|
South West England is one of the regions of England. It is the largest such region in terms of area, and extends from Gloucestershire and Wiltshire to Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. This includes the area often known as the West Country, and much of Wessex. The size of the region is shown by the fact that the northern part of Gloucestershire, near Chipping Campden, is as close to the Scottish border as it is to the tip of Cornwall. The constituency (first used 2004) within England; Gibraltar is in the inset. ...
Image File history File links EnglandSouthWest. ...
For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ...
The region, also known as Government Office Region, is currently the highest tier of local government subnational entity of England in the United Kingdom. ...
This article is about the physical quantity. ...
A list of United Kingdom nations (and English regions) by area: See also List of countries by area List of United Kingdom nations by population UK topics ...
To help compare sizes of different geographic regions, we list here areas between 10 km² (1000 hectares) and 100 km² (10,000 hectares). ...
Square kilometre (U.S. spelling: square kilometer), symbol km², is a decimal multiple of SI unit of surface area square metre, one of the SI derived units. ...
A square mile is an English unit of area equal to that of a square with sides each 1 statute mile (≈1,609 m) in length. ...
The Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics (NUTS) is a geocode standard for referencing the administrative division of countries for statistical purposes. ...
A list of United Kingdom nations (and English regions) by population as recorded by the 2001 Census: source: the 2001 census See also List of United Kingdom nations by area List of countries by population Population of England - historical population estimates National population register UK topics Categories: Demographics of the...
Gross Domestic Product (GDP), a calculation method in national accounting (see Measures of national income and output) is defined as the total value of final goods and services produced within a countrys borders in a year, regardless of ownership. ...
GBP may be: short for Game Boy Player the ISO currency code for the British Pound Sterling. ...
A list of United Kingdom nations and English regions by GDP per capita in GBP[1]: List of countries by area List of United Kingdom nations by population UK topics Categories: | ...
This article is about the English city. ...
This article is about the city in England. ...
Regional Assembly is a title which has universally been adopted by the English bodies established as regional chambers under the Regional Development Agencies Act 1998. ...
The South West Regional Assembly (SWRA) is the regional assembly for the South West region of England, established in 1999. ...
East London South East South West East Midlands West Midlands Yorkshire and the Humber North East North West A regional development agency (RDA) is a non-departmental public body established for the purpose of development, primarily economic, of one of Englands Government Office regions. ...
South West region shown in red. ...
The constituency (first used 2004) within England; Gibraltar is in the inset. ...
The region, also known as Government Office Region, is currently the highest tier of local government subnational entity of England in the United Kingdom. ...
Gloucestershire (pronounced ; GLOSS-ter-sher) is a county in South West England. ...
Not to be confused with Wilshire. ...
For other uses, see Cornwall (disambiguation). ...
St Martins taken from the helicopter to Penzance View from Tresco, the second largest member of the Isles of Scilly For the area of Surrey, see Scilly Isles, Surrey. ...
The West Country is an informal term for the area of south-western England roughly corresponding to the modern South West England government region. ...
For the helicopter, see Westland Wessex. ...
Chipping Campden is a Cotswold town in Gloucestershire, England, famous for its beautiful terraced High Street, dating from the 14th – 17th centuries. ...
Traditionally, the South West of England has been well known for producing Cheddar cheese, which originated in the Somerset village of Cheddar, for Devon cream teas, and for cider. It is now probably equally well known as the home of the Eden Project, Aardman Animations, the Glastonbury festival, the Bristol International Balloon Fiesta, trip hop music, Cornwall's seafood restaurants, and surfing beaches. Two National Parks and four World Heritage Sites fall within the region's boundaries. Country of origin England Region, town Somerset, Cheddar Source of milk Cows, rarely Goats Pasteurised Frequently Texture hard/semi-hard Aging time 3–30 months depending on variety Certification West Country farmhouse Cheddar Only: PDO Cheddar cheese is a fairly hard, pale yellow to orange, sharp-tasting cheese originating from...
This article is about the county of Somerset in England. ...
, This article is about the settlement in Somerset, England. ...
For other uses, see Devon (disambiguation). ...
Cream tea composed of scones, clotted cream and strawberry jam Cream tea at The Orchard, Grantchester A cream tea, Devonshire tea or Cornish cream tea[1] is tea taken with a combination of scones, clotted cream, and jam. ...
Cider in a pint glass Cider (or cyder) is an alcoholic beverage made primarily from the juices of specially grown varieties of apples. ...
The Eden Project Inside the tropical Biome The Eden Project is a large-scale environmental complex in Cornwall, UK. The project is located in a reclaimed china clay pit, located 1. ...
Aardman Animations, Ltd. ...
The Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts, commonly abbreviated to Glastonbury or Glasto, is the largest[1] greenfield music and performing arts festival in the world. ...
Early morning mass ascent The Bristol International Balloon Fiesta is held during August in Bristol, United Kingdom. ...
Trip hop (also known as the Bristol sound) is a term coined by United Kingdom dance magazine Mixmag, to describe a musical trend in the mid-1990s; trip hop is downtempo electronic music that grew out of Englands hip hop and house scenes. ...
For other uses, see Surfing (disambiguation). ...
The Brecon Beacons National Park, looking from the highest point of Pen Y Fan (886 m/2907 feet) to Corn Du (873 m/2864 feet). ...
The List of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the United Kingdom is a list of sites designated by the UNESCO as World Heritage Sites in the United Kingdom. ...
Geography High Willhays, the highest point on Dartmoor and southern England at 621m (2037ft) above sea level, with Yes Tor beyond. ...
High Willhays, the highest point on Dartmoor and southern England at 621m (2037ft) above sea level, with Yes Tor beyond. ...
High Willhays is the highest point on Dartmoor, Devon, at 2,039 feet (621 metres) above sea level, and the highest point in England and Wales south of the Brecon Beacons. ...
High Willhays, the highest point on Dartmoor and southern England at 621 m (2037 ft) above sea level, with Yes Tor beyond. ...
