Lympsham is a village and civil parish six miles west of Axbridge and six miles south-east of Weston-super-Mare, close to the River Axe in Somerset, England. The parish includes the hamlet of Wick where Wick Farmhouse dates from the mid 18th century.

History

It has been suggested that the name means 'a suitable home' from the

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...

''ge-limplic'' and ''ham''. More probable is a combination of a personal name beginning "Lin-" or something like "lind-pyll" (pool where lime trees grow) with "ham" (in Old English this usually means either "village" or "estate"). The first appearance of the name in records is in 1086 Domesday Survey: It is certain that King William laid a heavy hand on the estates of the monastery—'quamplures ex suis commilitionibus ex Glastoniæ feudavit possessionibus.' (fn. 34) Malmesbury does not tell us of the losses but only the fact that afterwards the Conqueror relented somewhat towards this old English monastery, and gave back the estates of Podimore, Milton, Fullbrook, Berrow, Burrington, Lympelesham, Blackford and Wootton. At the time of the Conquest the monks suffered the loss of some of their estates, but these were afterwards recovered and even William the Conqueror made reparation for what he had robbed them of. The possessions of the abbey amounted to the huge extent of 818 hides. The 'twelve hides' consisting of the site, precincts and immediate demesne of the abbey was regarded as an ungeldable and unhidated liberty of which the islands of Meare, Panborough, and Edgarley formed part. As far as these estates lay in Somerset the details of the endowment will be found in the account of the Survey A History of the County of Somerset: Volume 2 Edited by William Page. It is likely that efforts were made to improve the drainage of the soil in the area during the

Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

period. In 1129, the Abbot of Glastonbury Abbey recorded that corn was growing here on land which had previously been classified as worthless.

Governance

The parish council has responsibility for local issues, including setting an annual precept (local rate) to cover the council’s operating costs and producing annual accounts for public scrutiny. The parish council evaluates local planning applications and works with the local police, district council officers, and neighbourhood watch groups on matters of crime, security, and traffic. The parish council's role also includes initiating projects for the maintenance and repair of parish facilities, as well as consulting with the district council on the maintenance, repair, and improvement of highways, drainage, footpaths, public transport, and street cleaning. Conservation matters (including trees and listed buildings) and environmental issues are also the responsibility of the council. The village falls within the Non-metropolitan district of

Sedgemoor Sedgemoor is a low-lying area of land in Somerset, England. It lies close to sea level south of the Polden Hills, historically largely marsh (or "moor" in its older sense). The eastern part is known as King's Sedgemoor, and the western part Wes ...

, which was formed on 1 April 1974 under the

Local Government Act 1972 The Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974. It was one of the most significant Acts of Parliament to be passed by the Heath Gov ...

, having previously been part of Axbridge Rural District, which is responsible for local planning and

building control Building automation (BAS), also known as building management system (BMS) or building energy management system (BEMS), is the automatic centralized control of a building's HVAC, HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning), electrical, ligh ...

, local roads,

council housing Public housing in the United Kingdom, also known as council estates, council housing, or social housing, provided the majority of rented accommodation until 2011 when the number of households in private rental housing surpassed the number in so ...

, environmental health, markets and fairs,

refuse collection Waste collection is a part of the process of waste management. It is the transfer of solid waste from the point of use and disposal to the point of treatment or landfill. Waste collection also includes the curbside collection of recyclable m ...

and recycling,

cemeteries A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite or graveyard is a place where the remains of dead people are buried or otherwise interred. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek , "sleeping place") implies that the land is specifically designated as a buri ...

and

crematoria Cremation is a method of final disposition of a dead body through burning. Cremation may serve as a funeral or post-funeral rite and as an alternative to burial. In some countries, including India and Nepal, cremation on an open-air pyre i ...

, leisure services, parks, and tourism.

Somerset County Council Somerset County Council is the county council of Somerset in the South West of England, an elected local government authority responsible for the most significant local government services in most of the county. On 1 April 2023 the county counc ...

is responsible for running the largest and most expensive local services such as education,

social services Social services are a range of public services intended to provide support and assistance towards particular groups, which commonly include the disadvantaged. They may be provided by individuals, private and independent organisations, or administe ...

, libraries, main roads, public transport,

policing The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and th ...

and fire services, trading standards, waste disposal and strategic planning. It is also part of the

Wells Wells most commonly refers to: * Wells, Somerset, a cathedral city in Somerset, England * Well, an excavation or structure created in the ground * Wells (name) Wells may also refer to: Places Canada *Wells, British Columbia England * Wells ...

county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.

Education

The school is home to the Lympsham Church of England Academy, which educates children between the ages of 2 and 9.

Religious sites

The Church of St Christopher originates from the 15th century, but includes significant 19th-century restoration by Rev A. J. Stephenson and his son, J. H. Stephenson. It has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade I listed building.

References

External links