Barstable is an ancient local name: a form of it appears in the Domesday Book of 1086. The modern Barstable neighbourhood, however, was largely shaped during the New Town period east and south-east of the town centre.
Housing, schools and community facilities developed together. The Long Riding public house opened in 1959 and became a familiar neighbourhood landmark. Barstable Grammar and Technical School opened in 1962; in 1968 it merged with Timberlog Secondary Modern to become Barstable Comprehensive. The school site later became part of the Basildon Academies structure.
Long Riding and Timberlog Lane became important local routes and shopping/service areas, while the neighbourhood's proximity to Vange means the historical boundary between the two is less obvious on the ground than on planning maps.
Kingswood formed another of the principal planned neighbourhoods around central Basildon. It developed west and south-west of the town centre, with Clay Hill Road providing a major route through the area.
New housing was supported by schools, local facilities and recreation. A permanent children's play centre was later established at Clay Hill Road as Basildon's organised play schemes expanded. Kingswood's position also placed residents close to Gloucester Park, the town centre and the developing civic and leisure facilities of central Basildon.
The name Basildon existed centuries before the New Town and referred to a comparatively small rural settlement. The decision to use “Basildon” for the whole New Town gave this previously modest name a much larger identity.
The purpose-built town centre began trading in 1958 and became the commercial focus for all the surrounding neighbourhoods. Roads such as Southernhay, Nether Mayne and the Roundacre system were designed to connect the neighbourhoods to the centre while separating much through traffic from pedestrian shopping areas.