For other uses, see Devon (disambiguation). ...
Geology & landscape Most of the South West occupies a peninsula between the English Channel and Bristol Channel. It has 702 miles (1,130 km) of coastline—the longest of any region of England—much of which is now protected from further substantial development because of its environmental importance, and which contributes to the region’s attractiveness to tourists and residents. A peninsula in Croatia A peninsula is a piece of land that is bordered on three or more sides by water. ...
For the Thoroughbred racehorse of the same name, see English Channel (horse). ...
Satellite view of the Bristol Channel Map of the Bristol Channel The Bristol Channel (Welsh: ) is a major inlet in the island of Great Britain, separating South Wales from the West Country and extending from the lower estuary of the River Severn (Afon Hafren) to that part of the North...
Geologically the region is divided into the largely igneous and metamorphic west and sedimentary east, the dividing line slightly to the west of the River Exe. Cornwall and west Devon's landscape is of rocky coastline and high moorland, notably at Bodmin Moor and Dartmoor National Park. These are due to the granite and slate that underlie the area. The highest point of the region is High Willhays, at 2,039 feet (621 m), on Dartmoor. In North Devon the slates of the west and limestones of the east meet at Exmoor National Park. The variety of rocks of similar ages seen here have led to the county's name being lent to that of the Devonian period. The River Exe rises on Exmoor in Devon, near the north (Bristol Channel) coast of the county, but flows more or less directly due south and reaches the sea at a substantial ria on the south (English Channel) coast. ...
The Cheeswring, a granite tor on the southern edge of Bodmin Moor (Photo by Mick Knapton) Bodmin Moor is a granite moorland in northeastern Cornwall, England, 208 km² in size, dating from the Carboniferous period of geological history. ...
High Willhays, the highest point on Dartmoor and southern England at 621 m (2037 ft) above sea level, with Yes Tor beyond. ...
This article is about national parks. ...
For other uses, see granite (disambiguation). ...
For other uses, see Slate (disambiguation). ...
High Willhays is the highest point on Dartmoor, Devon, at 2,039 feet (621 metres) above sea level, and the highest point in England and Wales south of the Brecon Beacons. ...
High Willhays, the highest point on Dartmoor and southern England at 621 m (2037 ft) above sea level, with Yes Tor beyond. ...
Dunkery Beacon, with heather in bloom Exmoor National Park is a national park situated on the Bristol Channel coast of Devon and Somerset in South West England. ...
For the Celtic language, see Southwestern Brythonic language; for the residents of the English county, see Devon. ...
The east of the region is characterised by wide, flat clay vales and chalk and limestone downland. The vales, with good irrigation, are home to the region's dairy agriculture. The Blackmore Vale was Thomas Hardy's "Vale of the Little Dairies", another, the Somerset Levels was created by reclaiming wetlands. The Southern England Chalk Formation extends into the region, creating a series of high, sparsely populated and archaeologically rich downs, most famously Salisbury Plain, but also Cranborne Chase, the Dorset Downs and the Purbeck Hills. These downs are the principal area of arable agriculture in the region. Limestone is also notable in the region, at the Cotswolds, Quantock Hills and Mendip Hills, where they support sheep farming. All of the principal rock types can be seen on the Jurassic Coast of Dorset and East Devon, where they document the entire Mesozoic era from west to east. In geography a vale is a wide river valley, usually with a particularly wide flood plain or flat valley bottom. ...
For other uses, see Chalk (disambiguation). ...
For other uses, see Limestone (disambiguation). ...
A downland is an area of open chalk upland. ...
Sturminster Newton watermill. ...
Thomas Hardy redirects here. ...
The view towards Brent Knoll from Glastonbury Tor. ...
In this geological map of Great Britain the Chalk is labled 6 The Chalk Formation of Southern England is a system of chalk downland in the south of England. ...
This article is about the plateau in southern England; Salisbury Plain is also an area on South Georgia Island. ...
Ashmore pond Cranborne Chase is a Chalk plateau in central southern England, straddling the counties Dorset, Hampshire and Wiltshire. ...
The Dorset Downs shown within Dorset The Dorset Downs are an area of Chalk downland in the centre of the county Dorset in south west England. ...
The Purbeck Hills form a headland where they meet the sea at Old Harry Rocks Corfe Castle guards a gap in the ridgeway At Lulworth Cove the sea has broken through the Limestone, eroded away the weak clays and exposed the chalk of the Purbeck hills The Purbeck Hills are...
To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...
The Cotswolds is the name given to a range of hills in central England, sometimes called the Heart of England, a hilly area reaching over 300 m or 1000 feet. ...
The Quantock Hills are a range of hills west of Bridgwater in Somerset, England. ...
The Mendip Hills (commonly called The Mendips) are a range of limestone hills (karst) situated to the south of Bristol and Bath in north Somerset, England. ...
The Jurassic Coast is a World Heritage Site on the English Channel coast of southern England. ...
Mesozoic Era is one of three geologic eras of the Phanerozoic eon. ...
Settlements
 Pulteney Bridge in Georgian Bath, Somerset: the entire city is a World Heritage Site. The South West region is largely rural, with many small towns and villages; a higher proportion of people live in such areas than in any other English region. The largest cities and towns are Bristol, Plymouth, Bournemouth and Poole (collectively the South East Dorset conurbation), Swindon, Gloucester, Cheltenham, Torbay, Exeter, Bath, Weston-super-Mare, Salisbury, Taunton, and Weymouth. The population of the South West is about five million. Image File history File links Pulteney_Bridge. ...
Image File history File links Pulteney_Bridge. ...
Pulteney Bridge, Bath Pulteney Bridge is a bridge that crosses the River Avon, located in Bath, England and completed in 1773. ...
This article is about the English city. ...
This article is about the city in England. ...
, Bournemouth ( ) is a large town and tourist resort, situated on the south coast of England. ...
