| Henstridge | |
|---|---|
 | |
  Henstridge Location withinSomerset | |
| Population | 1,814 (2011)[1] |
| OS grid reference | ST725195 |
| Unitary authority | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Templecombe |
| Postcode district | BA8 |
| Police | Avon and Somerset |
| Fire | Devon and Somerset |
| Ambulance | South Western |
| UK Parliament | |
| 50°58′27″N2°23′35″W / 50.9742°N 2.3930°W /50.9742; -2.3930 | |
Henstridge is a village andcivil parish in Somerset, England, situated 5 miles (8.0 km) east ofSherborne in theSouth Somerset district, near the border withDorset. The parish includes the hamlet ofYenston. In 2011, the village had a population of 1,814.[1]
The village name means "the ridge where stallions are kept".[2]
The parish was part of thehundred ofHorethorne.[3]
Yenston Priory was a 16th-century house ofBenedictine monks.
Theparish 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, andneighbourhood 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 thenon-metropolitan district ofSouth Somerset which was formed on 1 April 1974 under theLocal Government Act 1972, having previously been part ofWincanton Rural District.[4] The district council is responsible forlocal planning andbuilding control, local roads,council housing,environmental health,markets and fairs,refuse collection andrecycling,cemeteries andcrematoria, leisure services, parks and tourism.
Somerset County Council is responsible for running the largest and most expensive local services such aseducation,social services,libraries, main roads, public transport, policing andfire services,trading standards,waste disposal and strategic planning.
It is also part of theGlastonbury and Somertoncounty constituency represented in theHouse of Commons of theParliament of the United Kingdom. It elects oneMember of Parliament (MP) by thefirst past the post system of election.
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 LadyTheodora Guest who died here in 1924.[9]
The village is situated at the junction of theA30 andA357 roads.Henstridge railway station was on the formerSomerset and Dorset Joint Railway, and is now the location of theGartell Light Railway
Just east of the village isHenstridge Airfield (ICAO code – EGHS). It was built during theSecond World War as a training base for theFleet Air Arm, which commissioned it asHMSDipper. Visitors can still see the concrete outline of an aircraft carrier deck embedded into the one surviving runway. TheMinistry of Defence sold the airfield in 1957 and today it is mainly used as a base forgeneral aviation and is an active training centre forautogyros (gyrocopters). The airfield is the base for theDorset and Somerset Air Ambulance. The airfield also hosts a weeklyparkrun.
The parishChurch 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.
