Butcombe is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England. The village is situated just north of

Blagdon Lake Blagdon Lake lies in a valley at the northern edge of the Mendip Hills, close to the village of Blagdon and approximately south of Bristol, England. The lake was created by Bristol Water (Bristol Waterworks Company as it was known then), when ...

, in North Somerset. The parish has a population of 218 and mainly consists of family-owned farmland. It no longer has any amenities apart from a telephone kiosk and a letter box.

History

The parish was part of the hundred of

Hartcliffe Hartcliffe is the name of both a council ward and an Outer Suburb of the city of Bristol in the United Kingdom which lies within that ward. The ward contains the areas of Hartcliffe and Headley Park, as well as small portions of Withywood and B ...

. The village gave its name to the

Butcombe Brewery Wrington is a village and a civil and ecclesiastical parish on the north slopes of the Mendip Hills in North Somerset, England. Both include nearby Redhill. Wrington lies in the valley of the Congresbury Yeo river, about east of Weston-super- ...

. The

microbrewery Craft beer is a beer that has been made by craft breweries. They produce smaller amounts of beer, typically less than large breweries, and are often independently owned. Such breweries are generally perceived and marketed as having an emphasis o ...

was set up in 1978 by Simon Whitmore. In 2003 the business was sold and moved to an industrial estate at Wrington, to be housed in a purpose-built brewery completed in March 2005.

Governance

The Parish councils of England, 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 (UK), 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, such as the village hall or community centre, playing fields and playgrounds, 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 of interest to the council. The parish falls within the unitary authority of North Somerset which was created in 1996, as established by the Local Government Act 1992. It provides a single tier of local government in the United Kingdom, local government with responsibility for almost all local government functions within its area including planning permission, local planning and Building regulations in the United Kingdom, building control, local roads, council housing, environmental health, Market (place), markets and fairs, refuse collection, recycling, cemeteries, crematoria, leisure services, parks, and tourism. They are also responsible for Local Education Authority, education, social services, library, libraries, main roads, public transport, Trading Standards, trading standards, waste disposal and strategic planning, although fire, police and ambulance services are provided jointly with other authorities through the Avon Fire and Rescue Service, Avon and Somerset Constabulary and the Great Western Ambulance Service. North Somerset's area covers part of the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Somerset but it is administered independently of the non-metropolitan county. Its administrative headquarters is in the town hall in Weston-super-Mare. Between 1 April 1974 and 1 April 1996, it was the Woodspring Districts of England, district of the county of Avon. Before 1974 that the parish was part of the Axbridge Rural District. The parish is represented in the British House of Commons, House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom as part of the Weston-super-Mare (UK Parliament constituency), Weston-super-Mare county constituency. It elects one Member of Parliament, Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election. It was also part of the South West England (European Parliament constituency), South West England constituency of the European Parliament prior to Brexit, Britain leaving the European Union in January 2020.

Landmarks

Butcombe Court is a late 18th-century grade II listed manor house which was built on the site of a medieval building. It is now in 3 separate ownerships. During World War II, Clifton College used Butcombe Court as a safe extension of the school, away from the bombs. The pre-preparatory school at Clifton College for younger children aged 3 to 8 is called Butcombe after the house.

Religious sites

The Church of St Michael and All Angels, Butcombe, Church of St Michael and All Angels dates from the 15th century and is a Grade II* listed building.

Notable people

* Henry Savery (1791 - 1842) a Convictism in Australia, convict transported to Port Arthur, Tasmania and Australia's first novelist was born in the village.

References

External links

{{Commons category-inline, Butcombe Civil parishes in Somerset Villages in North Somerset