Poole is a coastal town, port and tourist destination, situated on the shores of the English Channel, in the ceremonial county of Dorset in southern England. ...
Shown within Dorset: the towns of Poole (yellow), Bournemouth (blue) and Christchurch (red) form the main centres of the conurbation, which also spreads into east Dorset to the north and the New Forest district of Hampshire to the east. ...
, For other places with the same name, see Swindon (disambiguation). ...
This article is about the city of Gloucester in England; for other uses see Gloucester (disambiguation). ...
For the parliamentary constituency, see Cheltenham (UK Parliament constituency). ...
Torbay (IPA: ) is an east-facing bay, at the western most end of Lyme Bay in the south-west of England, situated roughly midway between the cities of Exeter and Plymouth. ...
The city of Exeter is the county town of Devon, in the southwest of England, also known as the West Country. ...
, Bath is a small city in Somerset, England most famous for its historic baths fed by three hot springs. ...
Weston-super-Mare is an English seaside resort town in North Somerset, population 65,000 (1991 estimate). ...
For other uses, see Salisbury (disambiguation). ...
For other uses, see Taunton (disambiguation). ...
, Weymouth is a town in Dorset, England, United Kingdom, situated on a sheltered bay at the mouth of the River Wey on the English Channel coast. ...
Transport The region lies on several main line railways. The Great Western Main Line runs from London to Bristol, Exeter, Plymouth and Penzance in the far west of Cornwall. The South Western Main Line runs from London and Southampton to Bournemouth, Poole and Weymouth in Dorset. The West of England Main Line runs from London to Exeter via south Wiltshire, north Dorset and south Somerset. The Wessex Main Line runs from Bristol to Salisbury and on to Southampton. The Heart of Wessex Line runs from Bristol in the north of the region to Weymouth of the south Dorset coast via Westbury, Castle Cary and Yeovil. // High-speed main line See also: Template:British main lines Channel Tunnel Rail Link Classic main lines See also: Template:British main lines Cross-Country Route East Coast Main Line Great Eastern Main Line Great Western Main Line Midland Main Line West Coast Main Line Railway lines in England London...
Maidenhead Railway Bridge The Great Western Main Line is a main line railway in England that runs westwards from London Paddington station to Temple Meads station in Bristol. ...
Penzance Harbour and surrounding area as seen from the air Penzance (Cornish: Pensans) is a civil parish and port town in the Penwith district of Cornwall, England, UK. Granted various Royal Charters from 1512 onwards and incorporated in 1614,[2] it has a population of 21,168[1] people and...
The South Western Main Line is the railway line from London Waterloo to Weymouth on the Dorset coast. ...
The West of England Main Line is the British railway line from London Waterloo to Exeter. ...
The Wessex Main Line is the railway line from Bristol Temple Meads to Southampton. ...
Heart of Wessex Line branding on a Class 31 locomotive The Heart of Wessex Line is a United Kingdom railway line that runs from Bristol to Westbury to Weymouth. ...
This article is about the English city. ...
, Weymouth is a town in Dorset, England, United Kingdom, situated on a sheltered bay at the mouth of the River Wey on the English Channel coast. ...
Dorset (pronounced DOR-sit or [dɔ.sət], and sometimes in the past called Dorsetshire) is a county in the south-west of England, on the English Channel coast. ...
Westbury is the name of more than one place. ...
The market hall Castle Cary is a village in south Somerset, England, five miles north west of Wincanton and eight miles south of Shepton Mallet. ...
, Yeovil (pronounced ) is a town in south Somerset, England, on the A30 and A37. ...
Three major roads enter the region from the east. The M4 motorway from London to South Wales via Bristol is the busiest. The A303 cuts through the centre of the region from Salisbury to Honiton, where it merges with the A30 to continue past Exeter to the west of Cornwall. The A31, an extension of the M27, serves Poole and Bournemouth and the Dorset coast. The M5 runs from the West Midlands through Gloucestershire, Bristol and Somerset to Exeter. The A38 serves as a western extension to Plymouth. There are three other smaller motorways in the region, all in the Bristol area. The M4 motorway is a motorway in Great Britain linking London with Wales. ...
The A303 is a trunk road in England. ...
Location within the British Isles Honiton is a town in Devon, England. ...
The A30 is an old trunk road (main road) which runs from central London to Lands End, the westernmost point of the mainland of England (though not of mainland Great Britain), and is sometimes called the Great South West Road. ...
The A31 is a major trunk road in England running south west from Guildford in Surrey along the Hogs Back. ...
Looking down onto the M27 from Portsdown Hill. ...
The M5 near J28, Devon This article concerns the M5 motorway in England. ...
The West Midlands is an official Region of England, covering the western half of the Midlands. ...
A38 passing under M50 in Worcestershire The A38 is a major trunk road in England. ...
The passenger terminal at Bristol International Airport, Lulsgate Bristol is a city in south west England, situated near the Bristol Channel coast, approximately 115 miles (185 km) west of London. ...
History
 Stonehenge in Wiltshire, one of the UK's most famous landmarks. Download high resolution version (1752x1196, 311 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ...
Download high resolution version (1752x1196, 311 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ...
Pre-Roman There is some evidence of human occupation of southern England before the last ice age, but largely in the south east. The British mainland was connected to the continent during the ice age and humans may have repeatedly migrated into and out of the region. There is evidence of human habitation at Cheddar Gorge and Caves 10,000–11,000 years BC, during a partial thaw in the ice age. The landscape at this time was tundra. Britain's oldest complete skeleton, Cheddar Man, lived at Cheddar Gorge around 7150 BC (the Upper Palaeolithic or Old Stone Age), shortly after the end of the ice age, however it is unclear whether the region was continually inhabited during the previous 4,000 years, or if humans returned to the gorge after a final cold spell. The earliest scientifically dated cemetery in Britain was found at Aveline's Hole in the Mendip Hills. The human bone fragments it contained, from about 21 different individuals, are thought to be between roughly 10,200 and 10,400 years old.[1][2] During this time the tundra gave way to birch forests and grassland and evidence for human settlement appears at Salisbury Plain and Hengistbury Head in Dorset. South East England is one of the nine official regions of England. ...
