Henstridge

Henstridge is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated 5 miles (8.0 km) east of Sherborne in the South Somerset district, near the border with Dorset. The parish includes the hamlet of Yenston. In 2011, the village had a population of 1,814.[1]

For other uses, see Henstridge (disambiguation).

Henstridge
Stone building with arched windows and square tower partially obscured by trees. In the foreground are gravestones.
Henstridge is located in Somerset
Henstridge
Henstridge
Location within Somerset
Population1,814 (2011)[1]
OS grid referenceST725195
District
Shire county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townTemplecombe
Postcode districtBA8
PoliceAvon and Somerset
FireDevon and Somerset
AmbulanceSouth Western
UK Parliament

History

The village name means "the ridge where stallions are kept".[2]

The parish was part of the hundred of Horethorne.[3]

Yenston Priory was a 16th-century house of Benedictine monks.

Governance

The 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 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, 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 the responsibility of the council.

The village falls within the non-metropolitan district of South Somerset which was formed on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, having previously been part of Wincanton Rural District.[4] The district council is responsible for local planning and building control, local roads, council housing, environmental health, markets and fairs, refuse collection and recycling, cemeteries and crematoria, leisure services, parks and tourism.

Somerset County Council is responsible for running the largest and most expensive local services such as education, social services, libraries, main roads, public transport, policing and fire services, trading standards, waste disposal and strategic planning.

It is also part of the Somerton and Frome county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.

Landmarks

Inwood House was built in 1881 by the Welsh industrialist Thomas Merthyr Guest on the site of an earlier house. The circular crenellated water tower was retained,[5] as was the small doric Temple of Laocoon[6] and an Oriental Summerhouse.[7][8] Guest married the writer Lady Theodora Guest who died here in 1924.[9]

Transport

The village is situated at the junction of the A30 and A357 roads. Henstridge railway station was on the former Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway, and is now the location of the Gartell Light Railway

Just east of the village is Henstridge Airfield (ICAO code – EGHS). It was built during the Second World War as a training base for the Fleet Air Arm, which commissioned it as HMS Dipper. Visitors can still see the concrete outline of an aircraft carrier deck embedded into theits one surviving runway. The Ministry of Defence sold the airfield in 1957 and today it is mainly used as a base for general aviation and is an active training centre for autogyros (gyrocopters). The airfield is the base for the Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance. The airfield also hosts a weekly parkrun.

Religious sites

The parish Church of St Nicholas dates from the 12th century, but was largely rebuilt in 1872–3 by J.M Allen.[10]

The two former chapels in the High Street are now private residences.

References
  1. "Statistics for Wards, LSOAs and Parishes – SUMMARY Profiles" (Excel). Somerset Intelligence. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
  2. Bush, Robin (1994). Somerset: The Complete Guide. Dovecote Press. pp. 114. ISBN 1-874336-26-1.
  3. "Somerset Hundreds". GENUKI. Retrieved 9 October 2011.
  4. "Wincanton RD". A vision of Britain Through Time. University of Portsmouth. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
  5. Historic England. "Folly tower, 20 metres South of Stables complex (1174578)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 11 January 2009.
  6. Historic England. "Pavilion with sculpture, 10 metres South-East of stables complex (1056345)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 11 January 2009.
  7. Historic England. "The Summer House, 50 metres North-West of Inwood House (1056346)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 11 January 2009.
  8. Holt, Jonathan (2007). Somerset Follies. Bath: Akeman Press. ISBN 978-0-9546138-7-7.
  9. "Guest [née Grosvenor], Lady Theodora (1840–1924), author and benefactor". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/59926. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  10. Historic England. "Church of St Nicholas (1366325)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 11 January 2009.
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