The centre of Somerset is dominated by theLevels, a coastal plain and wetland. The north-east contains part of theCotswolds uplands and all of theMendip Hills, which are bothnational landscapes; the west contains theQuantock Hills and part of theBlackdown Hills, which are also national landscapes, and most ofExmoor, anational park. The major rivers of the county are theAvon, which flows through Bath and then Bristol, and theAxe,Brue, andParrett, which drain the Levels.
Somerset's name most likely derives fromOld EnglishSumorsǣte, short forSumortūnsǣte, meaning "the people living at or dependent onSumortūn” (now known asSomerton).[6] An alternative suggestion is that the name derives fromSeo-mere-saetan meaning "settlers by the sea lakes".[7] The same ending can also be seen in the neighbouringDorset. The first known use ofSomersæte is in the law code ofKing Ine who was the Saxon King of Wessex from 688 to 726 CE, making Somerset along withHampshire,Wiltshire andDorset one of the oldest extant units of local government in the world.[8]
The Old English name is used in themotto of the county,Sumorsǣte ealle, meaning "all the people of Somerset". Adopted as the motto in 1911, the phrase is taken from theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle. Somerset was ashire of theAnglo-Saxon kingdom ofWessex, and the phrase refers to the wholehearted support the people of Somerset gave toKing Alfred in his struggle to save Wessex fromViking invaders.[9][10][11]
Somerset settlement names are mostly Anglo-Saxon in origin (for example,Bath,Somerton,Wells andKeynsham[12]), but numerous place names includeBritish Celtic elements, such as the rivers Frome and Avon, and names of hills. For example, anAnglo-Saxon charter of 682 refers to Creechborough Hill as "the hill which in theBritish language isCructan and which to us isCrychbeorh".[13] Some modern names are whollyBrittonic in origin, likeTarnock,Priddy andChard, while others have both Saxon and Brittonic elements, such asPen Hill.[14][15]
TheSomerset Levels—specificallydry points atGlastonbury andBrent Knoll—also have a long history of settlement, and are known to have been settled byMesolithic hunters.[19][20] Travel in the area was facilitated by the construction of one of the world's oldest known engineered roadways, theSweet Track, which dates from 3807 BCE or 3806 BCE.[a][22][23]
After the Romans left, Britain was invaded by Anglo-Saxon peoples. By 600 CE they had established control over much of what is now England, but Somerset was still in native British hands. The British held back Saxon advance into the south-west for some time longer, but by the early eighth century KingIne of Wessex had pushed the boundaries of the West Saxon kingdom far enough west to include Somerset.[30] The Saxon royal palace inCheddar was used several times in the 10th century to host theWitenagemot.[31]
The nature of the relations between the Britons and the Saxons in Somerset is not entirely clear.Ine's laws demonstrate that the Britons were considered to be a significant enough population in Wessex to merit provisions; however, the laws also suggest that Britons could not attain the same social standing as the Saxons, and that many were slaves.[32] In light of such policies, many Britons might have chosen to emigrate to places such asBrittany[33] while those who remained would have had incentives to adopt Anglo-Saxon culture.[34]
After theNorman Conquest, the county was divided into 700 fiefs, and large areas were owned by the crown,[5] with fortifications such asDunster Castle used for control and defence. Somerset came under the political influence of several different nobles during the Middle Ages. During theWars of the Roses, an important magnate wasHumphrey Stafford, earl of Devon, whose wider influence stretched from Cornwall to Wiltshire. After 1485, one of the county's most influential figures was Henry VII's chamberlainGiles Daubeney.[35]
Coal mining was an important industry in north Somerset during the 18th and 19th centuries, and by 1800 it was prominent inRadstock.[44]
TheSomerset Coalfield reached its peak production by the 1920s. All the pits have now been closed, the last in 1973.[45] Most of the surface buildings have been removed, and apart from a winding wheel outsideRadstock Museum, little evidence of their former existence remains. Further west, theBrendon Hills were mined for iron ore in the late 19th century; this was taken by theWest Somerset Mineral Railway toWatchet Harbour for shipment to the furnaces atEbbw Vale.[46]
Many Somerset soldiers died during theFirst World War, with theSomerset Light Infantry suffering nearly 5,000 casualties.[47] War memorials were put up in most of the county's towns and villages; only nine, described as theThankful Villages, had none of their residents killed. During theSecond World War, the county was a base for troops preparing for theD-Day landings. Some of the hospitals that were built for the casualties of the war remain in use. TheTaunton Stop Line was set up to repel a potential German invasion. The remains of itspill boxes can still be seen along the coast, and south throughIlminster andChard.[48]