Cheddar Gorge is the largest gorge in the United Kingdom Cheddar Gorge is the largest gorge in the United Kingdom, near the village of Cheddar in the Mendip Hills in Somerset, England. ...
For other uses, see Tundra (disambiguation). ...
Cheddar Man is the name given to the remains of a human male found in Gough’s Cave in Cheddar Gorge, Somerset, England. ...
The Upper Paleolithic or Palaeolithic is the third and last subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age as it is understood in Europe, Africa and Asia. ...
Avelines Hole (grid reference ST47615867) is a cave at Burrington Combe in the limestone of the Mendip Hills, in Somerset, England. ...
The Mendip Hills (commonly called The Mendips) are a range of limestone hills (karst) situated to the south of Bristol and Bath in north Somerset, England. ...
This article is about the plateau in southern England; Salisbury Plain is also an area on South Georgia Island. ...
Hengistbury Head is a headland jutting into the English Channel between Bournemouth and Christchurch in the English county of Dorset. ...
Pre-Norman -
It is generally considered that Cornwall came under the dominion of the English Crown in the time of Athelstan's rule, i.e. 924-939, if the English crown as such can be said to have actually existed at that time. In the absence of any specific documentation to record this event, supporters of Cornwall's "English status" presume that it was made a part of England as a result. However, within a mere five years of Athelstan's death, King Edmund issued a charter, in AD 944, styling himself "King of the English and ruler of this province of the Britons". Thus we can see that the "province" was a territorial possession, which has long had a special relationship to the British Crown, and its preceding institutions. For the helicopter, see Westland Wessex. ...
The flag of Cornwall (Kernow) The constitutional status of Cornwall, in the southwest of United Kingdom is the subject of ongoing debate. ...
Athelstan redirects here. ...
Edmund I (or Eadmund, 921 – May 26, 946), called the Elder, the Deed-Doer, or the Just, was King of England from 939 until his death. ...
During the latter part of the pre-Norman period, the eastern seaboard of modern day England became increasingly under the sway of the Norse. Eventually England became ruled by Norse monarchs, and the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms fell one by one, with Wessex being conquered in 1013 by King Sweyn Forkbeard. Notably, while Sweyn's realms, which included Denmark and Norway in the north, and modern day English areas such as Mercia (an Anglian kingdom of the current Midlands), much of which, along with northern England, fell under the "Danelaw". But while Sweyn ruled Wessex, along with his other realms, from 1013 onwards, followed by his son Canute the Great, Cornwall was not part of his realm of Wessex. A map by the American historian called the "The Dominions of Canute" (pictured just above) show that Cornwall, like Wales and Scotland, was neither part of Sweyn Forkbeard's nor Canute's Danish empire. Neither Sweyn Forkbeard nor Canute properly conquered or controlled Scotland, Wales or Cornwall; these modern day Celtic nations were both "client nations" who had to pay a yearly tribute or danegeld to both Sweyn and Canute, but, provided they did so, Scotland, Wales and Cornwall could keep their autonomy from the Danes. Ultimately, the Danes control of Wessex was lost in 1042 with the death of both of Canute's sons (Edward the Confessor retook Wessex for the Saxons) but netherless this important piece of history, that Cornwall was not part of the Danes empire is critical and shows that both the Saxons and the Danes had very little political input into Cornwall during the pre-Norman conquest era. Norse is an adjective relating things to Denmark, Norway, Iceland and Sweden. ...
Sweyn I Forkbeard (actually Svein Otto Haraldsson; in Danish, Svend Tveskæg, originally Svend Tjugeskæg or Tyvskæg) (circa 960 - February 3, 1014). ...
The Kingdom of Mercia at its greatest extent (7th to 9th centuries) is shown in green, with the original core area (6th century) given a darker tint. ...
This article does not cite any references or sources. ...
Gold: Danelaw The Danelaw, in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles also known as the Danelagh, (Old English: Dena lagu; Danish: Danelagen), is a name given to a part of Great Britain, now northern and eastern England, in which the laws of the Danes[1] held predominance over those of the Anglo...
Canute the Great, or Canute I, also known as Cnut in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles (Old Norse: Knútr inn rÃki, Norwegian: Knut den mektige, Swedish: Knut den Store, Danish: Knud den Store) (died November 12, 1035) was a Viking king of England, Denmark, Norway, parts of Sweden[1...
The Danegeld was an English tribute raised to pay off Viking raiders (usually led by the Danish king) to save the land from being ravaged by the raiders. ...
Modern history The boundaries of the current South West Region are essentially the same as those devised by central government in the 1930s for civil defence administration, and subsequently used for various statistical analyses. The region is also identical (subject to minor boundary adjustments) to that used in the 17th century Rule of the Major-Generals under Cromwell. (For further information, see Historical and alternative regions of England). The Rule of the Major-Generals from August 1655 – January 1657[1], was a period of direct military government during Oliver Cromwells Protectorate. ...
Oliver Cromwell (25 April 1599 – 3 September 1658) was an English military and political leader best known for his involvement in making England into a republican Commonwealth and for his later role as Lord Protector of England, Scotland and Ireland. ...
Historical and alternative regions of England. ...
By the 1960s, the South West Region (including Dorset, which for some previous purposes had been included in a Southern region), was widely recognised for government administration and statistics. The boundaries were carried forward into the 1990s, when regional administrations were formally established as Government Office Regions. A regional assembly and regional development agency were added in 1999.
However, except as an administrative tool, the South West does not have a historically based unity, which has led many to criticise it as an artificial construct. The large area of the region, stretching as it does from the Isles of Scilly to Gloucestershire, encompasses diverse areas who have no more in common with each other than with other areas of England. The region has several different TV stations and newspapers covering different areas, and - unlike almost all other English regions - has no acknowledged single regional "capital". The people of the region generally do not feel a 'South West' regional identity, often preferring a county (or Duchy) based affiliation.
