Radstock
Encyclopedia
Radstock is a town in Somerset
, England, 9 miles (14 km) south west of Bath, and 8 miles (13 km) north west of Frome
. It is within the unitary authority
of Bath and North East Somerset
and had a population of 5,275 according to the 2001 Census. Since 2011 Radstock has been a town council in its own right.
Radstock has been settled since the Iron Age
, and its importance grew after the construction of the Fosse Way
, a Roman road
. The growth of the town occurred after 1763, when coal was discovered in the area. Large numbers of mines opened during the 19th century including several owned by the Waldegrave family
, who had been Lords of the Manor since the English Civil War
. The spoil heap of Writhlington colliery
is now the Writhlington Site of Special Scientific Interest
, which includes 3,000 tons of Upper Carboniferous spoil from which more than 1,400 insect fossil specimens have been recovered. The complex geology and narrow seams made coal extraction difficult. Tonnage increased throughout the 19th century, reaching a peak around 1901, when there were 79 separate collieries and annual production was 1,250,000 tons per annum. However, due to local geological difficulties and manpower shortages output declined and the number of pits reduced from 30 at the beginning of the 20th century to 14 by the mid-thirties; the last two pits, Kilmersdon and Writhlington, closed in September 1973. The Great Western Railway
and the Somerset and Dorset Railway both established stations and marshalling yards in the town. The last passenger train services to Radstock closed in 1966. Manufacturing industries such as printing
, binding
and packaging provide some local employment. In recent years, Radstock has increasingly become a commuter town
for the nearby cities of Bath and Bristol
.
Radstock is home to the Radstock Museum
which is housed in a former market hall, and has a range of exhibits which offer an insight into north-east Somerset
life since the 19th century. Many of the exhibits relate to local geology and the now disused Somerset coalfield
and geology. The town is also home to Writhlington School
, famous for its Orchid collection, and a range of educational, religious and cultural buildings and sporting clubs.
. Its importance grew with the construction of the Fosse Way
, the Roman road
that ran along what is now part of the A367 in Radstock. As a result, the town was known as Stoche at the time of the Domesday Book
of 1086, meaning the stockade by the Roman road, from the Old English stoc. The rad part of the name is believed to relate to red; the soil locally is reddish marl
. The parish of Radstock was part of the Kilmersdon
Hundred,
The Great Western Railway
, and the Somerset and Dorset Railway, established stations and marshalling yards in the town. Radstock was the terminus for the southern branch of the Somerset Coal Canal
, which was turned into a tramway in 1815. It then became a central point for railway development, with large coal depots, wash houses, workshops and a gas works. As part of the development of the Wiltshire, Somerset and Weymouth Railway, an 8 miles (12.9 km) line from Radstock to Frome
was built to carry the coal. In the 1870s the broad-gauge line was converted to standard gauge and connected to the Bristol and North Somerset Line which linked the town to the Great Western Railway
. The Radstock Railway Land covers the old marshalling yards and sheds and comprises an area of approximately 8.8 hectares of land which is the subject of ongoing planning and development applications to redevelop the area.
The town is close to the site of the Radstock rail accident
, a rail crash that took place on the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway, on 7 August 1876. Two trains collided on a single track section, resulting in the deaths of 15 passengers.
The last passenger train services in Radstock closed in 1966, and the last coal mines closed in 1973. Manufacturing industries such as printing
, binding
and packaging provide some local employment. More recently Radstock has become a commuter town
for the nearby cities of Bath and Bristol
, leading to traffic problems at peak hours.
had been Lords of the Manor of Radstock since the English Civil War
. Between 1800 and 1850, Ludlows, Middle Pit, Old Pit, Smallcombe, Tynings, and Wellsway mines opened. There were also a series of pits east of the town at Writhlington
and under different ownership. In 1896, they were owned by Writhlington, Huish and Foxcote Colliery Co.; however, following an acrimonious dispute about the terms and conditions of the miners in 1899, a new company, Writhlington Collieries Co., was set up to run the mines. The Upper and Lower Writhlington, Huish and Foxcote were all merged into one colliery. The spoil heap is a now Writhlington Site of Special Scientific Interest
. The site and includes 3,000 tons of Upper Carboniferous spoil from which more than 1,400 insect fossils have been recovered. These include Phalangiotarbi
, and Graeophonus
. and the world's earliest known Damselfly
. It is a Geological Conservation Review
Site.
The complex geology and narrow seams made the coal extraction difficult; three underground explosions, in 1893, 1895 and 1908, were amongst the first attributable solely to airborne coal dust.
Tonnage increased throughout the 19th century, reaching a peak around 1901, when there were 79 separate collieries and annual production was 1.25 million tons per annum. However, due to local geological difficulties and manpower shortages, decline soon took hold and the number of pits reduced from 30 at the beginning of the 20th century to 14 by the mid-thirties, 12 at nationalisation to create National Coal Board
on 1 January 1947, 5 by 1959 and none after 1973. Narrow seams made production expensive, limiting profit and investment, and a reduced national demand together with competition from more economical coalfields led to the closure of the last two pits in the coalfield, Kilmersdon and Writhlington, in September 1973.
civil parish, which was created in 1974 as a successor to the Norton-Radstock Urban District, itself created in 1933 by the merger of Midsomer Norton and Radstock urban districts, along with part of Frome Rural District
. Under the Local Government Act 1972
it became a successor parish
to the urban district.
Radstock is governed by the unitary authority
of Bath and North East Somerset
and by Radstock Town Council. It was also part of the Wansdyke constituency
, which elects a Member of Parliament
to the House of Commons
of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
. At the 2010 general election this constituency changed to North East Somerset
. It is also part of the South West England constituency
of the European Parliament
.
south of Hallatrow consists of Supra-Pennant Measures which includes the upper coal measures and outcrops of sandstone. The southern part of the Radstock Syncline have coals of the Lower and Middle Coal Measures been worked, mainly at the Newbury and Vobster collieries in the southeast and in the New Rock and Moorewood pits to the southwest. The Hercynian orogeny caused shock waves in the rock as the Mendip Hills
were pushed up, forcing the coal measures to break along fractures or faults. Along the Radstock Slide Fault the distance between the broken ends of a coal seam can be as much as 1500 feet (457 m).