A number of decoy towns were constructed in Somerset in World War II to protect Bristol and other towns. They were designed to mimic the nighttime geometry of "blacked out" streets, railway lines, andBristol Temple Meads railway station, to encourage German bombers away from these targets.[49] One, on the Germanradio navigation beam flight path to Bristol, was constructed onBeacon Batch.[49][25] It was laid out byShepperton Studios, based onaerial photographs of the city's railwaymarshalling yards.[49] The decoys were fitted with dim red lights, simulating activities such as the stoking ofsteam locomotives. Burning bales of straw soaked in creosote were used to simulate the effects ofincendiary bombs dropped by the first wave of Pathfinder night bombers; meanwhile, incendiary bombs dropped on the correct location were quickly smothered, wherever possible. Drums of oil were also ignited to simulate the effect of a blazing city or town, with the aim of fooling subsequent waves of bombers into dropping their bombs on the wrong location.[49]
TheChew Magna decoy town was hit by half a dozen bombs on 2 December 1940, and over a thousand incendiaries on 3 January 1941.[49] The following night theUphill decoy town, protecting the airfield atWeston-super-Mare, was bombed; a herd ofdairy cows was hit, killing some and severely injuring others.[49]
TheAvon Gorge, the historic boundary between Gloucestershire and Somerset, and alsoMercia andWessex; Somerset is to the left
The boundaries of Somerset are largely unaltered from medieval times. The main change has been in the north, where theRiver Avon formed the border with Gloucestershire, except that thehundred ofBath Forum, which straddles the Avon, formed part of Somerset. Bristol began as a town on the Gloucestershire side of the Avon, but as it grew, it extended across the river into Somerset. In 1373Edward III proclaimed "that the town of Bristol with its suburbs and precincts shall henceforth be separate from the counties of Gloucester and Somerset ... and that it should be acounty by itself".[50]
The present-day northern border of Somerset (adjoining the counties of Bristol and Gloucestershire) runs along the southern bank of the Avon from the Bristol Channel, then follows around the southern edge of the Bristol built-up area, before continuing upstream along the Avon and then diverges from the river to include Bath and its historic hinterland to the north of the Avon, before meeting Wiltshire at theThree Shire Stones on theFosse Way atBatheaston.[51]
Somerton took over fromIlchester as thecounty town in the late thirteenth century,[52] but it declined in importance and the status of county town transferred toTaunton about 1366.[53] The county has twocities,Bath andWells, and30 towns (including the county town of Taunton, which has no town council but instead is the chief settlement of the county's only extantborough). The largest urban areas in terms of population are Bath,Weston-super-Mare, Taunton,Yeovil andBridgwater.[54]
The county contains several-miles-wide sections of the Avongreen belt area, which is primarily in place to preventurban sprawl from theBristol and Bath built up areas encroaching into the rural areas of North Somerset,[55] Bath and North East Somerset,[56] and Mendip[57] districts in the county, as well as maintaining surrounding countryside. It stretches from the coastline between the towns ofPortishead andClevedon, extending eastwards pastNailsea, around the Bristol conurbation, and through to the city of Bath. The green belt border intersects with the Mendip Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) along its south boundary, and meets the Cotswolds AONB by its eastern extent along the Wiltshire county border, creating an extended area protected from inappropriate development.
Much of the landscape of Somerset falls into types determined by the underlying geology. These landscapes are the limestonekarst andlias of the north, the clayvales andwetlands of the centre, theoolites of the east and south, and theDevoniansandstone of the west.[58]
To the north-east of the Somerset Levels, the Mendip Hills are moderately highlimestone hills. The central and western Mendip Hills were designated anArea of Outstanding Natural Beauty in 1972 and cover 198 km2 (76 sq mi).[59] The mainhabitat on these hills iscalcareous grassland, with somearable agriculture. To the south-west of the Somerset Levels are theQuantock Hills which was England's first Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty designated in 1956[60] which is covered in heathland, oak woodlands, ancient parklands with plantations of conifer and covers 99 square kilometres. The Somerset Coalfield is part of a larger coalfield which stretches intoGloucestershire. To the north of the Mendip hills is theChew Valley and to the south, on theclay substrate, are broad valleys which support dairy farming and drain into the Somerset Levels.
