Malvern Hills is a

local government district The districts of England (also known as local authority districts or local government districts to distinguish from unofficial city districts) are a level of subnational division of England used for the purposes of local government. As the st ...

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see H ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. Its council is based in the town of Malvern, and its area covers most of the western half of the county, including the outlying towns of

Tenbury Wells Tenbury Wells (locally Tenbury) is a market town and civil parish in the northwestern extremity of the Malvern Hills District of Worcestershire, England. Its northern border adjoins Shropshire, and at the 2011 census it had a population of 3,777 ...

and

Upton-upon-Severn Upton-upon-Severn (or Upton on Severn, etc. and locally simply Upton) is a town and civil parish in the Malvern Hills District of Worcestershire, England. Lying on the A4104 (formerly A440), the 2011 census recorded a population of 2,881 for th ...

. It was originally formed in 1974 and was subject to a significant boundary reform in 1998. In the 2011 census the population of the Malvern Hills district was 74,631. Tenbury Wells, Regal Cinema - geograph

History

In 1974 the district of Malvern Hills was created from the former districts of Bromyard Rural District and Ledbury Rural District in

Herefordshire Herefordshire () is a county in the West Midlands of England, governed by Herefordshire Council. It is bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh counties of Monmouthsh ...

, along with Malvern Urban District and Martley Rural District and Upton upon Severn Rural District in Worcestershire. The Plough Inn and 'Pepperpot', Upton-on-Severn - geograph

The Plough Inn and 'Pepperpot', Upton-on-Severn - geograph

The current boundaries were formed on 1 April 1998 when the county of

Hereford and Worcester Hereford and Worcester was an English non-metropolitan county created on 1 April 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972 from the areas of the former administrative county of Herefordshire, most of Worcestershire (except Halesowen, Stourbridge ...

(which had been created in 1974, following the Local Government Act 1972) reverted, with some border changes, to the two former counties of Worcestershire and

. The new Malvern Hills district boundary was formed from parts of the existing districts of Malvern Hills and

Leominster Leominster ( ) is a market town in Herefordshire, England, at the confluence of the River Lugg and its tributary the River Kenwater. The town is north of Hereford and south of Ludlow in Shropshire. With a population of 11,700, Leominster i ...

. The remainder of these districts became part of

. The 1998 boundary changes added

to the district, but

Bromyard Bromyard is a town in Herefordshire, England, in the valley of the River Frome. It lies near the county border with Worcestershire on the A44 between Leominster and Worcester. Bromyard has a number of traditional half-timbered buildings, inc ...

and Ledbury were transferred to the newly created Herefordshire Council.

Governance

Malvern Hills is a non-metropolitan district of the county of Worcestershire and comprises 68

civil parishes 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 authority. ...

(

list A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to: People * List (surname) Organizations * List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America * SC Germania List, German rugby unio ...

). The district is divided into 22 electoral wards. The local authority is Malvern Hills District Council, which meets and has its offices at Council House in

Great Malvern Great Malvern is an area of the spa town of Malvern, Worcestershire, England. It lies at the foot of the Malvern Hills, a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, on the eastern flanks of the Worcestershire Beacon and North Hill, and i ...

, and which shares management and increasingly staff with neighbouring

Wychavon Wychavon is a local government district in Worcestershire, England, with a population size of 132,500 according to the 2021 census. Its council is based in the town of Pershore, and the other towns in the district are Droitwich Spa and Evesh ...

District Council.

Boundary changes

Following the 1998 boundary changes according to the split up of the county of Hereford and Worcester into the former traditional counties of Worcestershire and Herefordshire, the district acquired from the existing district of Leominster the parishes of Bayton,

Bockleton Bockleton is a small village and civil parish (with a shared parish council with neighbouring Stoke Bliss and Kyre) in the Malvern Hills district of Worcestershire, England, south of Tenbury Wells. According to the 2001 census it had a populatio ...

, Eastham, Hanley,

Knighton on Teme Knighton on Teme is a village and civil parish in the Malvern Hills District in the county of Worcestershire, England. The parish consists of the village of Newnham Bridge and several small hamlets including Knighton, Bickley, Little Londo ...

Kyre Kyre is a small village and civil parish in the Malvern Hills district of the county of Worcestershire, England, and shares its parish council with neighbouring Stoke Bliss and Bockleton. Kyre Minor and Kyre Wyard were both in the upper divi ...