Radstock lies on the River Somer
which runs through the Kilmersdon Valley to join the Cam Brook
at Midford
to form Midford Brook
before joining the River Avon
close to the Dundas Aqueduct
and the remains of the Somerset Coal Canal
. The base of the Kilmersdon Valley is of alluvium deposits. Above this on both sides of all of the valley is a band of shales and clays from the Penarth Group. These rocks are from the Triassic
period. The majority of the remaining upland around Radstock is Lias
Limestone
(white and blue) while the very highest part above 130 m, south of Haydon, is a small outcrop of Inferior Oolitic Limestone. All these limestones are from the Jurassic
period. The steepest slopes of both the Kilmersdon and Snail’s Bottom valleys have frequently slipped. Below all of the area is the coal bearing Carboniferous strata. Haydon is an outlier of Radstock and was built to house the miners for the local pit. The disused railway line and inclined railway at Haydon form important elements within the Kilmersdon valley east of Haydon. The modern landscape has a less maintained and "rougher" character and texture than neighbouring agricultural areas. This is caused in the main by the remnants of the coal industry and its infrastructure and changes in agricultural management. The disturbance caused by coal mining and the railways and the subsequent ending of mining and disuse of the railways has created valuable habitats of nature conservation interest.
Along with the rest of South West England
, Radstock has a temperate climate
, which is generally wetter and milder than the rest of England. The annual mean temperature is about 10 °C (50 °F) with seasonal and diurnal
variations, but because of the modifying effect of the sea, the range is less than in most other parts of the United Kingdom. January is the coldest month, with mean minimum temperatures between 1 °C (34 °F) and 2 °C (36 °F). July and August are the warmest months in the region, with mean daily maxima around 21 °C (70 °F). In general, December is the dullest month and June the sunniest. The southwest of England enjoys a favoured location, particularly in summer, when the Azores High
extends its influence north-eastwards towards the UK.
Cloud
often forms inland, especially near hills, and reduces exposure to sunshine. The average annual sunshine is about 1,600 hours. Rainfall
tends to be associated with Atlantic depressions
or with convection. In summer, convection caused by solar surface heating sometimes forms shower clouds, and a large proportion of the annual precipitation falls from showers and thunderstorms at that time of year. Average rainfall is 800–900 mm (31–35 in). About 8–15 days of snowfall is typical. November to March have the highest mean wind speeds, and June to August having the lightest. The predominant wind direction is from the southwest.
, which was turned into a tramway in 1815 and later incorporated into the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway
. It then became a central point for railway development with large coal depots, warehouses, workshops and a gas works. As part of the development of the Wilts, Somerset and Weymouth Railway
an 8 miles (13 km) line from Radstock to Frome
was built to carry the coal. In the 1870s the broad-gauge line was converted to standard gauge and connected to the Bristol and North Somerset Line connecting it to the Great Western Railway
at Bristol; the GWR also took over the Wiltshire, Somerset and Weymouth Railway in 1876. The Bristol and North Somerset line closed to passenger traffic in 1959. The line is now the route of National Cycle Route 24
, otherwise known as the Colliers' Way, a national cycle route which passes many landmarks associated with the coal field; other local roads and footpaths follow the tramways developed during the coal mining years. The cycle route currently runs from Dundas Aqueduct
to Frome
via Radstock, although it is intended to provide a continuous cycle route to Southampton
and Portsmouth
.
Radstock had a second railway station on the Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway extension to Bath, which closed to passengers in 1966. The stations were adjacent to each other in the centre of the town, and each had level crossing
s across the busy A367 road, causing long tailbacks at busy periods. The S&D line also carried substantial coal traffic. A spur from the Great Western line on to the S&D and continuing to Writhlington Colliery
remained open for a few years after the railway's closure to passenger traffic, until the colliery closed in 1973.
In 2001 a local practice of landscape architect
s, New Leaf Studio were commissioned by Bath & North East Somerset Council to develop proposals for the land. The first phase of the park, the Memorial gardens were then built for the Norton Radstock Town Council in 2005 to New leaf Studio's designs incorporating a new sculptural base for the old mine wheel by artist Sebastien Boyesen.
The new Memorial Gardens incorporate the war memorial which was moved from Victoria Square as part of the project. The planting employs a naturalistic style with broad drifts of herbaceous perennials and grasses providing colour through a long season, extending through the winter with dry stems and seed heads.
is housed in the town's former market hall. The museum has a range of exhibits which offer an insight into north-east Somerset
life since the 19th century. The museum was originally opened in 1989 in barns in Haydon, and moved to its current site in the restored and converted Victorian Market Hall, a grade II listed building dating from 1897 which was opened on 10 July 1999 by Loyd Grossman
. Many of the exhibits relate to the now disused local Somerset coalfield
and geology
. Other areas include aspects of local history including the school and shops, a forge
, carpenter
's shop and exhibits relating to agriculture
. Artefacts and memorabilia of the Somerset Coal Canal
, Somerset and Dorset
and Great Western Railway
s are also on display.
Writhlington School
in Radstock is a secondary school for pupils aged 11–18. It has specialist status
as a Business and Enterprise College
. The school has 1,242 pupils in both compulsory and sixth-form education. Around 60 percent of students apply for sixth form. The school is notable for its orchid project, which includes the biggest collection of orchids outside Kew Gardens and has won numerous awards including a gold medal at the 2009 Chelsea Flower Show
. The school has also won awards in business with its enterprise companies and was named the most enterprising school in England in 2006.
There are also two local secondary schools in Midsomer Norton. Norton Hill School
has approximately 1,400 students between the ages of 11 and 18. In 1999 it became a Technology College
and in 2007 changed specialism to become a Maths and Computing College. In 2006 Norton Hill was also awarded a second specialism as a Language College
. The school was described by Ofsted
in 2007 as outstanding in every respect. The school has received the Sportsmark
Award from Sport England
and Artsmark
Silver Award; a national award scheme managed by Arts Council England
. Somervale School
which has foundation status
, is a specialist Arts College
. In 2008, the school was the first in Bath and North East Somerset
to win the Eco-Schools
Silver Award. The number of pupils on the school roll has fallen to 603. This fall prompted the school to propose a federation with nearby Norton Hill School in March 2009.
The town is served by Norton Radstock College
, a further education
college
in neighbouring Westfield.
, has its offices in the town. The other local weekly paper is the Somerset Guardian
, which is part of the Daily Mail and General Trust
. The monthly magazine, the Mendip Times
, also includes local features.
Somer Valley FM
(97.5FM and online) is the Community Radio for the district.
unity services in the town. Radstock is also home to a Jehovah's Witness Kingdom Hall
. Radstock Methodist Church was formed in 1842 but the present building opened in 1902. It was damaged by a fire in 2004, and reopened in 2005. Radstock Baptist Church, situated on Wells Hill, was founded in 1844. The Anglican parish church
of St Nicholas has a west tower dating from the 15th century. The rest of the church was rebuilt in 1879 in Geometric style, by William Willcox. It is Grade II listed.