There is an extensive network ofcaves, including Wookey Hole, underground rivers, andgorges, including the Cheddar Gorge andEbbor Gorge.[61] The county has many rivers, including the Axe,Brue, Cary, Parrett,Sheppey,Tone andYeo. These both feed and drain the flat levels and moors of mid and west Somerset.[62] In the north of the county theRiver Chew flows into theBristol Avon. The Parrett is tidal almost toLangport, where there is evidence of two Roman wharfs.[63] At the same site during the reign ofKing Charles I, river tolls were levied on boats to pay for the maintenance of the bridge.[63]
The town of Glastonbury looking west from the top of Glastonbury Tor. The fields in the distance are the Somerset Levels.
The Somerset Levels (or Somerset Levels and Moors as they are less commonly but more correctly known) are a sparsely populatedwetland area of central Somerset, between the Quantock and Mendip hills. They consist of marine clay levels along the coast, and the inland (oftenpeat based) moors. The Levels are divided into two by thePolden Hills. Land to the south is drained by theRiver Parrett while land to the north is drained by the River Axe and the River Brue. The total area of the Levels amounts to about 647.5 square kilometres (160,000 acres)[64]and broadly corresponds to the administrative district ofSedgemoor but also includes the south west ofMendip district. Approximately 70% of the area is grassland and 30% is arable.[64]
Stretching about 32 kilometres (20 mi) inland, this expanse of flat land barely rises above sea level. Before it was drained, much of the land was under a shallowbrackish sea in winter and wasmarsh land in summer. Drainage began with the Romans, and was restarted at various times: by theAnglo-Saxons; in theMiddle Ages by theGlastonbury Abbey, during 1400–1770; and during the Second World War, with the construction of theHuntspill River. Pumping and management of water levels still continue.[65]
The 64 km (40 mi) coastline of theBristol Channel and Severn Estuary forms part of the northern border of Somerset.[70]The Bristol Channel has the second largesttidal range in the world. AtBurnham-on-Sea, for example, the tidal range of a spring tide is more than 12 metres (39 feet).[71]Proposals for the construction of aSevern Barrage aim to harness this energy. The island ofSteep Holm in the Bristol Channel is within the ceremonial county and is now administered by North Somerset Council.[72]
The main coastal towns are, from the west to the north-east,Minehead, Watchet, Burnham-on-Sea, Weston-super-Mare,Clevedon, andPortishead. The coastal area between Minehead and the eastern extreme of the administrative county's coastline atBrean Down is known asBridgwater Bay, and is aNational Nature Reserve.[73]North of that, the coast formsWeston Bay andSand Bay whose northern tip,Sand Point, marks the lower limit of the Severn Estuary.[74] In the mid and north of the county the coastline is low as the level wetlands of the levels meet the sea. In the west, the coastline is high and dramatic where theplateau of Exmoor meets the sea, with high cliffs and waterfalls.[75]
Along with the rest ofSouth West England, Somerset has a temperate climate which is generally wetter and milder than the rest of the country.[76] The annual mean temperature is approximately 10 °C (50.0 °F).Seasonal temperature variation is less extreme than most of the United Kingdom because of the adjacent sea temperatures. The summer months of July and August are the warmest with mean daily maxima of approximately 21 °C (69.8 °F). In winter mean minimum temperatures of 1 °C (33.8 °F) or 2 °C (35.6 °F) are common.[76] In the summer theAzores high pressure affects the south-west of England, butconvective cloud sometimes forms inland, reducing the number of hours of sunshine. Annual sunshine rates are slightly less than the regional average of 1,600 hours.[76]
In December 1998, there were 20 days without sun recorded at Yeovilton. Most of the rainfall in the south-west is caused byAtlantic depressions or by convection. Most of the rainfall in autumn and winter is caused by the Atlantic depressions, which are when they are most active. In summer, a large proportion of the rainfall is caused by the sun heating the ground, leading to convection and showers and thunderstorms. Average rainfall is around 700 mm (28 in). About 8–15 days of snowfall is typical. November to March have the highest mean wind speeds, and June to August have the lightest winds. The predominant wind direction is from the south-west.[76]
Climate data forYeovilton, England (1981–2010) data
For the overwhelming majority of Somerset’s history, the population of the ceremonial county was ethnically homogeneous, with the population being of White British ethnicity. In the 2021 census, the ceremonial county of Somerset had a usual resident population of 981,685. The ceremonial county of Somerset is divided between three unitary authorities: Somerset Council, which, in the 2021 census, had a usual resident population of 571,547, and North Somerset Council, which, in the 2021 census, had a usual resident population of 216,729, and Bath and North East Somerset Council, which, in the 2021 census, had a usual resident population of 193,409. In the 2021 census, the ethnic composition of the ceremonial county of Somerset comprised: 95.4% White; 1.9% Asian; 0.6% Black; 1.6% Mixed; and 0.5% Other.