Demographics The South West has the UK's lowest rate of lung cancer for men and women.[citation needed]
Economy and industry
 Since the decline of mining, Cornwall's economy has been reliant on tourism. The most economically productive areas within the region are Bristol, the M4 corridor, and south east Dorset – that is, the areas with the best links to London. Bristol alone accounts for a quarter of the region's economy, with the surrounding areas of Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire accounting for a further quarter.[3] Bristol's economy has historically been built on maritime trade including the import of tobacco (and, previously, the slave trade). Since the early 20th century, however, aeronautics have taken over as the bedrock of Bristol's economy, with companies including Airbus, Rolls-Royce and British Aerospace manufacturing in Filton, and Westland Helicopters (now AgustaWestland) in Yeovil and Weston-super-Mare. More recently defence, telecommunications, information technology and electronics have been important industries in Bristol, Swindon and elsewhere. Virgin Mobile is in Trowbridge. Image File history File linksMetadata Bristol_pw_from_ms. ...
Image File history File linksMetadata Bristol_pw_from_ms. ...
St Augustines Reach and Peros Bridge, during the 2004 Harbour Festival. ...
Image File history File links Download high resolution version (3072x2304, 3077 KB) File links The following pages link to this file: Porthcurno ...
Image File history File links Download high resolution version (3072x2304, 3077 KB) File links The following pages link to this file: Porthcurno ...
The M4 corridor is the area adjacent to the M4 motorway. ...
This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...
Six F-16 Fighting Falcons with the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds aerial demonstration team fly in delta formation in front of the Empire State Building. ...
Airbus S.A.S. (pronounced in English, in French, and in German) is an aircraft manufacturing subsidiary of EADS, a European aerospace concern. ...
This article is about the aircraft engine company. ...
British Aerospace (BAe) was a UK aircraft and defence systems manufacturer, now part of BAE Systems. ...
Filton is a town in South Gloucestershire, England, on the northern outskirts of the city of Bristol, about 4. ...
Westland Aircraft was a British aircraft manufacturer located in Yeovil in Somerset, formed just before the start of World War II. During the war the company produced a number of generally unsuccessful designs, but their Lysander would serve as an important liaison aircraft with the RAF. After the war the...
AgustaWestland is a helicopter design and manufacturing company based in Italy and the United Kingdom. ...
, Yeovil (pronounced ) is a town in south Somerset, England, on the A30 and A37. ...
Weston-super-Mare is an English seaside resort town in North Somerset, population 65,000 (1991 estimate). ...
The Virgin Mobile Worldwide logo. ...
The region's Gross value added (GVA) breaks down as 69.9% service industry, 28.1% production industry and 2.0% agriculture. This is a slightly higher proportion in production, and lower proportion in services, than the UK average. Agriculture, though in decline, is important in many parts of the region. Dairy farming is especially important in Dorset and Devon, and the region has 1.76 million cattle, second to only one other UK region, and 3,520 square miles (9,117 km²) of grassland, more than any other region. Only 5.6% of the region's agriculture is arable.[3] The Gross value added is GDP - taxes on products + subsidies on products = GVA GVA + taxes on products - subsidies on products = GDP See also Measures of national income and output External links GVA - Gross Value Added ...
The tertiary sector of industry, also called the service sector or the service industry, is one of the three main industrial categories of a developed economy, the others being the secondary industry (manufacturing and primary goods production such as agriculture), and primary industry (extraction such as mining and fishing). ...
Manufacturing (from Latin manu factura, making by hand) is the use of tools and labor to make things for use or sale. ...
Dairy farm redirects here. ...
Modern arable agriculture typically uses large fields like this one in Dorset, England. ...
Tourism is important in the region, and in 2003 the tourist sector contributed £4,928 million to the region's economy.[4] In 2001 the GVA of the hotel industry was £2,200 million, and the region had 13,800 hotels with 250,000 bed spaces.[3]
There are very large differences in prosperity between the eastern parts of the region and the west. While Bristol is the second most affluent city in England after London,[5] some parts of Cornwall and Devon have among the lowest average incomes in the UK. Cornwall in particular relies on tourism. The county has the lowest GVA per head of any county or unitary authority in the country,[6], contributes only 6.5% of the region's economy, and receives EU Objective One funding.[7] Around five million people visit the county each year.[8] Cornwall's poor economic performance is partly caused by its remoteness and poor transport links,[3] and by the decline of its traditional industries, such as mining, agriculture and fishing. Objective 1 regions are officially designated NUTS level 2 regions within the European Union where per capita GDP is less than 75% of that of the wider union; they also include certain very low population areas in Sweden and Finland and some outlying (i. ...
Sub-divisions The region covers much of the historical area of Wessex (omitting only Hampshire and Berkshire), and all of the Celtic Kingdom of Dumnonia which comprised Cornwall, Devon, and parts of Somerset and Dorset. In terms of local government, it was divided after 1974 into Avon, Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Somerset, and Wiltshire. Avon has since been abolished, and several mainly urban areas have become unitary authorities.
For the helicopter, see Westland Wessex. ...
For other uses, see Hampshire (disambiguation). ...
This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ...
Dumnonia was a Brythonic kingdom of sub-Roman Britain, located in the south-west peninsula of modern England and covering Cornwall, Devon, most of Somerset and possibly part of Dorset. ...
The County of Avon was a short-lived non-metropolitan county and ceremonial county in the west of England, named after the River Avon which ran through it. ...
For other uses, see Cornwall (disambiguation). ...
For other uses, see Devon (disambiguation). ...
Dorset (pronounced DOR-sit or [dɔ.sət], and sometimes in the past called Dorsetshire) is a county in the south-west of England, on the English Channel coast. ...