Radstock was one of the missions established in 1913 by the Downside community
. A temporary building of thin wooden beams and asbestos
blocks was erected in 1913, and dedicated to St Hugh
. Its altar rails and benches came from Prior Park
. Dom Mackey was succeeded in 1918 by Dom Ambrose Agius, who acquired a disused printing works, formerly a barn and converted it into the present church in Westfield
, which opened in 1929. It was rebuilt after a serious fire in 1991. It has a statue of the patron on its façade.
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
, England, 9 miles (14 km) south west of Bath, and 8 miles (13 km) north west of Frome
Frome
Frome is a town and civil parish in northeast Somerset, England. Located at the eastern end of the Mendip Hills, the town is built on uneven high ground, and centres around the River Frome. The town is approximately south of Bath, east of the county town, Taunton and west of London. In the 2001...
. It is within the unitary authority
Unitary authority
A unitary authority is a type of local authority that has a single tier and is responsible for all local government functions within its area or performs additional functions which elsewhere in the relevant country are usually performed by national government or a higher level of sub-national...
of Bath and North East Somerset
Bath and North East Somerset
Bath and North East Somerset is a unitary authority that was created on 1 April 1996 following the abolition of the County of Avon. It is part of the Ceremonial county of Somerset...
and had a population of 5,275 according to the 2001 Census. Since 2011 Radstock has been a town council in its own right.
Radstock has been settled since the Iron Age
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the archaeological period generally occurring after the Bronze Age, marked by the prevalent use of iron. The early period of the age is characterized by the widespread use of iron or steel. The adoption of such material coincided with other changes in society, including differing...
, and its importance grew after the construction of the Fosse Way
Fosse Way
The Fosse Way was a Roman road in England that linked Exeter in South West England to Lincoln in Lincolnshire, via Ilchester , Bath , Cirencester and Leicester .It joined Akeman Street and Ermin Way at Cirencester, crossed Watling Street at Venonis south...
, a Roman road
Roman road
The Roman roads were a vital part of the development of the Roman state, from about 500 BC through the expansion during the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire. Roman roads enabled the Romans to move armies and trade goods and to communicate. The Roman road system spanned more than 400,000 km...
. The growth of the town occurred after 1763, when coal was discovered in the area. Large numbers of mines opened during the 19th century including several owned by the Waldegrave family
Waldegrave family
Waldegrave, the name of an English family, said to derive from Walgrave in Northamptonshire, but who long held the manor of Smallbridge in Bures St. Mary, Suffolk.Sir Richard Waldegrave served as a Knight of the Shire in 1339 in Lincolnshire...
, who had been Lords of the Manor since the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
. The spoil heap of Writhlington colliery
Coal mining
The goal of coal mining is to obtain coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content, and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from iron ore and for cement production. In the United States,...
is now the Writhlington Site of Special Scientific Interest
Writhlington SSSI
Writhlington SSSI is a 0.5 hectare geological Site of Special Scientific Interest near the town of Radstock, Bath and North East Somerset, notified in 1992....
, which includes 3,000 tons of Upper Carboniferous spoil from which more than 1,400 insect fossil specimens have been recovered. The complex geology and narrow seams made coal extraction difficult. Tonnage increased throughout the 19th century, reaching a peak around 1901, when there were 79 separate collieries and annual production was 1,250,000 tons per annum. However, due to local geological difficulties and manpower shortages output declined and the number of pits reduced from 30 at the beginning of the 20th century to 14 by the mid-thirties; the last two pits, Kilmersdon and Writhlington, closed in September 1973. The Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
and the Somerset and Dorset Railway both established stations and marshalling yards in the town. The last passenger train services to Radstock closed in 1966. Manufacturing industries such as printing
Printing
Printing is a process for reproducing text and image, typically with ink on paper using a printing press. It is often carried out as a large-scale industrial process, and is an essential part of publishing and transaction printing....
, binding
Bookbinding
Bookbinding is the process of physically assembling a book from a number of folded or unfolded sheets of paper or other material. It usually involves attaching covers to the resulting text-block.-Origins of the book:...
and packaging provide some local employment. In recent years, Radstock has increasingly become a commuter town
Commuter town
A commuter town is an urban community that is primarily residential, from which most of the workforce commutes out to earn their livelihood. Many commuter towns act as suburbs of a nearby metropolis that workers travel to daily, and many suburbs are commuter towns...
for the nearby cities of Bath and Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
.
Radstock is home to the Radstock Museum
Radstock Museum
Radstock museum in Radstock, Somerset has a range of exhibits which offer an insight into North Somerset life since the nineteenth century.The museum was originally opened in 1989 in barns in Haydon, and moved to its current site in the restored and converted Victorian Market Hall, a grade II...
which is housed in a former market hall, and has a range of exhibits which offer an insight into north-east Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
life since the 19th century. Many of the exhibits relate to local geology and the now disused Somerset coalfield
Somerset coalfield
The Somerset Coalfield included pits in the North Somerset, England, area where coal was mined from the 15th century until 1973.It is part of a wider coalfield which covered northern Somerset and southern Gloucestershire. It stretched from Cromhall in the north to the Mendip Hills in the south, and...
and geology. The town is also home to Writhlington School
Writhlington School
Writhlington School is a secondary school for pupils aged 11–18 in Writhlington, Bath and North East Somerset, England. It has specialist status as a Business and Enterprise College and is the main secondary school in the Radstock area, providing further education to local children and some pupils...
, famous for its Orchid collection, and a range of educational, religious and cultural buildings and sporting clubs.
History
Radstock has been settled since the Iron AgeIron Age
The Iron Age is the archaeological period generally occurring after the Bronze Age, marked by the prevalent use of iron. The early period of the age is characterized by the widespread use of iron or steel. The adoption of such material coincided with other changes in society, including differing...
. Its importance grew with the construction of the Fosse Way
Fosse Way
The Fosse Way was a Roman road in England that linked Exeter in South West England to Lincoln in Lincolnshire, via Ilchester , Bath , Cirencester and Leicester .It joined Akeman Street and Ermin Way at Cirencester, crossed Watling Street at Venonis south...
, the Roman road
Roman road
The Roman roads were a vital part of the development of the Roman state, from about 500 BC through the expansion during the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire. Roman roads enabled the Romans to move armies and trade goods and to communicate. The Roman road system spanned more than 400,000 km...
that ran along what is now part of the A367 in Radstock. As a result, the town was known as Stoche at the time of the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
of 1086, meaning the stockade by the Roman road, from the Old English stoc. The rad part of the name is believed to relate to red; the soil locally is reddish marl
Marl
Marl or marlstone is a calcium carbonate or lime-rich mud or mudstone which contains variable amounts of clays and aragonite. Marl was originally an old term loosely applied to a variety of materials, most of which occur as loose, earthy deposits consisting chiefly of an intimate mixture of clay...