Lindridge Lindridge is a village and civil parish in the Malvern Hills District in the north of the county of Worcestershire, England, near the Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) ...

, Mamble, Pensax, Rochford, Stanford with Orleton, Stockton-on-Teme, Stoke Bliss and Tenbury. From the pre-existing district of Malvern Hills, the parishes of

Abberley Abberley is a village and civil parish in north west Worcestershire, England. It is situated on the northern slopes of Abberley Hill, which is tall, between the River Severn and River Teme. The village had a population of 830 in 2001. Locati ...

, Alfrick, Astley and Dunley, Berrow, Birtsmorton, Bransford, Broadheath, Broadwas,

Bushley Bushley is a small village and civil parish in the Malvern Hills district in Worcestershire, England. The church is dedicated to Saint Peter. Bredon School is located to the north of the village. History William Dowdeswell (1721–1775), the ...

Castlemorton Castlemorton is a village and civil parish close to Malvern in the Malvern Hills District in the county of Worcestershire, England. It consists of a village centre, a large common and many farms and houses within the area. In 2013 the Worceste ...

, Clifton upon Teme, Cotheridge, Croome D'Abitot, Doddenham, Earl's Croome,

Eldersfield Eldersfield is a village and civil parish in the Malvern Hills district of Worcestershire, England. It stands exactly ten miles east of Ledbury and ten miles north of Gloucester; this fact can be found on a milestone on the side of the B4211 road ...

Great Witley Great Witley is a village and civil parish (with Hillhampton), in the Malvern Hills District in the northwest of the county of Worcestershire, England. It is situated around ten miles to the north west of the city of Worcester. History There ...

, Grimley, Guarlford,

Hallow To hallow is "to make holy or sacred, to sanctify or consecrate, to venerate". The adjective form ''hallowed'', as used in ''The Lord's Prayer'', means holy, consecrated, sacred, or revered. The noun form ''hallow'', as used in ''Hallowtide'', ...

, Hanley Castle, Hill Croome,

Hillhampton Hillhampton is a hamlet and civil parish (with Great Witley) nestled between Great Witley, Little Witley and Shrawley in the Malvern Hills district of the county of Worcestershire, England. It was anciently a detached hamlet of the parish of Ma ...

, Holdfast,

Holt Fleet Ombersley is a village and civil parish in Wychavon district, in the county of Worcestershire, England. The parish includes the hamlet of Holt Fleet, where Telford's 1828 Holt Fleet Bridge crosses the River Severn. The 2011 census recorded a ...

, Kempsey, Kenswick, Knightwick, Leigh,

Little Malvern Little Malvern is a small village and civil parish in Worcestershire, England. It is situated on the lower slopes of the Malvern Hills, south of Malvern Wells, near Great Malvern, the major centre of the area often referred to as ''The Malverns' ...

Little Witley Little Witley is a village and civil parish in the Malvern Hills District in the county of Worcestershire, England. History Pre-history There has been little if any evidence of early human activity in Little Witley, however Neolithic, Bron ...

, Longdon, Lower Sapey, Lulsley, Madresfield, Malvern,

Malvern Wells Malvern Wells is a village and civil parish south of Great Malvern in the Malvern Hills district of Worcestershire, England. The parish, once known as South Malvern, was formed in 1894 from parts of the civil parishes of Hanley Castle, Welland ...

, Martley, Newland, Pendock,

Powick Powick is a village and civil parish in the Malvern Hills District, Malvern Hills district of Worcestershire, England, located two miles south of the city of Worcester, England, Worcester and four miles north of Great Malvern. The parish include ...

Queenhill Queenhill is a civil parish and hamlet in the Malvern Hills District of the county of Worcestershire, England. It is one of three parishes administered by the Parish Council of Longdon, Queenhill and Holdfast. Parish church The church, whi ...

Ripple Ripple may refer to: Science and technology * Capillary wave, commonly known as ripple, a wave traveling along the phase boundary of a fluid ** Ripple, more generally a disturbance, for example of spacetime in gravitational waves * Ripple (electri ...

, Rushwick, Severn Stoke, Shelsley Beauchamp, Shelsley Kings,

Shelsley Walsh Shelsley Walsh is a small village and civil parish in Worcestershire, England, on the western side of the River Teme. For administrative purposes it is presently located in the Teme Valley ward of the county’s Malvern Hills district. In the 2011 ...