White (95.4%): English; Welsh; Scottish; Northern Irish or British (87.4%); Irish (0.5%); Gypsy or Irish Traveller (0.1%); Roma (0.1%); and Other White (4.6%).
Asian (1.9%): Indian (0.6%); Pakistani (0.1%); Bangladeshi (0.1%); Chinese (0.4%); and Other Asian (0.6%).
Black (0.6%): African (0.3%); Caribbean (0.1%); and Other Black (0.1%).
Mixed (1.6%): White and Asian (0.5%); White and Black African (0.2%); White and Black Caribbean (0.4%); and Other Mixed or Multiple ethnic groups (0.4%).
Other (0.5%): Arab (0.1%) and Any other ethnic group (0.4%).
Note: Sub-group totals may not sum exactly to the group total due to rounding. Data for the ceremonial county are aggregated from its constituent unitary authorities.
Note: The 2001 census figures for 'Asian' and 'Other' have been adjusted to reflect the 2011 reclassification of the Chinese ethnic group from 'Other' to 'Asian' to allow comparison across census years.
In the 2021 census, the religious composition of the ceremonial county of Somerset comprised: 47.8% Christianity; 43.6% No religion; 0.6% Islam; 0.4% Buddhism; 0.2% Hinduism; 0.1% Judaism; 0.0% Sikhism; 0.6% Other religion; and 6.6% Not stated.
The ceremonial county immediately prior to the 2023 local government restructuring, with South Somerset (1), Somerset West and Taunton (2), Sedgemoor (3) and Mendip (4) as non-metropolitan districts (shown in pink), and just Bath and North East Somerset (5), and North Somerset (6) as unitary authorities (shown in yellow).
In 1996, Avon was abolished and its districts were renamed and reorganised intounitary authorities. Woodspring was renamed 'North Somerset', and Wansdyke and Bath were abolished, and a new district covering the same area was created, named 'Bath and North East Somerset'.[92] In 1997 the two districts and non-metropolitan county became part of the new ceremonial county of Somerset.[93] On 1 September 2019 the non-metropolitan districts of West Somerset and Taunton Deane merged, with the new district being calledSomerset West and Taunton.[94]
In 2023, the non-metropolitan county was reorganised by abolishing the four districts and their councils and reconstituting Somerset County Council as a unitary authority for the non-metropolitan county, with the powers of both a district and county council, renamedSomerset Council.[95] The two existing unitary authorities were not altered.[96] A previous attempt to reorganise the county as a unitary authority 2007 was rejected following local opposition.[97]
Somerset's local government records date to 1617, longer than those of any other county; a meeting of the Quarter Sessions held at Wells in that year decided that a room should be provided "for the safe keeping of the records of the Sessions".[citation needed]
Almost all of the county is covered by the lowest/most local form of English local government, thecivil parish, with either atown or parish council (a city council in the instance of Wells) or aparish meeting; some parishes group together, with a single council or meeting for the group. The city of Bath (the area of the former county borough) and much of the town of Taunton areunparished areas.[101][102]
Somerset has few industrial centres, but it does have a variety of light industry and high technology businesses, along with traditional agriculture and an increasingly important tourism sector, resulting in an unemployment rate of 2.5%.[103] Tourism was estimated in 2013 to support around 26,000 people.[104]
Bridgwater was developed during the Industrial Revolution as the area's leading port. The River Parrett was navigable by large ships as far as Bridgwater. Cargoes were then loaded onto smaller boats at Langport Quay, next to the Bridgwater Bridge, to be carried further upriver to Langport;[105] or they could turn off atBurrowbridge and then travel via the River Tone to Taunton.[63] The Parrett is now only navigable as far asDunball Wharf. Bridgwater, in the 19th and 20th centuries, was a centre for the manufacture of bricks and clay roof tiles, and latercellophane, but those industries have now stopped.[105]
