Almondsbury () is a large village near junction 16 of the

M5 motorway The M5 is a motorway in England linking the Midlands with the South West England, South West. It runs from junction 8 of the M6 motorway, M6 at West Bromwich near Birmingham to Exeter in Devon. Heading south-west, the M5 runs east of West Brom ...

, in

South Gloucestershire South Gloucestershire is a unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of Gloucestershire, South West England. Towns in the area include Yate, Chipping Sodbury, Thornbury, Filton, Patchway and Bradley Stoke, the latter three forming ...

, England, and a

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 below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...

which also includes the villages of Hortham,

Gaunt's Earthcott Gaunt's Earthcott, sometimes spelt Gaunts Earthcott, is a hamlet in the civil parish of Almondsbury in South Gloucestershire, England. It consists of a ruined chapel, a few houses and two farms, Green Farm and Court Farm. The village is located ...

Over Over may refer to: Places *Over, Cambridgeshire, England * Over, Cheshire, England * Over, South Gloucestershire, England *Over, Tewkesbury, near Gloucester, England **Over Bridge * Over, Seevetal, Germany Music Albums * ''Over'' (album), by P ...

, Easter Compton,

Compton Greenfield Compton Greenfield is a small hamlet of farms and spread out houses to the south west of Easter Compton, in South Gloucestershire. The parish church of All Saints is a Grade II* listed building. It has a Norman arch in its porch, but the church ...

, Hallen and Berwick.

Governance

Almondsbury is in the South Gloucestershire

unitary authority A unitary authority is a local authority responsible for all local government functions within its area or performing additional functions that elsewhere are usually performed by a higher level of sub-national government or the national governmen ...

area. The

electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected to ...

of Almondsbury covers the same area as the civil parish, stretching from Gaunt's Earthcott east of the M5 motorway south west to Hallen on the boundary with

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, city, Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Glouces ...

Description

The village is split by a steep hill, part of the escarpment overlooking the Severn floodplain. At the bottom of the hill is Lower Almondsbury where a pub and hotel, The Bowl Inn, is situated.

South Wales South Wales ( cy, De Cymru) is a loosely defined region of Wales bordered by England to the east and mid Wales to the north. Generally considered to include the historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire, south Wales extends westwards ...

, the

Forest of Dean The Forest of Dean is a geographical, historical and cultural region in the western part of the county of Gloucestershire, England. It forms a roughly triangular plateau bounded by the River Wye to the west and northwest, Herefordshire to ...

, the

River Severn , name_etymology = , image = SevernFromCastleCB.JPG , image_size = 288 , image_caption = The river seen from Shrewsbury Castle , map = RiverSevernMap.jpg , map_size = 288 , map_c ...

and both Severn Bridges are visible from the higher parts of the village. The other part of the village consists mainly of ribbon development along the A38, which has more of an urban characteristic. The place-name 'Almondsbury' is first attested in the

Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...

of 1086, where it appears as ''Almodesberie''. The name means 'Æthelmod's or Ealhmund's burgh or fortified place'. almondsbury

The pub takes its name from the bowl shape of the land surrounding the estuary. Parts of this whitewashed-stone inn were originally the three cottages erected in 1146 to house the monks building the adjacent church of St Mary the Virgin. The present building became a licensed inn in 1550. almondsbury

Also at the bottom of the hill is the local church, dedicated to Saint

Mary the Virgin Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother ...

. The church and tower were built in 1140 AD. The lead-covered spire was added some time before 1619. In 1817, a woman purporting to be Princess Caraboo was found in the town, in what was to become one of the more elaborate deceptions of the period.

Amenities

Another pub, The Swan Inn, is located on the A38, in the upper part of the village, almost opposite an open space known as Almondsbury Tump. In March 2009 a community shop was opened in the village by the not-for-profit Almondsbury Community Services Association (ACSA), situated opposite the Old School Hall at 14 Church Road. The community shop is staffed entirely by unpaid volunteers. The aim of the project goes beyond a ''village shop'', being a service for the village, to support local suppliers wherever possible, and to be another focal point where people in the village can meet. A proportion of the surplus generated by the shop is returned to community projects and organisations in the village. In 2018, the village community purchased the premises from the church through a Community Share issue. The chairman of the shop committee is John Mclevy. The village also has an ambulance station, a

motorway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway and expressway. Other similar terms ...

police station A police station (sometimes called a "station house" or just "house") is a building which serves to accommodate police officers and other members of staff. These buildings often contain offices and accommodation for personnel and vehicles, a ...

, a garden centre, and a restaurant/pub. A helicopter base is currently in development next to the Almondsbury Interchange as a new home for NPAS Filton and the Great Western Air Ambulance.

Sport and leisure

Almondsbury is home to

non-League football Non-League football describes association football, football leagues played outside the top leagues of a country. Usually, it describes leagues which are not fully professional. The term is primarily used for football in England, where it is s ...

club Almondsbury UWE who play at Almondsbury Sports & Social Complex on Gloucester Road. Almondbury Cricket Club and Almondsbury Tennis club are also based at the same site. Gloucestershire FA are also based in Almondsbury at Oakland Park. North Bristol RFC play next door. Almondsbury is home to St Nick's GAA club.

Education

Education is provided by Almondsbury Church of England Primary School. This is a state maintained school. The Ofsted report, dated April 2009, rated the school as good (outstanding in places). For secondary education Almondsbury is served by Patchway Community College.

Notable residents

Cattelena (d.1625), an African woman, kept a small dairy business in Almondsbury during the early 17th century. Almondsbury is the birthplace of

Alex Kapranos Alexander Paul Kapranos Huntley (born 20 March 1972) is a Scottish musician, singer, songwriter, record producer and author. He is best known as the lead singer and guitarist of Scottish rock band Franz Ferdinand. He has also been a part of the ...

, the lead singer of

Franz Ferdinand Archduke Franz Ferdinand Carl Ludwig Joseph Maria of Austria, (18 December 1863 – 28 June 1914) was the heir presumptive to the throne of Austria-Hungary. His assassination in Sarajevo was the most immediate cause of World War I. Fr ...

. The stage and silent film actor

Reginald Crompton Reginald Crompton (14 July 1870 – 10 September 1945) was a British solicitor, stage actor and silent film screenwriter. A bass-baritone, he created several minor roles in the Savoy Operas with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company.Stone, DavidRe ...

(1870–1945) was born here.

Civil parish

The

of Almondsbury is much larger than the village. It includes the villages of Hortham, Gaunt's Earthcott, Over, Easter Compton, Compton Greenfield,

Catbrain Catbrain Hill, simply known as Catbrain, is a small village in England north of the city of Bristol, within the county of South Gloucestershire. It is located near Cribbs Causeway, on a road that contains many car dealerships. A new housing es ...

and Hallen. It also includes Cribbs Causeway and the site of the village of Charlton, now the western end of

Filton Airfield Filton Airport or Filton Aerodrome was a private airport in Filton and Patchway, within South Gloucestershire, north of Bristol, England. Description The airfield was bounded by the A38 road to the east, and the former London to Avonmouth r ...

. When it was originally created in 1866 the civil parish also included Patchway, but not Easter Compton, Compton Greenfield, Hallen, Cribbs Causeway or Charlton, all of which were transferred from the parish of Henbury in 1935. The parish of Patchway was separated from Almondsbury in 1953.

Notes and references

External links

Almondsbury Parish Council website
* {{Authority control Villages in South Gloucestershire District Civil parishes in Gloucestershire