. The parish of Radstock was part of the Kilmersdon
Kilmersdon (hundred)
The Hundred of Kilmersdon 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. Each hundred had a 'fyrd', which acted as the local defence force and a court which was...
Hundred,
The Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
, and the Somerset and Dorset Railway, established stations and marshalling yards in the town. Radstock was the terminus for the southern branch of the Somerset Coal Canal
Somerset Coal Canal
The Somerset Coal Canal was a narrow canal in England, built around 1800 from basins at Paulton and Timsbury via Camerton, an aqueduct at Dunkerton, Combe Hay, Midford and Monkton Combe to Limpley Stoke where it joined the Kennet and Avon Canal...
, which was turned into a tramway in 1815. It then became a central point for railway development, with large coal depots, wash houses, workshops and a gas works. As part of the development of the Wiltshire, Somerset and Weymouth Railway, an 8 miles (12.9 km) line from Radstock to Frome
Frome
Frome is a town and civil parish in northeast Somerset, England. Located at the eastern end of the Mendip Hills, the town is built on uneven high ground, and centres around the River Frome. The town is approximately south of Bath, east of the county town, Taunton and west of London. In the 2001...
was built to carry the coal. In the 1870s the broad-gauge line was converted to standard gauge and connected to the Bristol and North Somerset Line which linked the town to the Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
. The Radstock Railway Land covers the old marshalling yards and sheds and comprises an area of approximately 8.8 hectares of land which is the subject of ongoing planning and development applications to redevelop the area.
The town is close to the site of the Radstock rail accident
Radstock rail accident
The Radstock rail accident took place on the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway in south west England, on 7 August 1876. Two trains collided on a single track section, resulting in fifteen passengers being killed....
, a rail crash that took place on the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway, on 7 August 1876. Two trains collided on a single track section, resulting in the deaths of 15 passengers.
The last passenger train services in Radstock closed in 1966, and the last coal mines closed in 1973. Manufacturing industries such as printing
Printing
Printing is a process for reproducing text and image, typically with ink on paper using a printing press. It is often carried out as a large-scale industrial process, and is an essential part of publishing and transaction printing....
, binding
Bookbinding
Bookbinding is the process of physically assembling a book from a number of folded or unfolded sheets of paper or other material. It usually involves attaching covers to the resulting text-block.-Origins of the book:...
and packaging provide some local employment. More recently Radstock has become a commuter town
Commuter town
A commuter town is an urban community that is primarily residential, from which most of the workforce commutes out to earn their livelihood. Many commuter towns act as suburbs of a nearby metropolis that workers travel to daily, and many suburbs are commuter towns...
for the nearby cities of Bath and Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
, leading to traffic problems at peak hours.
Coal mining
In 1763, coal was discovered in Radstock and mining began in the area. In, 1896 the pits were owned by the Trustee of Frances, late Countess of Waldegrave. The Waldegrave familyWaldegrave family
Waldegrave, the name of an English family, said to derive from Walgrave in Northamptonshire, but who long held the manor of Smallbridge in Bures St. Mary, Suffolk.Sir Richard Waldegrave served as a Knight of the Shire in 1339 in Lincolnshire...
had been Lords of the Manor of Radstock since the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
. Between 1800 and 1850, Ludlows, Middle Pit, Old Pit, Smallcombe, Tynings, and Wellsway mines opened. There were also a series of pits east of the town at Writhlington
Writhlington
Writhlington is a suburb of Radstock and north-west of Frome in the Bath and North East Somerset district of Somerset, England.Andy Robinson taught Mathematics, Physical Education and Rugby at Writhlington School....
and under different ownership. In 1896, they were owned by Writhlington, Huish and Foxcote Colliery Co.; however, following an acrimonious dispute about the terms and conditions of the miners in 1899, a new company, Writhlington Collieries Co., was set up to run the mines. The Upper and Lower Writhlington, Huish and Foxcote were all merged into one colliery. The spoil heap is a now Writhlington Site of Special Scientific Interest
Writhlington SSSI
Writhlington SSSI is a 0.5 hectare geological Site of Special Scientific Interest near the town of Radstock, Bath and North East Somerset, notified in 1992....
. The site and includes 3,000 tons of Upper Carboniferous spoil from which more than 1,400 insect fossils have been recovered. These include Phalangiotarbi
Phalangiotarbi
Phalangiotarbi is an extinct arachnid order first recorded from the Early Devonian of Germany and most widespread in the Upper Carboniferous Coal measures of Europe and North America...
, and Graeophonus
Graeophonus
Graeophonus is an extinct genus of tailless whip scorpion described from three species found in the Carboniferous fossil record. The genus is known from two, or possibly three, species described from North America and England...
. and the world's earliest known Damselfly
Damselfly
Damselflies are insects in the order Odonata. Damselflies are similar to dragonflies, but the adults can be distinguished by the fact that the wings of most damselflies are held along, and parallel to, the body when at rest...
. It is a Geological Conservation Review
Geological Conservation Review
The Geological Conservation Review is produced by the UK's Joint Nature Conservation Committee and is designed to identify those sites of national and international importance needed to show all the key scientific elements of the geological and geomorphological features of Britain...
Site.
The complex geology and narrow seams made the coal extraction difficult; three underground explosions, in 1893, 1895 and 1908, were amongst the first attributable solely to airborne coal dust.
Tonnage increased throughout the 19th century, reaching a peak around 1901, when there were 79 separate collieries and annual production was 1.25 million tons per annum. However, due to local geological difficulties and manpower shortages, decline soon took hold and the number of pits reduced from 30 at the beginning of the 20th century to 14 by the mid-thirties, 12 at nationalisation to create National Coal Board
National Coal Board
The National Coal Board was the statutory corporation created to run the nationalised coal mining industry in the United Kingdom. Set up under the Coal Industry Nationalisation Act 1946, it took over the mines on "vesting day", 1 January 1947...
on 1 January 1947, 5 by 1959 and none after 1973. Narrow seams made production expensive, limiting profit and investment, and a reduced national demand together with competition from more economical coalfields led to the closure of the last two pits in the coalfield, Kilmersdon and Writhlington, in September 1973.
