Winscombe is a large village in the

North Somerset North Somerset is a unitary authorities of England, unitary authority in the ceremonial county of Somerset, England. The council is based in Weston-super-Mare, the area's largest town. The district also contains the towns of Clevedon, Nailsea ...

unitary district of

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

, South West England, close to the settlements of

Axbridge Axbridge is a town in Somerset, England, on the River Axe, near the southern edge of the Mendip Hills. Its population according to the 2011 census was 2,057. History ''Axanbrycg'' is suggested as the source of the name, meaning a bridge over ...

and

Cheddar Cheddar most often refers to either: *Cheddar cheese *Cheddar, Somerset, the village after which Cheddar cheese is named Cheddar may also refer to: Places * Cheddar, Ontario, Canada and Kannada * Cheddar Yeo, a river which flows through Cheddar ...

, on the western edge of the

Mendip Hills The Mendip Hills (commonly called the Mendips) is a range of limestone hills to the south of Bristol and Bath, Somerset, Bath in Somerset, England. Running from Weston-super-Mare and the Bristol Channel in the west to the River Frome, Somerset ...

, southeast of

Weston-super-Mare Weston-super-Mare ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the North Somerset unitary district, in the county of Somerset, England. It lies by the Bristol Channel south-west of Bristol between Worlebury Hill and Bleadon Hill. Its population ...

and southwest of

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

. The Parish of

Winscombe and Sandford Winscombe and Sandford, formerly just Winscombe, is a civil parish in the North Somerset district, in the ceremonial county of Somerset, England. It includes the villages of Winscombe and Sandford. In 2011 he parish had a population of 4,546. ...

, centred on the Parish Church of Church of St James the Great, includes the villages/hamlets of Barton, Hale, Oakridge, Nye, Sidcot and Woodborough. Winscombe has a few shops and businesses focused in the centre of the village, along Woodborough Road and Sandford Road. There is a doctor's surgery in the village, a vet and two dentists. West of the village is the

Max Bog Max Bog is a 10.6 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in North Somerset, notified in 1988. The site is owned by North Somerset Council and managed by the Avon Wildlife Trust for the range of wetland plants that it supports. T ...

biological Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain, or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland, is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle ...

History

It has been suggested that the name means a valley belonging to a Saxon named Wine. The parish was part of the

Winterstoke The Hundred of Winterstoke is one of the 40 historical Hundreds in the ceremonial county of Somerset, England, dating from before the Norman conquest during the Anglo-Saxon era although exact dates are unknown. By far the most important and auth ...

Hundred 100 or one hundred (Roman numerals, Roman numeral: C) is the natural number following 99 (number), 99 and preceding 101 (number), 101. In mathematics 100 is the square of 10 (number), 10 (in scientific notation it is written as 102). The standar ...

. Winscombe was the subject of a historical and archaeological study led by Professor

Mick Aston Michael Antony Aston (1 July 1946 – 24 June 2013) was an English archaeologist who specialised in Early Medieval landscape archaeology. Over the course of his career, he lectured at both the University of Bristol and University of Oxford and ...

, published in the ''Proceedings of the

Somerset Archaeological and Natural History Society The Somerset Archaeological and Natural History Society was founded in 1849. The Society bought Taunton Castle in 1874, and leases it to Somerset County Council to house the Museum of Somerset. A substantial proportion of the items held by the Muse ...

''.

Governance

From 1894 to 1974 Winscombe was part of the

Axbridge Rural District Axbridge was a rural district in Somerset, England, from 1894 to 1974. It was named after the town of Axbridge. It was created in 1894 under the Local Government Act 1894 as a successor to the Axbridge rural sanitary district. In 1974, it was a ...

. When this was abolished 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 ...

it became part of the Woodspring district in the new

county of Avon Avon ( ) was a non-metropolitan and ceremonial county in the west of England that existed between 1974 and 1996. The county was named after the River Avon, which flows through the area. It was formed from the county boroughs of Bristol and ...

. In 1996 this became the

unitary authority A unitary authority is a type of local government, 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 ...

, which remains part of the

ceremonial county Ceremonial counties, formally known as ''counties for the purposes of the lieutenancies'', are areas of England to which lord-lieutenant, lord-lieutenants are appointed. A lord-lieutenant is the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, monarch's repres ...

of Somerset. The village is part of the

Wells and Mendip Hills Wells and Mendip Hills is a constituency of the House of Commons in the UK Parliament. It was first contested at the 2024 general election. It is currently represented by Liberal Democrat Tessa Munt, who was previously MP for Wells from 2010 to ...

parliamentary constituency.