Gloucestershire (pronounced ; GLOSS-ter-sher) is a county in South West England. ...
This article is about the county of Somerset in England. ...
Not to be confused with Wilshire. ...
A unitary authority is a type of local authority, which has a single tier and is responsible for all local government functions within its area. ...
Local government The official region consists of the following geographic counties and local government areas: | Map | Ceremonial county | Shire county / unitary | Districts |
 | Somerset | 1. Bath and North East Somerset | | 2. North Somerset | | 11. Somerset | South Somerset, Taunton Deane, West Somerset, Sedgemoor, Mendip | | 3. Bristol | | Gloucestershire | 4. South Gloucestershire | | 5. Gloucestershire | Gloucester, Tewkesbury, Cheltenham, Cotswold, Stroud, Forest of Dean | | Wiltshire | 6. Swindon | | 7. Wiltshire | Salisbury, West Wiltshire, Kennet, North Wiltshire | | Dorset | 8. Dorset | Weymouth and Portland, West Dorset, North Dorset, Purbeck, East Dorset, Christchurch | | 9. Poole | | 10. Bournemouth | | Devon | 12. Devon | Exeter, East Devon, Mid Devon, North Devon, Torridge, West Devon, South Hams, Teignbridge | | 13. Torbay | | 14. Plymouth | | Cornwall | Isles of Scilly | | 15. Cornwall | Penwith, Kerrier, Carrick, Restormel, Caradon, North Cornwall | Image File history File links EnglandSouthWestNumbered. ...
This article is about the county of Somerset in England. ...
Bath and North East Somerset (commonly referred to as BANES or B&NES) is a unitary authority that was created on 1 April 1996 following the abolition of the County of Avon. ...
North Somerset is a unitary authority in England, historically part of the county of Somerset but now administered independently. ...
South Somerset is a local government district in Somerset, England. ...
Taunton Deane is a local government district with borough status in Somerset, England. ...
West Somerset is a local government district in Somerset, England. ...
Sedgemoor is a local government district of Somerset in England. ...
Categories: Stub | Somerset ...
This article is about the English city. ...
Gloucestershire (pronounced ; GLOSS-ter-sher) is a county in South West England. ...
South Gloucestershire is a local government area in South West England. ...
This article is about the city of Gloucester in England; for other uses see Gloucester (disambiguation). ...
Forest of Dean is a local government district in Gloucestershire, England, named for the Forest of Dean. ...
Not to be confused with Wilshire. ...
The article on the town of Swindon is here. ...
Dorset (pronounced DOR-sit or [dɔ.sət], and sometimes in the past called Dorsetshire) is a county in the south-west of England, on the English Channel coast. ...
Poole is a coastal town, port and tourist destination, situated on the shores of the English Channel, in the ceremonial county of Dorset in southern England. ...
The Borough of Bournemouth has been a unitary authority in South East Dorset since 1 April 1997. ...
For other uses, see Devon (disambiguation). ...
Torbay (IPA: ) is an east-facing bay, at the western most end of Lyme Bay in the south-west of England, situated roughly midway between the cities of Exeter and Plymouth. ...
This article is about the city in England. ...
For other uses, see Cornwall (disambiguation). ...
St Martins taken from the helicopter to Penzance View from Tresco, the second largest member of the Isles of Scilly For the area of Surrey, see Scilly Isles, Surrey. ...
South West Regional Assembly Although referendums had been planned on whether elected assemblies should be set up in some of the regions, none was planned in the South West. The South West Regional Assembly (SWRA) is the regional assembly for the South West region, established in 1999. It is based in Exeter and Taunton. The SWRA is a partnership of councillors from all local authorities in the region and representatives of various sectors with a role in the region's economic, social and environmental well-being. It covers an area of 9,200 square miles (23,828 km²) including Gloucestershire, Dorset, Somerset, Wiltshire, Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, and represents a population of almost five million people. There was much opposition to the formation of the SWRA with critics saying it is an unelected unrepresentative and unaccountable "quango", and the area covered is an artificially imposed region and not natural. They say that by having the Isles of Scilly and Cornwall in the west being in the same region as Gloucestershire in the east, geographically it would be the same for example as linking London with Yorkshire. Durdle Door. ...
Durdle Door. ...
Durdle Door Durdle Door (sometimes spelt Durdle Dor) is a natural limestone arch on the Jurassic Coast near Lulworth in Dorset, England. ...
The Jurassic Coast is a World Heritage Site on the English Channel coast of southern England. ...
A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a specific site (such as a forest, mountain, lake, desert, monument, building, complex, or city) that has been nominated and confirmed for inclusion on the list maintained by the international World Heritage Programme administered by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, composed of 21 State...
The South West Regional Assembly (SWRA) is the regional assembly for the South West region of England, established in 1999. ...
Regional Assembly is a title which has universally been adopted by the English bodies established as regional chambers under the Regional Development Agencies Act 1998. ...
The city of Exeter is the county town of Devon, in the southwest of England, also known as the West Country. ...
For other uses, see Taunton (disambiguation). ...
Gloucestershire (pronounced ; GLOSS-ter-sher) is a county in South West England. ...
Dorset (pronounced DOR-sit or [dɔ.sət], and sometimes in the past called Dorsetshire) is a county in the south-west of England, on the English Channel coast. ...
This article is about the county of Somerset in England. ...
Not to be confused with Wilshire. ...
For other uses, see Devon (disambiguation). ...
For other uses, see Cornwall (disambiguation). ...
St Martins taken from the helicopter to Penzance View from Tresco, the second largest member of the Isles of Scilly For the area of Surrey, see Scilly Isles, Surrey. ...
There is some controversy over the status of Cornwall. Some consider it to be a nation in its own right. Many others (55% according to a MORI opinion poll) [1] wish to see devolution outside a "Devonwall"/"South West" region. A petition for a Cornish assembly has received over 50,000 signatures. The British Government's position is that Cornwall is a county of England and is far too small to become a region, having around one fifth of the population of the smallest existing English region. However, many other countries such as Canada and the USA, have provinces and states of diverse sizes, and independent states like Iceland exist which have a smaller population than Cornwall. The flag of Cornwall (Kernow) The constitutional status of Cornwall, in the southwest of United Kingdom is the subject of ongoing debate. ...