A traditional cider apple orchard atOver Stratton, with sheep grazing
Agriculture and food and drink production continue to be major industries in the county, employing over 15,000 people.[113] Apple orchards were once plentiful, and Somerset is still a major producer ofcider. The towns of Taunton andShepton Mallet are involved with the production of cider, especiallyBlackthorn Cider, which is sold nationwide, and there are specialist producers such asBurrow Hill Cider Farm andThatchers Cider.Gerber Products Company in Bridgwater is the largest producer of fruit juices in Europe, producing brands such asSunny Delight and Ocean Spray. Development of the milk-based industries, such asIlchester Cheese Company andYeo Valley Organic, have resulted in the production of ranges of desserts,yoghurts and cheeses.[114]
Traditionalwillow growing and weaving (such asbasket weaving) is not as extensive as it used to be but is still carried out on the Somerset Levels and is commemorated at theWillows and Wetlands Visitor Centre.[115] Fragments of willow basket were found near theGlastonbury Lake Village, and it was also used in the construction of several Iron Age causeways.[116] The willow was harvested using a traditional method ofpollarding, where a tree would be cut back to the main stem. During the 1930s, more than 3,600 hectares (8,900 acres) of willow were being grown commercially on the Levels. Largely due to the displacement of baskets with plastic bags and cardboard boxes, the industry has severely declined since the 1950s. By the end of the 20th century, only about 140 hectares (350 acres) were grown commercially, near the villages of Burrowbridge, Westonzoyland, andNorth Curry.[64]
Towns such asCastle Cary andFrome grew around the medievalweaving industry.Street developed as a centre for the production of woollen slippers and, later, boots and shoes, withC&J Clark establishing its headquarters in the village. C&J Clark's shoes are no longer manufactured there as the work was transferred to lower-wage areas, such as China and Asia.[117]
Stone quarries are still a major employer in Somerset
The county has a long tradition of supplyingfreestone andbuilding stone. Quarries atDoulting supplied freestone used in the construction ofWells Cathedral.Bath stone is also widely used.Ralph Allen promoted its use in the early 18th century, as didHans Price in the 19th century, but it was used long before then. It was mined underground atCombe Down and Bathampton Down Mines, and as a result of cutting theBox Tunnel, at locations in Wiltshire such asBox.[118][119][120] Bath stone is still used on a reduced scale today, but more often as acladding rather than a structural material.[118] Further south,Hamstone is the colloquial name given to stone from Ham Hill, which is also widely used in the construction industry.Blue Lias has been used locally as a building stone and as a raw material forlime mortar andPortland cement. Until the 1960s, Puriton had Blue Lias stone quarries, as did several other Polden villages. Its quarries also supplied a cement factory at Dunball, adjacent to theKing's Sedgemoor Drain. Its derelict, early 20th-century remains were removed when theM5 motorway was constructed in the mid-1970s.[121] Since the 1920s, the county has suppliedaggregates.Foster Yeoman is Europe's largest supplier of limestone aggregates, with quarries atMerehead Quarry. It has a dedicated railway operation,Mendip Rail, which is used to transport aggregates by rail from a group ofMendip quarries.[122]
In November 2008, a public sector inward investment organisation was launched, calledInto Somerset,[123] with the intention of growing the county's economy by promoting it to businesses that may wish to relocate from other parts of the UK (especially London) and the world. This is now part of the Heart of the South West Growth Hub.[124]