Geography

Slader's Leigh is a local nature reserve. It is a wildflower meadow with plants including

devil's-bit scabious ''Succisa pratensis'', also known as devil's-bit or devil's-bit scabious, is a flowering plant in the honeysuckle family Caprifoliaceae. It differs from other similar species in that it has four-lobed flowers, whereas '' Scabiosa columbaria'' ( ...

, cowslip,

betony Betony is a common name for a plant which may refer to: *''Stachys'', a genus of plants containing several species commonly known as betony in Europe **''Stachys officinalis'', a historically important medicinal plant **''Stachys palustris'', a rel ...

common spotted orchid ''Dactylorhiza maculata'' subsp. ''fuchsii'', the common spotted orchid, is a subspecies of flowering plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae. ''Dactylorhiza maculata'' subsp. ''fuchsii'' is one of Europe's most common wild orchids. It is widespr ...

and

tormentil ''Potentilla'' is a genus containing over 500 species of annual, biennial and perennial herbaceous flowering plants in the rose family, Rosaceae. Potentillas may also be called cinquefoils in English, but they have also been called five finge ...

which provide a habitat for a range of

butterflies Butterflies are winged insects from the lepidopteran superfamily Papilionoidea, characterized by large, often brightly coloured wings that often fold together when at rest, and a conspicuous, fluttering flight. The oldest butterfly fossi ...

Transport

Winscombe grew in the 19th century with the arrival of a branch of the

Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a History of rail transport in Great Britain, British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, ...

, opened in 1869. This was the

Cheddar Valley line The Cheddar Valley line was a railway line in Somerset, England, running between Yatton and Witham. It was opened in parts: the first section connecting Shepton Mallet to Witham, later extended to Wells, was built by the East Somerset Railway ...

, also known as the Strawberry Line, which ran from

Yatton Yatton is a village and civil parish within the unitary authority of North Somerset, which falls within the ceremonial county of Somerset, England. It is located south-west of Bristol. Its population in 2011 was 7,552. The parish includes Clav ...

to Wells via

. The railway was closed in 1963, and today the route is a public footpath and cycle track; the site of the former Winscombe railway station is now the Millennium Green. It is possible to walk, or cycle, from the railway station to the coast at

Clevedon Clevedon (, ) is a seaside town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the unitary authority of North Somerset, England. It recorded a parish population of 21,281 in the United Kingdom Census 2011, estimated at 21,442 in 2019. It lies ...

via Sandford,

Congresbury Congresbury is a village and civil parish on the northwestern slopes of the Mendip Hills in North Somerset, England, which in 2011 had a population of 3,497. It lies on the A370 between Junction 21 of the M5 and Bristol Airport, south of Br ...

and

, and in the opposite direction through the railway tunnel at Shute Shelve Hill to

and

. The railway station was originally named Woodborough, that being the part of the parish of Winscombe where it was; Winscombe was originally the settlement up by the church. The railway station was soon renamed Winscombe to avoid confusion with another railway station in Wiltshire named Woodborough. The railway station was closed in 1963 as part of the

Beeching cuts The Beeching cuts, also colloquially referred to as the Beeching Axe, were a major series of route closures and service changes made as part of the restructuring of the nationalised railway system in Great Britain in the 1960s. They are named ...

to rail services. Part of the original track can still be seen from a platform by the Millennium Green. The village is on the A371 and A38 roads.

Education

There are two schools in the village, as well as community and sports facilities. State secondary education is provided at nearby Churchill Community School.

Sidcot Winscombe is a large village in the North Somerset unitary district of Somerset, South West England, close to the settlements of Axbridge and Cheddar, Somerset, Cheddar, on the western edge of the Mendip Hills, southeast of Weston-super-Mare ...

is a nearby fee-paying independent school run by the

Society of Friends Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends, a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations. Members refer to each other as Friends after in the Bible, and originally, others referred to them as Quakers ...

Sports

There is a well-established recreational ground a short distance from the centre of Winscombe, which accommodates a variety of different sports, including

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

, tennis,

hockey ''Hockey'' is a family of List of stick sports, stick sports where two opposing teams use hockey sticks to propel a ball or disk into a goal. There are many types of hockey, and the individual sports vary in rules, numbers of players, apparel, ...

bowls Bowls, also known as lawn bowls or lawn bowling, is a sport in which players try to roll their ball (called a bowl) closest to a smaller ball (known as a "jack" or sometimes a "kitty"). The bowls are shaped (biased), so that they follow a curve ...