Mori (森) is a Japanese family name. ...
Motto: (traditional) In God We Trust (official, 1956–present) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington, D.C. Largest city New York City Official language(s) None at the federal level; English de facto Government Federal Republic - President George W. Bush (R) - Vice President Dick Cheney (R) Independence - Declared - Recognized...
Politics The South West is mixed politically. Currently in the UK Parliament, the Conservatives hold 22 seats, the Liberal Democrats 16 and Labour 12. The Conservative and Unionist Party, more commonly known as the Conservative Party, is currently the largest majortiy opposition party in the United Knigdom. ...
The Liberal Democrats, often shortened to Lib Dems, is a liberal political party in the United Kingdom formed in 1988 by the merger of the Liberal Party and the Social Democratic Party; the two parties had already been in an alliance for seven years prior to this, since not long...
The Labour Party is a political party in the United Kingdom. ...
South West England is one of the constituencies used for elections to the European Parliament. From the 2004 election onwards, Gibraltar has been included within the constituency for the purpose of elections to the European parliament only. The constituency (first used 2004) within England; Gibraltar is in the inset. ...
Established 1952, as the Common Assembly President Hans-Gert Pöttering (EPP) Since 16 January 2007 Vice-Presidents 14 Rodi Kratsa-Tsagaropoulou (EPP) Alejo Vidal-Quadras (EPP) Gérard Onesta (Greens – EFA) Edward McMillan-Scott (ED) Mario Mauro (EPP) Miguel Angel MartÃnez MartÃnez (PES) Luigi Cocilovo (ALDE) Mechtild...
Education Somerset, the former area of Avon, Swindon and Cornwall have comprehensive schools. The other counties have some selective schools. Gloucestershire has 6, Wiltshire has 2 (in Salisbury), Poole has 2, Bournemouth has 2, Devon has 1, Plymouth has 2 and Torbay has 3. In the top ten schools in the south west, by A level results, all ten are selective schools.
At GCSE, Gloucestershire performs the best, followed by Poole and Bath & North East Somerset (both equal), then Dorset. Also above the UK average are Wiltshire, North Somerset, and Devon. The South West performs well at GCSE, with the only exception being the City of Bristol which is very low performing.
At A level, Bournemouth performs the best by far. Gloucestershire again performs well, closely followed by Wiltshire. Also above average is Torbay and North Somerset. At A level, the South West is not quite as well performing as other areas. Plymouth performs the worst.
In 2006, the top ten state schools in South West England (by A Level results) were:
Colyton Grammar School (commonly abbreviated to CGS) is a co-educational grammar school located in the small town of Colyford in East Devon and teaches students from years 7 to 13 (ages 11 to 18). ...
Pates Grammar School is a voluntary aided, selective grammar school in the Hesters Way area of Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, United Kingdom catering for pupils aged 11 to 18. ...
Sir Thomas Richs School is a grammar school for boys (aged 11–18) and girls (aged 16–18, in the sixth form) in Longlevens Gloucester. ...
Parkstone Grammars logo Parkstone Grammar School (commonly abbreviated to PGS) is a selective, all girls state-school in Poole, on the southern coast of England. ...
Devonport High School for Boys (DHSB) is a selective grammar school in Plymouth, United Kingdom. ...
Poole Grammars logo Poole Grammar School (commonly abbreviated to PGS) is a selective, all boys state-school in Poole, on the south coast of Britain. ...
South Wilts Grammar School for Girls, or just South Wilts Grammar School or SWGS, is a secondary school in Salisbury, south Wiltshire, England. ...
Churston Ferrers Grammar School (also known as Churston Grammar School, or CGS) is a selective coeducational foundation school situated in the village of Galmpton in Torbay, South Devon with Humanities College Status. ...
Local media Local media include: - There are two BBC regions - BBC South West, based in Plymouth which has the Spotlight programme and BBC West based in Clifton in Bristol with the Points West regional programme. HTV have the ITV West region, based in Bristol. Their regional programme is The West Tonight. In Plymouth is the with the Westcountry Live programme, made by Westcountry Television who operate the ITV Westcountry region. Parts of Dorset, including Bournemouth and Poole, also receive BBC South and ITV Meridian from Southampton.
- BBC Radios Cornwall, Devon, Somerset, Solent (Dorset), Bristol, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire, and Swindon.
- Commercial radio stations are Kiss 101 (Bristol), Orchard FM (Taunton), Star 107.2 (Bristol), Bristol's GWR FM, Bath FM, Pirate FM, Atlantic FM (St Agnes, Lantern FM (Barnstaple), Gemini FM (Exeter), Severn Sound (Gloucester), Wiltshire's GWR FM (Swindon), Bath's GWR FM, Palm 105.5 FM (Torquay), Plymouth Sound FM, South Hams Radio (Kingsbridge), Bridgwater's 107.4 BCR FM, Ivel FM (Yeovil), Quay West Radio (Watchet), Star 107.7 (Weston-super-Mare), Spire FM (Salisbury), Wessex FM (Dorchester), Vale FM (Shaftesbury) 3TR FM (Warminster), Fire 107.6 (Bournemouth), 2CR FM (Bournemouth), and Brunel FM (Swindon).
- Regional newspapers include the Bristol Evening Post, Western Daily Press, the Dorset Echo, the Exeter Express & Echo, Western Morning News, the North Devon Journal, Cornish Guardian, West Briton (Truro), The Cornishman, Wiltshire Times (Trowbridge), Gloucestershire Echo, Gloucester Citizen, Plymouth Evening Herald, Torquay Herald Express, and Swindon Advertiser.