Hinkley Point C nuclear power station is a project to construct a 3,200 MW two-reactornuclear power station.[125] On 18 October 2010, the British government announced thatHinkley Point – already the site of the disusedHinkley Point A and (operational at the time)Hinkley Point B power stations – was one of the eight sites it considered suitable for future nuclear power stations.[126]NNB Generation Company, a subsidiary ofEDF, submitted an application for development consent to theInfrastructure Planning Commission on 31 October 2011.[127] A protest group, Stop Hinkley, was formed to campaign for the closure of Hinkley Point B and oppose any expansion at the Hinkley Point site. In December 2013, theEuropean Commission opened an investigation to assess whether the project breaks state-aid rules.[128][129] On 8 October 2014 it was announced that the European Commission has approved the project, with an overwhelming majority and only four commissioners voting against the decision.[130] Construction is underway and is projected to be completed in 2025.[131]
InArthurian legend,Avalon became associated withGlastonbury Tor when monks at Glastonbury Abbey claimed to have discovered the bones of King Arthur and his queen.[136] What is more certain is that Glastonbury was an important religious centre by 700 and claims to be "the oldest above-ground Christian church in the World"[137] situated "in the mystical land of Avalon". The claim is based on dating the founding of the community of monks at AD 63, the year of the legendary visit of Joseph of Arimathea, who was supposed to have brought the Holy Grail.[137]
Traditional folk music, both song and dance, was important in the agricultural communities. Somerset songs were collected byCecil Sharp and incorporated into works such asHolst'sA Somerset Rhapsody.Halsway Manor nearWilliton is an international centre for folk music. The tradition continues today with groups such asThe Wurzels specialising inScrumpy and Western music.[140]
Somerset has 6,531 km (4,058 mi) of roads. The main arterial routes, which include the M5 motorway,A303,A37,A38,A39, A358 and A361 give good access across the county, but many areas can only be accessed via narrowcountry lanes.[70]
Bristol Airport, located in North Somerset, provides national and international air services.
TheSomerset Coal Canal was built in the early 19th century to reduce the cost of transportation of coal and other heavy produce.[63] The first 16 kilometres (10 mi), running from a junction with theKennet & Avon Canal, along theCam valley, to a terminal basin atPaulton, were in use by 1805, together with several tramways. A planned 11.7 km (7.3 mi) branch to Midford was never built, but in 1815 a tramway was laid along its towing path. In 1871 the tramway was purchased by theSomerset & Dorset Joint Railway (S&DJR),[148][149] and operated until the 1950s.
The former main lines of the GWR are still in use today, although many of its branch lines were scrapped as part of theBeeching cuts. The former lines of the S&DJR closed completely,[156] as has the branch of the Midland Railway to Bath Green Park (and toBristol St Philips). The L&SWR survived as a part of the present West of England Main Line. None of these lines, in Somerset, areelectrified. Two branch lines, the West andEast Somerset Railway, were rescued and transferred back to private ownership as "heritage" lines. The fifth railway was a short-lived light railway, theWeston, Clevedon & Portishead Light Railway. TheWest Somerset Mineral Railway carried the iron ore from the Brendon Hills to Watchet.[citation needed]
Until the 1960s the piers at Weston-super-Mare, Clevedon, Portishead and Minehead were served by thepaddle steamers ofP & A Campbell who ran regular services toBarry andCardiff as well asIlfracombe andLundy Island. The original stone pier at Burnham-on-Sea was used for commercial goods; one of the reasons for the S&DJR was to provide a link between the Bristol Channel and theEnglish Channel. The newer concrete pier at Burnham-on-Sea is claimed to be the shortest pier in Britain.[157] In the 1970s theRoyal Portbury Dock was constructed to provide extra capacity for thePort of Bristol.
