottingham. The permanent resident population of the town, as recorded in the 2001 census, was 12758, which grew to 13759 in the 2011 census. Ashby-de-la-Zouch Castle was significant from the 15th to the 17th centuries. In the 19th century, the town became a spa town and before the growth of Coalville, it was the chief town in northwest Leicestershire. In the 19th century, its principal industries were ribbon manufacture, coal mining and brickmaking. The town was served by the Leicester to Burton-upon-Trent Line of the Midland Railway from 1849. Several the buildings in Market Street, the town's principal thoroughfare, are timber framed, but the majority of this was hidden by later brick facades. The Bull's Head public house still has its traditional Elizabethan half-timbering, although the majority of this was plastered over some years ago and can now no longer be seen from the street. For all your home improvement work, make certain that you utilise trustworthy experts in Ashby-de-la-Zouch to make sure that you get the very best quality service.