Governance
As of 2011, Radstock became a town council in its own right. Until then, the town was part of the Norton RadstockNorton Radstock
Norton Radstock used to be a small conurbation and large civil parish in Bath and North East Somerset, England, south west of Bath, and the same distance north west of Frome. It had a population of 21,325 according to the 2001 census. The term Norton Radstock is not recognised by local residents,...
civil parish, which was created in 1974 as a successor to the Norton-Radstock Urban District, itself created in 1933 by the merger of Midsomer Norton and Radstock urban districts, along with part of Frome Rural District
Frome Rural District
Frome was a rural district in Somerset, England, from 1894 to 1974.It was created in 1894 under the Local Government Act 1894.In 1974 it was abolished under the Local Government Act 1972 when it became part of Mendip....
. Under the Local Government Act 1972
Local Government Act 1972
The Local Government Act 1972 is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974....
it became a successor parish
Successor parish
Successor parishes are civil parishes with a parish council created by the Local Government Act 1972 in England. They replaced, with the same boundaries, a selected group of urban districts and municipal boroughs that were abolished in 1974. Most successor parish councils exercised the right to...
to the urban district.
Radstock is governed by the unitary authority
Unitary authority
A unitary authority is a type of local authority that has a single tier and is responsible for all local government functions within its area or performs additional functions which elsewhere in the relevant country are usually performed by national government or a higher level of sub-national...
of Bath and North East Somerset
Bath and North East Somerset
Bath and North East Somerset is a unitary authority that was created on 1 April 1996 following the abolition of the County of Avon. It is part of the Ceremonial county of Somerset...
and by Radstock Town Council. It was also part of the Wansdyke constituency
Wansdyke (UK Parliament constituency)
Wansdyke was a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election....
, which elects a Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
to the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
. At the 2010 general election this constituency changed to North East Somerset
North East Somerset (UK Parliament constituency)
North East Somerset is a county constituency created by the Boundary Commission for England as the successor seat to the Wansdyke Parliamentary Seat. It came into being at the 2010 general election.- Boundaries :...
. It is also part of the South West England constituency
South West England (European Parliament constituency)
South West England is a constituency of the European Parliament. For 2009 it elects 6 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation, reduced from 7 in 2004.-Boundaries:...
of the European Parliament
European Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
.
Geography
The main geological feature in this area of the Mendip HillsMendip Hills
The Mendip Hills is a range of limestone hills to the south of Bristol and Bath in Somerset, England. Running east to west between Weston-super-Mare and Frome, the hills overlook the Somerset Levels to the south and the Avon Valley to the north...
south of Hallatrow consists of Supra-Pennant Measures which includes the upper coal measures and outcrops of sandstone. The southern part of the Radstock Syncline have coals of the Lower and Middle Coal Measures been worked, mainly at the Newbury and Vobster collieries in the southeast and in the New Rock and Moorewood pits to the southwest. The Hercynian orogeny caused shock waves in the rock as the Mendip Hills
Mendip Hills
The Mendip Hills is a range of limestone hills to the south of Bristol and Bath in Somerset, England. Running east to west between Weston-super-Mare and Frome, the hills overlook the Somerset Levels to the south and the Avon Valley to the north...
were pushed up, forcing the coal measures to break along fractures or faults. Along the Radstock Slide Fault the distance between the broken ends of a coal seam can be as much as 1500 feet (457 m).
Radstock lies on the River Somer
River Somer
The River Somer is a small river in Somerset, England.It rises at Chilcompton and flows to Midsomer Norton where it joins the Wellow Brook, which flows through Wellow and joins the Cam Brook at Midford to form Midford Brook before joining the River Avon close to the Dundas Aqueduct and the remains...
which runs through the Kilmersdon Valley to join the Cam Brook
Cam Brook, Somerset
The Cam brook is a small river in Somerset, England.It rises near Hinton Blewitt, flows through Cameley, Temple Cloud, Camerton, Dunkerton and Combe Hay...
at Midford
Midford
Midford is a village approximately miles south south east of Bath, Somerset, England within the Cotswold Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty...
to form Midford Brook
Midford Brook
Midford Brook is a small river in Somerset, England.It is formed by convergence of the Wellow Brook and Cam Brook at Midford before passing Tucking Mill and joining the River Avon close to the Dundas Aqueduct and the remains of the Somerset Coal Canal....
before joining the River Avon
River Avon, Bristol
The River Avon is an English river in the south west of the country. To distinguish it from a number of other River Avons in Britain, this river is often also known as the Lower Avon or Bristol Avon...
close to the Dundas Aqueduct
Dundas Aqueduct
Dundas Aqueduct carries the Kennet and Avon Canal over the River Avon and the Wessex Main Line railway from Bath to Westbury, near Limpley Stoke in Wiltshire, England....
and the remains of the Somerset Coal Canal
Somerset Coal Canal
The Somerset Coal Canal was a narrow canal in England, built around 1800 from basins at Paulton and Timsbury via Camerton, an aqueduct at Dunkerton, Combe Hay, Midford and Monkton Combe to Limpley Stoke where it joined the Kennet and Avon Canal...
. The base of the Kilmersdon Valley is of alluvium deposits. Above this on both sides of all of the valley is a band of shales and clays from the Penarth Group. These rocks are from the Triassic
Triassic
The Triassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about 250 to 200 Mya . As the first period of the Mesozoic Era, the Triassic follows the Permian and is followed by the Jurassic. Both the start and end of the Triassic are marked by major extinction events...
period. The majority of the remaining upland around Radstock is Lias
Lias Group
The Lias Group or Lias is a lithostratigraphic unit found in a large area of western Europe, including the British Isles, the North Sea, the low countries and the north of Germany...
Limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
(white and blue) while the very highest part above 130 m, south of Haydon, is a small outcrop of Inferior Oolitic Limestone. All these limestones are from the Jurassic
Jurassic
The Jurassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about Mya to Mya, that is, from the end of the Triassic to the beginning of the Cretaceous. The Jurassic constitutes the middle period of the Mesozoic era, also known as the age of reptiles. The start of the period is marked by...
period. The steepest slopes of both the Kilmersdon and Snail’s Bottom valleys have frequently slipped. Below all of the area is the coal bearing Carboniferous strata. Haydon is an outlier of Radstock and was built to house the miners for the local pit. The disused railway line and inclined railway at Haydon form important elements within the Kilmersdon valley east of Haydon. The modern landscape has a less maintained and "rougher" character and texture than neighbouring agricultural areas. This is caused in the main by the remnants of the coal industry and its infrastructure and changes in agricultural management. The disturbance caused by coal mining and the railways and the subsequent ending of mining and disuse of the railways has created valuable habitats of nature conservation interest.