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

(Winscombe AFC), and a

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

team ( Winscombe RFC). The rugby club hosts three annual tournaments for mini and junior players: a

mini rugby Mini rugby, also known as New Image Rugby, is a form of rugby union designed to introduce the sport to children. It uses a smaller ball and pitch than standard rugby, and has eight to ten players a side. Invented in England in 1970, mini rugby was ...

tournament for local schools; a regional championship for under 8s; and the Mendip Sevens

rugby sevens Rugby sevens (commonly known simply as sevens, and originally seven-a-side rugby) is a variant of rugby union in which teams are made up of seven players playing seven-minute halves, instead of the usual 15 players playing 40-minute halves. R ...

tournament for ages under 13s–under 16s.

Religious sites

The Church of St James has origins from the 12th century. The church is in the middle of the original hamlet of Winscombe. The church has 13th-century origins but the present building dates mainly from the 15th century, with restoration and a new chancel in 1863. It is designated as a Grade I

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

. The bells of St James have long called people to worship, the original bells being cast in 1773 by local founders the

Bilbie family The Bilbie family were bell founders and clockmakers based initially in Chew Stoke, Somerset and later at Cullompton, Devon in south-west England from the late 17th century to the early 19th century. Their importance to the local economy and i ...

. Two newer bells were added in 1903 by Taylors Founders. The eight bells are in the key of E flat and the tenor weighs 18-1-8 – 18

hundredweight The hundredweight (abbreviation: cwt), formerly also known as the centum weight or quintal, is a British imperial and United States customary unit of weight or mass. Its value differs between the United States customary and British imperial sy ...

, 1 quarter of a hundredweight and 8 lb (930 kg). St James holds regular services on Sundays, with

bell ringing Campanology (/kæmpəˈnɒlədʒi/) is both the scientific and artistic study of bells, encompassing their design, tuning, and the methods by which they are rung. It delves into the technology behind bell casting and tuning, as well as the rich ...

being provided for both the morning service and

evensong Evensong is a church service traditionally held near sunset focused on singing psalms and other biblical canticles. It is loosely based on the canonical hours of vespers and compline. Old English speakers translated the Latin word as , which ...

Culture

The former railway station site now hosts an annual May fair, on the Saturday closest to May Day, and has a variety of activities, entertainments and stalls selling various products and promoting many local charities and organisations. In September, the village hosts the annual

Michaelmas Michaelmas ( ; also known as the Feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, the Feast of the Archangels, or the Feast of Saint Michael and All Angels) is a Christian festival observed in many Western Christian liturgical calendars on 29 Se ...

fair in the community centre, a chance for villagers to show their handiwork, handicraft and produce. The local headquarters of the

Royal British Legion The Royal British Legion (RBL), formerly the British Legion, is a British charity providing financial, social and emotional support to members and veterans of the British Armed Forces, their families and dependants. Membership Service in th ...

is near the centre of the village in Sandford Road, opposite the village

club. It houses the Winscombe Club. The former British headquarters of

Moose International The Moose Fraternity (formerly The Loyal Order of Moose) is a Fraternity, fraternal and service organization founded in 1888 and headquartered in Mooseheart, Illinois. Moose International supports the operation of Mooseheart, Illinois, Mo ...

forming Moose International in Great Britain could be found at Kildare house in the village.

Notable people

(1946–2013), English

archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

known for ''

Time Team ''Time Team'' is a British television programme that originally aired on Channel 4, Channel 4 from 16 January 1994 to 7 September 2014. It returned in 2022 on online platforms YouTube and Patreon. Created by television produce ...

'', died in Winscombe * William Whicher Cookson (1862–1922),

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

n-born English

er, died in Winscombe *

Fannie B. Linderman Fannie B. Linderman (, Fry; after first marriage, Linderman; after second marriage, Harling; pen name, Lady Lind; August 1875 – October 9, 1960) was a British-born American teacher of dramatic arts, an entertainer, and a writer. She was a member ...

(1875–1960), English-born American teacher, entertainer, and writer

References

External links

*
Winscombe and Sandford Parish Council

Winscombe Club
{{Mendip Hills Mendip Hills Villages in North Somerset