For long-distance holiday traffic travelling through the county to and from Devon and Cornwall, Somerset is often regarded as a marker on the journey. North–south traffic moves through the county via the M5 motorway.[158] Traffic to and from the east travels either via the A303 road, or the M4 motorway, which runs east–west, crossing the M5 motorway just beyond the northern limits of the county.[citation needed]
State schools in Somerset are provided by threelocal education authorities: Bath and North East Somerset, North Somerset, and the larger Somerset County Council. All state schools are comprehensive. In some areas, primary,infant andjunior schools cater for ages four to eleven, after which the pupils move on to secondary schools. There is athree-tier system offirst,middle andupper schools in the Cheddar Valley,[159] and in West Somerset, while most other schools in the county use the two-tier system.[160] Somerset has 30 state and 17 independent secondary schools;[161] Bath and North East Somerset has 13 state and 5 independent secondary schools;[162] and North Somerset has 10 state and 2 independent secondary schools, excludingsixth form colleges.[163]
% of pupils gaining 5 grades A-C including English and Maths in 2006 (average for England is 45.8%)
Education Authority
%
Bath and North East Somerset (Unitary Authority)
52.0%
West Somerset
51.0%
Taunton Deane
49.5%
Mendip
47.7%
North Somerset (Unitary Authority)
47.4%
South Somerset
42.3%
Sedgemoor
41.4%
Some of the county's secondary schools havespecialist school status. Some schools have sixth forms, and others transfer their sixth formers to colleges. Several schools can trace their origins back many years, such asThe Blue School in Wells andRichard Huish College in Taunton.[164] Others have changed their names over the years such asBeechen Cliff School which was started in 1905 as the City of Bath Boys' School and changed to its present name in 1972 when thegrammar school was amalgamated with a localsecondary modern school, to form acomprehensive school. Many others were established and built since the Second World War. In 2006, 5,900 pupils in Somerset satGCSE examinations, with 44.5% achieving 5 grades A-C, including English and Maths (compared to 45.8% for England).
TheUniversity of Bath,Bath Spa University, andUniversity Centre Weston are higher education establishments in the north of the county. The University of Bath gained its Royal Charter in 1966, although its origins go back to the Bristol Trade School (founded 1856) and Bath School of Pharmacy (founded 1907).[172] It has a purpose-built campus atClaverton on the outskirts of Bath, and has 15,000 students.[173] Bath Spa University, which is based atNewton St Loe, achieved university status in 2005, and has origins including the Bath Academy of Art (founded 1898), Bath Teacher Training College, and the Bath College of Higher Education.[174] It has several campuses and 5,500 students.[175]
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^Awdry, Christopher (1990).Encyclopaedia of British Railway Companies. Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 237.
^Casserley, H.C. (1968).Britain's Joint Lines. London: Ian Allan.ISBN0-7110-0024-7.
^Williams, R. A. (1968)The London & South Western Railway, v. 1: The formative years, and v. 2: Growth and consolidation. Newton Abbot, Devon: David & Charles,ISBN0-7153-4188-X;ISBN0-7153-5940-1
^Atthill, Robin andNock, O. S. (1967).The Somerset & Dorset Railway. Newton Abbot, Devon: David & Charles.ISBN0-7153-4164-2.
^Handley, Chris (2001).Maritime Activities of the Somerset & Dorset Railway. Cleckheaton: Millstream Books.ISBN0-948975-63-6.
^Charlesworth, George (1984).A History of British Motorways. London: Thomas Telford Limited.ISBN0-7277-0159-2.
Volume II:Ecclesiastical History, Religious Houses, Political, Maritime, and Social and Economic History, Earthworks, Agriculture, Forestry, Sport
Volume III:Pitney, Somerton, and Tintinhull hundreds
Volume IV:Crewkerne, Martock, and South Petherton Hundreds
Volume V:Williton and Freemanors Hundred
Volume VI:Andersfield, Cannington and North Petherton Hundreds (Bridgwater and Neighbouring Parishes)
Volume VII:Bruton, Horethorne and Norton Ferris Hundreds
Volume VIII:The Poldens and the Levels
Volume IX:Glastonbury and Street, Baltonsborough, Butleigh, Compton Dundon, Meare, North Wootton, Podimore, Milton, Walton, West Bradley, and West Pennard
Adkins, Lesley and Roy (1992).A Field Guide to Somerset Archaeology. Wimborne, Dorset: Dovecote Press.ISBN978-0-946159-94-9.
Aston, Michael; Burrow, Ian (1982).The Archaeology of Somerset: A review to 1500 AD. Somerset: Somerset County Council.ISBN0-86183-028-8.
Costen, Michael (1992).The origins of Somerset. Manchester: Manchester University Press.ISBN0-7190-3675-5.
Croft, Robert; Aston, Mick (1993).Somerset from the air: An aerial Guide to the Heritage of the County. Somerset: Somerset County Council.ISBN978-0-86183-215-6.
Dunning, Robert (1995).Somerset Castles. Somerset: Somerset Books.ISBN0-86183-278-7.
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