Along with the rest of South West England
Climate of south-west England
The climate of south-west England is classed as oceanic according to the Köppen climate classification. The oceanic climate is typified by cool winters with warmer summers and precipitation all year round, with more experienced in winter. Annual rainfall is about and up to on higher ground...
, Radstock has a temperate climate
Temperate
In geography, temperate or tepid latitudes of the globe lie between the tropics and the polar circles. The changes in these regions between summer and winter are generally relatively moderate, rather than extreme hot or cold...
, which is generally wetter and milder than the rest of England. The annual mean temperature is about 10 °C (50 °F) with seasonal and diurnal
Diurnal motion
Diurnal motion is an astronomical term referring to the apparent daily motion of stars around the Earth, or more precisely around the two celestial poles. It is caused by the Earth's rotation on its axis, so every star apparently moves on a circle, that is called the diurnal circle. The time for...
variations, but because of the modifying effect of the sea, the range is less than in most other parts of the United Kingdom. January is the coldest month, with mean minimum temperatures between 1 °C (34 °F) and 2 °C (36 °F). July and August are the warmest months in the region, with mean daily maxima around 21 °C (70 °F). In general, December is the dullest month and June the sunniest. The southwest of England enjoys a favoured location, particularly in summer, when the Azores High
Azores High
The Azores High is a large subtropical semi-permanent centre of high atmospheric pressure found near the Azores in the Atlantic Ocean, at the Horse latitudes...
extends its influence north-eastwards towards the UK.
Cloud
Cumulus cloud
Cumulus clouds are a type of cloud with noticeable vertical development and clearly defined edges. Cumulus means "heap" or "pile" in Latin. They are often described as "puffy" or "cotton-like" in appearance. Cumulus clouds may appear alone, in lines, or in clusters...
often forms inland, especially near hills, and reduces exposure to sunshine. The average annual sunshine is about 1,600 hours. Rainfall
Precipitation (meteorology)
In meteorology, precipitation In meteorology, precipitation In meteorology, precipitation (also known as one of the classes of hydrometeors, which are atmospheric water phenomena is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravity. The main forms of precipitation...
tends to be associated with Atlantic depressions
Low pressure area
A low-pressure area, or "low", is a region where the atmospheric pressure at sea level is below that of surrounding locations. Low-pressure systems form under areas of wind divergence which occur in upper levels of the troposphere. The formation process of a low-pressure area is known as...
or with convection. In summer, convection caused by solar surface heating sometimes forms shower clouds, and a large proportion of the annual precipitation falls from showers and thunderstorms at that time of year. Average rainfall is 800–900 mm (31–35 in). About 8–15 days of snowfall is typical. November to March have the highest mean wind speeds, and June to August having the lightest. The predominant wind direction is from the southwest.
Transport
Radstock was the terminus for the southern branch of the Somerset Coal CanalSomerset Coal Canal
The Somerset Coal Canal was a narrow canal in England, built around 1800 from basins at Paulton and Timsbury via Camerton, an aqueduct at Dunkerton, Combe Hay, Midford and Monkton Combe to Limpley Stoke where it joined the Kennet and Avon Canal...
, which was turned into a tramway in 1815 and later incorporated into the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway
Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway
The Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway – almost always referred to as "the S&D" – was an English railway line connecting Bath in north east Somerset and Bournemouth now in south east Dorset but then in Hampshire...
. It then became a central point for railway development with large coal depots, warehouses, workshops and a gas works. As part of the development of the Wilts, Somerset and Weymouth Railway
Wilts, Somerset and Weymouth Railway
The Wilts, Somerset and Weymouth Railway was a broad gauge railway that linked the Great Western Railway at Chippenham in 'Wilts' with Weymouth in Dorset, England. Branches ran to Devizes, Bradford-on-Avon and Salisbury in Wiltshire, and to Radstock in Somerset. The majority of the line survives...
an 8 miles (13 km) line from Radstock to Frome
Frome
Frome is a town and civil parish in northeast Somerset, England. Located at the eastern end of the Mendip Hills, the town is built on uneven high ground, and centres around the River Frome. The town is approximately south of Bath, east of the county town, Taunton and west of London. In the 2001...
was built to carry the coal. In the 1870s the broad-gauge line was converted to standard gauge and connected to the Bristol and North Somerset Line connecting it to the Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
at Bristol; the GWR also took over the Wiltshire, Somerset and Weymouth Railway in 1876. The Bristol and North Somerset line closed to passenger traffic in 1959. The line is now the route of National Cycle Route 24
NCR 24
National Cycle Route 24, otherwise known as the Colliers Way currently runs from Dundas Aqueduct to Frome via Radstock, although it is intended to provide a continuous cycle route to Southampton and Portsmouth.-Route:...
, otherwise known as the Colliers' Way, a national cycle route which passes many landmarks associated with the coal field; other local roads and footpaths follow the tramways developed during the coal mining years. The cycle route currently runs from Dundas Aqueduct
Dundas Aqueduct
Dundas Aqueduct carries the Kennet and Avon Canal over the River Avon and the Wessex Main Line railway from Bath to Westbury, near Limpley Stoke in Wiltshire, England....
to Frome
Frome
Frome is a town and civil parish in northeast Somerset, England. Located at the eastern end of the Mendip Hills, the town is built on uneven high ground, and centres around the River Frome. The town is approximately south of Bath, east of the county town, Taunton and west of London. In the 2001...
via Radstock, although it is intended to provide a continuous cycle route to Southampton
Southampton
Southampton is the largest city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...
and Portsmouth
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
.
Radstock had a second railway station on the Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway extension to Bath, which closed to passengers in 1966. The stations were adjacent to each other in the centre of the town, and each had level crossing
Level crossing
A level crossing occurs where a railway line is intersected by a road or path onone level, without recourse to a bridge or tunnel. It is a type of at-grade intersection. The term also applies when a light rail line with separate right-of-way or reserved track crosses a road in the same fashion...
s across the busy A367 road, causing long tailbacks at busy periods. The S&D line also carried substantial coal traffic. A spur from the Great Western line on to the S&D and continuing to Writhlington Colliery
Writhlington
Writhlington is a suburb of Radstock and north-west of Frome in the Bath and North East Somerset district of Somerset, England.Andy Robinson taught Mathematics, Physical Education and Rugby at Writhlington School....
remained open for a few years after the railway's closure to passenger traffic, until the colliery closed in 1973.
