Bewdley off Severn Valley Railway at Bewdley, and ran through the Wyre Forest to Tenbury Wells. It crossed the river at Dowles, a little to the north of Bewdley. The bridge itself no longer exists, although its imposing brick and stone pillars remain. There are three state schools in Bewdley. Of these, two are primary schools: St Anne's CE Primary on the west side of town and Bewdley Primary School in Wribbenhall on the eastern side of the Severn. The single secondary school is The Bewdley School. The Bewdley Grammar School on Lax Lane closed in the 1800s. Since then, the
Bewdley (UK Parliament constituency) as a borough until the Reform Act, the corporation (and therefore the choice of its MP) was under the influence of one or other prominent local families. In the mid-17th century this control was exercised by the Foley family, but after they acquired a hold on nearby Droitwich (which elected two MPs) their interest in Bewdley seems to have waned – possibly because in Droitwich they were able to secure legal ownership of the voting rights, whereas in Bewdley they had to proceed by bribery. (In 1677, the Commons upheld a petition against Thomas Foley's election on grounds of bribery,