Shrawley Shrawley is a village and civil parish in the Malvern Hills District in the county of Worcestershire, England. The village is situated on the western bank of the River Severn. The northern and southern boundaries of the parish are two small trib ...

, Suckley,

Upton upon Severn Upton-upon-Severn (or Upton on Severn, etc. and locally simply Upton) is a town and civil parish in the Malvern Hills District of Worcestershire, England. Lying on the A4104 (formerly A440), the 2011 census recorded a population of 2,881 for the ...

Welland Welland is a city in the Regional Municipality of Niagara in Southern Ontario, Canada. As of 2021, it had a population of 55,750. The city is in the centre of Niagara and located within a half-hour driving distance to Niagara Falls, Niagara-on ...

West Malvern West Malvern is a village and a civil parish on the west side of the north part of the Malvern Hills, on the western edge of Worcestershire, England. It has become effectively a suburb of Malvern and part of an urban area often called ''The Malv ...

and

Wichenford Wichenford is a village and civil parish (with Kenswick) in the Malvern Hills District in the county of Worcestershire, England. It lies 7 miles (11km) to the north-west of the city of Worcester and has a population of c 400 for around 250 hou ...

Geography

The Malvern Hills themselves form the border between, and offer scenic views over, the counties of

and

. The district includes approximately half of the Malvern Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (prior to the 1998 alterations to its boundary, it covered most of the AONB). The district bounds onto the counties of

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

, Herefordshire and

Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to ...

, as well as the Worcestershire districts of Wychavon,

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engla ...

and

Wyre Forest __NOTOC__ Wyre Forest is a large, semi-natural (partially unmanaged) woodland and forest measuring which straddles the borders of Worcestershire and Shropshire, England. Knowles Mill, a former corn mill owned by the National Trust, lies wi ...

. The

River Teme The River Teme (pronounced ; cy, Afon Tefeidiad) rises in Mid Wales, south of Newtown, and flows southeast roughly forming the border between England and Wales for several miles through Knighton before entering England in the vicinity of B ...

is famous for its

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...

and runs across the northern half of the district, from

, to its confluence with 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 ...

near

, close to the site of the

Battle of Worcester The Battle of Worcester took place on 3 September 1651 in and around the city of Worcester, England and was the last major battle of the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Three Kingdoms. A Parliamentarian army of around 28,000 under Oliver Cromwell d ...

. Historically, the Teme Valley was famous for its

orchards An orchard is an intentional plantation of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit- or nut-producing trees which are generally grown for commercial production. Orchards are also sometimes a feature of lar ...

and hop yards, though these declined during the second half of the 20th century, with some revival since circa 2000. The River Severn forms the eastern boundary of the district (with

) between Stourport and Worcester, whilst to the south of Worcester the district includes parishes to the east of the Severn; the river is also popular with anglers and has public navigation rights. The area has a significant spa heritage and Malvern water is bottled and distributed commercially worldwide. The spa buildings (The Pump Rooms) survive at

and many free

spring water A spring is a point of exit at which groundwater from an aquifer flows out on top of Earth's crust ( pedosphere) and becomes surface water. It is a component of the hydrosphere. Springs have long been important for humans as a source of fresh ...

sources are available to the public in and around Malvern. In the east of the district is

Croome Court Croome Court is a mid-18th-century Neo-Palladian mansion surrounded by extensive landscaped parkland at Croome D'Abitot, near Upton-upon-Severn in south Worcestershire, England. The mansion and park were designed by Lancelot "Capability" Brown for ...

, a significant

National Trust The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...

property.

Energy policy

In May 2006, a reportGreen City report
commissioned by

British Gas British Gas (trading as Scottish Gas in Scotland) is an energy and home services provider in the United Kingdom. It is the trading name of British Gas Services Limited and British Gas New Heating Limited, both subsidiaries of Centrica. Servi ...

showed that housing in Malvern Hills produced the 6th highest average carbon emissions in the country at 7,329 kg of

carbon dioxide Carbon dioxide ( chemical formula ) is a chemical compound made up of molecules that each have one carbon atom covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. It is found in the gas state at room temperature. In the air, carbon dioxide is trans ...

per dwelling.

References

External links

Malvern Hills District Council
official web site {{DEFAULTSORT:Malvern Hills (District) Malvern, Worcestershire 1998 establishments in England Non-metropolitan districts of Worcestershire