Memorial Gardens
Since the closure of the railways the railway land in the centre of the town stood empty for many years. Most prominent was a green space between the museum and brook which housed a dis-used pit wheel on a low steel frame, which many passers-by mistook for a spinning wheel. There had long been an aspiration to develop a memorial park or garden on the site to commemorate both the mining history of the town and to provide a new setting for the town's war memorial.In 2001 a local practice of landscape architect
Landscape architect
A landscape architect is a person involved in the planning, design and sometimes direction of a landscape, garden, or distinct space. The professional practice is known as landscape architecture....
s, New Leaf Studio were commissioned by Bath & North East Somerset Council to develop proposals for the land. The first phase of the park, the Memorial gardens were then built for the Norton Radstock Town Council in 2005 to New leaf Studio's designs incorporating a new sculptural base for the old mine wheel by artist Sebastien Boyesen.
The new Memorial Gardens incorporate the war memorial which was moved from Victoria Square as part of the project. The planting employs a naturalistic style with broad drifts of herbaceous perennials and grasses providing colour through a long season, extending through the winter with dry stems and seed heads.
Museum
The Radstock MuseumRadstock Museum
Radstock museum in Radstock, Somerset has a range of exhibits which offer an insight into North Somerset life since the nineteenth century.The museum was originally opened in 1989 in barns in Haydon, and moved to its current site in the restored and converted Victorian Market Hall, a grade II...
is housed in the town's former market hall. The museum has a range of exhibits which offer an insight into north-east Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
life since the 19th century. The museum was originally opened in 1989 in barns in Haydon, and moved to its current site in the restored and converted Victorian Market Hall, a grade II listed building dating from 1897 which was opened on 10 July 1999 by Loyd Grossman
Loyd Grossman
Loyd Daniel Gilman Grossman, OBE, FSA is an American-British television presenter, chef and musician who has mainly worked in the UK.- Early life, education and honours :...
. Many of the exhibits relate to the now disused local Somerset coalfield
Somerset coalfield
The Somerset Coalfield included pits in the North Somerset, England, area where coal was mined from the 15th century until 1973.It is part of a wider coalfield which covered northern Somerset and southern Gloucestershire. It stretched from Cromhall in the north to the Mendip Hills in the south, and...
and geology
Geology
Geology is the science comprising the study of solid Earth, the rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which it evolves. Geology gives insight into the history of the Earth, as it provides the primary evidence for plate tectonics, the evolutionary history of life, and past climates...
. Other areas include aspects of local history including the school and shops, a forge
Forge
A forge is a hearth used for forging. The term "forge" can also refer to the workplace of a smith or a blacksmith, although the term smithy is then more commonly used.The basic smithy contains a forge, also known as a hearth, for heating metals...
, carpenter
Carpenter
A carpenter is a skilled craftsperson who works with timber to construct, install and maintain buildings, furniture, and other objects. The work, known as carpentry, may involve manual labor and work outdoors....
's shop and exhibits relating to agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
. Artefacts and memorabilia of the Somerset Coal Canal
Somerset Coal Canal
The Somerset Coal Canal was a narrow canal in England, built around 1800 from basins at Paulton and Timsbury via Camerton, an aqueduct at Dunkerton, Combe Hay, Midford and Monkton Combe to Limpley Stoke where it joined the Kennet and Avon Canal...
, Somerset and Dorset
Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway
The Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway – almost always referred to as "the S&D" – was an English railway line connecting Bath in north east Somerset and Bournemouth now in south east Dorset but then in Hampshire...
and Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
s are also on display.
Education
First schools for children up to 11 include St Mary’s C of E Primary School, St Nicholas C of E Primary School and Trinity Primary School. In the neighbouring parish of Westfield lie Westfield Primary School and, for pupils with complex learning difficulties, Fosseway School.Writhlington School
Writhlington School
Writhlington School is a secondary school for pupils aged 11–18 in Writhlington, Bath and North East Somerset, England. It has specialist status as a Business and Enterprise College and is the main secondary school in the Radstock area, providing further education to local children and some pupils...
in Radstock is a secondary school for pupils aged 11–18. It has specialist status
Specialist school
The specialist schools programme was a UK government initiative which encouraged secondary schools in England to specialise in certain areas of the curriculum to boost achievement. The Specialist Schools and Academies Trust was responsible for the delivery of the programme...
as a Business and Enterprise College
Business and Enterprise College
Business and Enterprise Colleges were introduced in 2002 as part of the Specialist Schools Programme in the United Kingdom. The system enables secondary schools to specialise in certain fields...
. The school has 1,242 pupils in both compulsory and sixth-form education. Around 60 percent of students apply for sixth form. The school is notable for its orchid project, which includes the biggest collection of orchids outside Kew Gardens and has won numerous awards including a gold medal at the 2009 Chelsea Flower Show
Chelsea Flower Show
The RHS Chelsea Flower Show, formally known as the Great Spring Show, is a garden show held for five days in May by the Royal Horticultural Society in the grounds of the Royal Hospital Chelsea in Chelsea, London...
. The school has also won awards in business with its enterprise companies and was named the most enterprising school in England in 2006.
There are also two local secondary schools in Midsomer Norton. Norton Hill School
Norton Hill School
Norton Hill School is a state school with academy status in Midsomer Norton, Somerset, England. It was formerly the Midsomer Norton Grammar School....
has approximately 1,400 students between the ages of 11 and 18. In 1999 it became a Technology College
Technology College
Technology College is a term used in the United Kingdom for a secondary specialist school that focuses on design and technology, mathematics and science. These were the first type of specialist schools, beginning in 1994. In 2008 there were 598 Technology Colleges in England, of which 12 also...
and in 2007 changed specialism to become a Maths and Computing College. In 2006 Norton Hill was also awarded a second specialism as a Language College
Language College
Language Colleges were introduced in 1995 as part of the Specialist Schools Programme in the United Kingdom. The system enables secondary schools to specialise in certain fields, in this case, modern foreign languages...
. The school was described by Ofsted
Ofsted
The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills is the non-ministerial government department of Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Schools In England ....
in 2007 as outstanding in every respect. The school has received the Sportsmark
Sportsmark
Sportsmark is Sport England's accreditation scheme for secondary schools. The scheme recognises a school's out of hours sports provision.Sportsmark awards are given to secondary schools for provision for sport and physical education. They are currently being reviewed along with Activemark awards...
Award from Sport England
Sport England
Sport England is the brand name for the English Sports Council and is a non-departmental public body under the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
and Artsmark
Artsmark
Artsmark is a national award scheme managed by Arts Council England. The scheme, that is open to all schools in England, recognises schools with a high level of provision in the arts.There are three levels of award:* Artsmark Gold* Artsmark Silver...
Silver Award; a national award scheme managed by Arts Council England
Arts Council England
Arts Council England was formed in 1994 when the Arts Council of Great Britain was divided into three separate bodies for England, Scotland and Wales. It is a non-departmental public body of the Department of Culture, Media and Sport...
