Dean is a village and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

in the county of

Cumbria Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial county in North West England. It borders the Scottish council areas of Dumfries and Galloway and Scottish Borders to the north, Northumberland and County Durham to the east, North Yorkshire to the south-east, Lancash ...

, England. Dean has a Church of England school, a church called St Oswald's. Nearby settlements include the towns of

Workington Workington is a coastal town and civil parish in the Cumberland district of Cumbria, England. The town is at the mouth of the River Derwent on the west coast, south-west of Carlisle and north-east of Whitehaven. At the 2021 census the ...

and

Cockermouth Cockermouth is a market town and civil parish in the Cumberland unitary authority area of Cumbria, England. The name refers to the town's position by the confluence of the River Cocker into the River Derwent. At the 2021 census, the built u ...

Location

Dean is located in

Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is an area of North West England which was historically a county. The county was bordered by Northumberland to the north-east, County Durham to the east, Westmorland to the south-east, Lancashire to the south, and the Scottish ...

, in the west of

in the North West of England. It is situated south-west of

, on a minor road off the A5086. It is about west of the nearest part of the

Lake District National Park The Lake District, also known as ''the Lakes'' or ''Lakeland'', is a mountainous region and National parks of the United Kingdom, national park in Cumbria, North West England. It is famous for its landscape, including its lakes, coast, and mou ...

. The nearest tourist information centre is in Cockermouth.

The village

The village contains The Royal Yew Inn, a traditional country pub. Dean is also home to the Dean Church of England Primary School, which also serves three other small villages. Dean is situated in fertile farming land; it has existed for a long time, dating back to the 12th century through the evidence of the 12th century church, and a

grammar school A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a Latin school, school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented Se ...

founded in 1596. Forms of agriculture in the 19th century include wheat, oats and potatoes. The Curwens of

are known to have been the principal landowners in the area.

Governance

Dean is in the

parliamentary constituency An electoral (congressional, legislative, etc.) district, sometimes called a constituency, riding, or ward, is a geographical portion of a political unit, such as a country, state or province, city, or administrative region, created to provi ...

Whitehaven and Workington Whitehaven and Workington is a constituency of the House of Commons in the UK Parliament. Further to the completion of the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, it was contested for the first time at the 2024 general election, since w ...

. For

Local Government Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state. Local governments typically constitute a subdivision of a higher-level political or administrative unit, such a ...

purposes it is in the

unitary authority area A unitary authority is a type of local authority in New Zealand and the United Kingdom. Unitary authorities are responsible for all local government functions within its area or performing additional functions that elsewhere are usually performed ...

. Dean has its own parish council, Dean Parish Council, which also covers villages of Branthwaite, Deanscales, Eaglesfield, Pardshaw and

Ullock Ullock is a village in Cumbria, England, located at National Grid reference NY076239, approximately south west of Cockermouth and south east of Workington. The River Marron flows through the village. It is located just outside the Lake Dist ...

St Oswald's Church

St Oswald's Church is on the edge of the village and dates back to the 12th century. A

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the Choir (architecture), choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may termi ...

was added in the 15th century and a sanctuary in the 17th century. From 1967-1973 extensive

renovations Renovation (also called remodeling) is the process of improving broken, damaged, or outdated structures. Renovations are typically done on either commercial or residential buildings. Additionally, renovation can refer to making something new, o ...

were carried out which included new

oak An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...

pews A pew () is a long bench seat or enclosed box, used for seating members of a congregation or choir in a synagogue, church, funeral home or sometimes a courtroom. Occasionally, they are also found in live performance venues (such as the Ryman A ...

and a

pulpit A pulpit is a raised stand for preachers in a Christian church. The origin of the word is the Latin ''pulpitum'' (platform or staging). The traditional pulpit is raised well above the surrounding floor for audibility and visibility, accesse ...

. Other features include the Norman font and the 15th century chancel windows. St Oswald's Church is one of three in Cumbria to have gargoyles. In the graveyard there are several ancient gravestones and a

Preaching A sermon is a religious discourse or oration by a preacher, usually a member of clergy. Sermons address a scriptural, theological, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law, or behavior within both past and present contexts. E ...

Cross A cross is a religious symbol consisting of two Intersection (set theory), intersecting Line (geometry), lines, usually perpendicular to each other. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally. A cross of oblique lines, in the shape of t ...

, the base of which is 12th century or earlier and thought to have been used by the monks of

Calder Abbey Calder Abbey in Cumbria was a Savigniac monastery founded in 1134 by Ranulph de Gernon, 2nd Earl of Chester, and moved to this site following a refoundation in 1142. It became Cistercian in 1148. It is near the village of Calderbridge. Hist ...

. The church is built in blocks of

calciferous sandstone Calciferous sandstone is an obsolete geological term relating to strata at the base of the Carboniferous formation, below the coal measures. The rocks of this formation are now considered part of the Inverclyde Group and Strathclyde Group. Typ ...

and has green slate roofs.

Etymology

'Dean' is from the

Old English Old English ( or , or ), 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 developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...

'denu' meaning 'valley'.

History

There are records for Dean's housing and population up to the 1961 census; they show that in 1961 there was a population of 710 with 214 houses. The census records go back to 1831. The village population has fluctuated between the 500s and the 700s between 1931 and 1961, having the highest population between 1821 and 1881. Dean's housing has only ever consisted of about 200 houses. This number has fluctuated, with a loss of 30 properties between 1901 and 1931. However the number of properties in Dean has now risen to 214.

Climate

The climate in Dean is that of the north-west of England, which is exposed to large amounts of rainfall due to the fact that the region is home to high ground. Despite this though Dean is seen to be drier than the surrounding areas with less than 800mm of rain a year this is because it is benefited by the

rain shadow A rain shadow is an area of significantly reduced rainfall behind a mountainous region, on the side facing away from prevailing winds, known as its leeward side. Evaporated moisture from body of water, bodies of water (such as oceans and larg ...

effect because of the high ground of

North Wales North Wales ( ) is a Regions of Wales, region of Wales, encompassing its northernmost areas. It borders mid Wales to the south, England to the east, and the Irish Sea to the north and west. The area is highly mountainous and rural, with Snowdon ...

and the

Lake District The Lake District, also known as ''the Lakes'' or ''Lakeland'', is a mountainous region and National parks of the United Kingdom, national park in Cumbria, North West England. It is famous for its landscape, including its lakes, coast, and mou ...

. The coldest months for the area would be January and February but the warmest month would be July. Because

North West England North West England is one of nine official regions of England and consists of the ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial counties of Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Merseyside. The North West had a population of 7,4 ...

is among the more exposed parts of the UK, and relatively close to the

North Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for ...

and containing large upland areas, Cumbria is subject to strong winds. The strongest winds can be felt most in the winter half of the year, especially from December to February.. Retrieved 2012-05-2

References

External links

*
Cumbria County History Trust: Dean
(nb: provisional research only - see Talk page) {{authority control Villages in Cumbria Civil parishes in Cumbria Cumberland (unitary authority)