. Somervale School
Somervale School
Somervale School is situated in Midsomer Norton in Bath and North East Somerset in South West England. The school, which has academy status, is a specialist Arts College. It is one of two schools in the area, providing secondary education to local children and some pupils who live outside the...
which has foundation status
Foundation school
In England and Wales, a foundation school is a state-funded school in which the governing body has greater freedom in the running of the school than in community schools....
, is a specialist Arts College
Arts College
Arts Colleges were introduced in 1997 as part of the now defunct Specialist Schools Programme in the United Kingdom. The system enabled secondary schools to specialise in certain fields, in this case, the performing, visual and/or media arts...
. In 2008, the school was the first in Bath and North East Somerset
Bath and North East Somerset
Bath and North East Somerset is a unitary authority that was created on 1 April 1996 following the abolition of the County of Avon. It is part of the Ceremonial county of Somerset...
to win the Eco-Schools
Eco-Schools
Eco-Schools is an international program of environmental and sustainable developmental education for schools. Foundation for Environmental Education is the founder of the programme and Eco-Schools is just one out of their five programmes....
Silver Award. The number of pupils on the school roll has fallen to 603. This fall prompted the school to propose a federation with nearby Norton Hill School in March 2009.
The town is served by Norton Radstock College
Norton Radstock College
Norton Radstock College is a further education college in Westfield, Somerset serving Midsomer Norton, Radstock, Westfield, Keynsham and surrounding districts in Bath, Bristol, Wiltshire and Somerset, England....
, a further education
Further education
Further education is a term mainly used in connection with education in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It is post-compulsory education , that is distinct from the education offered in universities...
college
College
A college is an educational institution or a constituent part of an educational institution. Usage varies in English-speaking nations...
in neighbouring Westfield.
Media
The local free newspaper, the Midsomer Norton, Radstock & District JournalMidsomer Norton, Radstock & District Journal
The Midsomer Norton, Radstock and District Journal is a free weekly newspaper circulated in the towns of Midsomer Norton, Radstock, Westfield, and surrounding villages in Somerset.-Ownership:...
, has its offices in the town. The other local weekly paper is the Somerset Guardian
Somerset Guardian Standard
The Somerset Guardian and Standard are two weekly local newspapers, published in Somerset, England.The Somerset Standard & Guardian Series consists of the Frome & Somerset Standard, the Somerset Guardian and since July 2004 the Warminster & Westbury Standard....
, which is part of the Daily Mail and General Trust
Daily Mail and General Trust
Daily Mail and General Trust plc is a British media conglomerate, one of the largest in Europe. In the UK, it has interests in national and regional newspapers, television and radio. The company has extensive activities based outside the UK, through Northcliffe Media, DMG Radio Australia, DMG World...
. The monthly magazine, the Mendip Times
Mendip Times
The Mendip Times is a monthly magazine, distributed free of charge in the Mendip Hills and surrounding areas of Somerset, England.It was launched in 2006 and has three employees, who also produce Mendip TV....
, also includes local features.
Somer Valley FM
Somer Valley FM
Somer Valley FM is a local community radio that serves Midsomer Norton, Radstock and surrounding areas. The station is based in the grounds of Somervale School, though it serves the full community population in excess of 21,000, not just the school...
(97.5FM and online) is the Community Radio for the district.
Religious sites
Radstock contains four churches, united under the umbrella of "Churches together in Radstock". There are frequent interfaithInterfaith
The term interfaith dialogue refers to cooperative, constructive and positive interaction between people of different religious traditions and/or spiritual or humanistic beliefs, at both the individual and institutional levels...
unity services in the town. Radstock is also home to a Jehovah's Witness Kingdom Hall
Kingdom Hall
A Kingdom Hall is a place of worship used by Jehovah's Witnesses. The term was first suggested in 1935 by Joseph Franklin Rutherford, then president of the Watch Tower Society, for a building in Hawaii...
. Radstock Methodist Church was formed in 1842 but the present building opened in 1902. It was damaged by a fire in 2004, and reopened in 2005. Radstock Baptist Church, situated on Wells Hill, was founded in 1844. The Anglican parish church
Parish church
A parish church , in Christianity, is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish, the basic administrative unit of episcopal churches....
of St Nicholas has a west tower dating from the 15th century. The rest of the church was rebuilt in 1879 in Geometric style, by William Willcox. It is Grade II listed.
Radstock was one of the missions established in 1913 by the Downside community
Downside Abbey
The Basilica of St Gregory the Great at Downside, commonly known as Downside Abbey, is a Roman Catholic Benedictine monastery and the Senior House of the English Benedictine Congregation. One of its main apostolates is a school for children aged nine to eighteen...
. A temporary building of thin wooden beams and asbestos
Asbestos
Asbestos is a set of six naturally occurring silicate minerals used commercially for their desirable physical properties. They all have in common their eponymous, asbestiform habit: long, thin fibrous crystals...
blocks was erected in 1913, and dedicated to St Hugh
Hugh of Lincoln
Hugh of Lincoln was at the time of the Reformation the best-known English saint after Thomas Becket.-Life:...
. Its altar rails and benches came from Prior Park
Prior Park
Prior Park is a Palladian house, designed by John Wood, the Elder in the 1730s and 1740s for Ralph Allen, on a hill overlooking Bath, Somerset, England. It has been designated as a Grade I listed building....
. Dom Mackey was succeeded in 1918 by Dom Ambrose Agius, who acquired a disused printing works, formerly a barn and converted it into the present church in Westfield
Westfield, Somerset
Westfield is a settlement lying on the Fosse Way between Radstock and Midsomer Norton in Somerset, England. In 2011 it was raised to the status of a civil parish....
, which opened in 1929. It was rebuilt after a serious fire in 1991. It has a statue of the patron on its façade.
Notable people
- L.J.F. BrimbleL.J.F. BrimbleLionel John Farnham Brimble was a botanist, author, Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh and editor of Nature magazine.-Early life:...
(1904–65), botanist and editor of NatureNature (journal)Nature, first published on 4 November 1869, is ranked the world's most cited interdisciplinary scientific journal by the Science Edition of the 2010 Journal Citation Reports...
magazine. - Bill HymanBill HymanWilliam Hyman , known as "Bill" or "Billy", played first-class cricket for Somerset from 1900 to 1914. He was born at Radstock, Somerset and died at Mount Charles, St Austell, Cornwall.-Cricket career:...
(1875–1959), Somerset County cricketer. - Janet Tanner, novelist and former local councillor (also writes under the pseudonyms Jade Shannon and Amelia Carr).