BBC South West is the BBC English Region producing local television, radio, web and teletext content for Devon, Cornwall and the Channel Islands. ...
Spotlight is the BBCs regional news programme for the southwest of England, covering Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, and Somerset. ...
BBC West is the BBC English Region covering the local radio editorial areas of [[Bristol], Somerset, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire. ...
, Clifton is the name of both one of the thirty-five council wards in the city of Bristol in the United Kingdom, and of a suburb of the city that lies mostly within that ward. ...
The Points West programme titles are designed by Lambie Nairn. ...
ITV Wales & West Ltd (formally and more commonly known as HTV) is the ITV contractor for Wales and the West of England[1]. It is owned by ITV plc. ...
The West Tonight is the flagship news programme in the ITV West region. ...
Westcountry Live is the flagship regional news programme for ITV region Westcountry. ...
Westcountry Television is the ITV franchise holder in the South West of England, replacing its predecessor, TSW (Television South West), on 1 January 1993. ...
BBC South is the BBC English Region producing local television, radio, web and teletext content for West Sussex, Hampshire, eastern Dorset, western Berkshire, Oxfordshire and the Isle of Wight. ...
ITV Meridian Ltd (formerly and more commonly known as Meridian Broadcasting) is the holder of the ITV franchise for South and South East England[1]. It has been broadcasting since 1 January 1993, when it replaced TVS. The main headquarters were situated at studios in Northam, Southampton (previously used by...
For other uses, see Southampton (disambiguation). ...
BBC Radio Cornwall is the BBC Local Radio service for the English county of Cornwall. ...
BBC Radio Devon is the BBC Local Radio service for the English county of Devon, and began transmissions on 17 January 1983, replacing a previous breakfast show (Morning SouWest) for Devon and Cornwall broadcast on the local frequencies of Radio 4. ...
BBC Somerset, the new name for the soon-to-be-relaunched BBC Somerset Sound, is the BBC Local Radio service for the shire county of Somerset. ...
BBC Radio Solent is the BBC Local Radio service for the Isle of Wight and the English counties of Hampshire and Dorset. ...
BBC Radio Bristol is the BBC Local Radio service for the English city of Bristol and the surrounding former Avon area. ...
BBC Radio Wiltshire is the BBC Local Radio service for the English county of Wiltshire, which began as BBC Wiltshire Sound on April 4th 1989. ...
BBC Radio Gloucestershire is the BBC Local Radio service for the English county of Gloucestershire, which started on October 3, 1988. ...
BBC Radio Swindon is the BBC Local Radio service for the English town of Swindon. ...
Kiss 101 is a radio station in Bristol broadcasting out to South Wales and South West England playing dance music and RnB. It is part of a network of stations called the Kiss Network, which also includes Kiss 105-108 (East Anglia) and Kiss 100 (London) and is...
Orchard FM is a radio station broadcasting from Somerset, England. ...
Star 107. ...
GWR FM is a stations serving the former county of Avon. ...
Categories: Bath and North East Somerset | Radio stations in the United Kingdom | United Kingdom broadcasting stubs ...
Pirate FM is one of the Independent Local Radio stations for Cornwall. ...
Atlantic FM, is a radio station based in and serving Cornwall, United Kingdom. ...
St Agnes, in Cornish Breanek, is a village, within a parish of the same name, in Carrick on the north coast of Cornwall, England, UK. Situated half way between the artists colony of St Ives and the surfers paradise at Newquay, it grew up as a fishing and farming community...
Lantern FM is an independent local radio station in the North Devon area. ...
Statistics Population: 34,000 (April 2006 Est. ...
Gemini FM is a Independent Local Radio station broadcasting to Exeter and Torbay in Devon, United Kingdom. ...
Severn Sound is an Independent Local Radio station that broadcasts to Gloucestershire in the United Kingdom. ...
GWR FM serves north and west Wiltshire. ...
GWR FM is a UK radio station that serves Bath. ...
Plymouth Sound is a FM radio station broadcasting to Plymouth in Devon, United Kingdom. ...
South Hams Radio Categories: Station stubs | UK Radio Stations ...
For the Kingsbridge in New York City, see Kingsbridge, Bronx, New York. ...
Bridgwaters 107. ...
Ivel FM Categories: Station stubs | UK Radio Stations ...
Quay West Radio (or Quay West FM as it became in 2005) is a radio station broadcasting in Watchet, Somerset, providing a laid-back style of radio to the area of West Somerset. ...
Statistics Population: Ordnance Survey OS grid reference: ST074431 Administration District: West Somerset Shire county: Somerset Region: South West England Constituent country: England Sovereign state: United Kingdom Other Ceremonial county: Somerset Historic county: Somerset Services Police force: Avon and Somerset Police Fire and rescue: {{{Fire}}} Ambulance: South Western Post office and...
Star 107. ...
Weston-super-Mare is an English seaside resort town in North Somerset, population 65,000 (1991 estimate). ...
Spire FM was awarded the licence to broadcast to the city of Salisbury and surrounding areas by the old Radio Authority (now OFCOM) in 1991. ...
Local radio station for the Weymouth, Dorchester and Bridport areas of Dorset. ...
The main road through Dorchester Dorchester is a market town in south west Dorset, England, situated on the River Frome and A35 road 20 miles west of Poole and five miles north of Weymouth. ...
Vale FM Vale FM is a local radio station which broadcasts to the Blackmore Vale and Cranborne Chase, from Shaftesbury, Dorset, in southern England. ...
For other uses, see Shaftesbury (disambiguation) Shaftesbury is a town in North Dorset, England, situated on the A30 road near the Wiltshire border 20 miles west of Salisbury. ...
3TR FM Categories: Station stubs | UK Radio Stations ...
This article is about the English town. ...
Fire 107. ...
2CR FM (Two Counties Radio) is a British Independent Local Radio station broadcasting from a former carpet shop in Southcote Road in Bournemouth. ...
For the regional Classic Gold station, Brunel Radio see Brunel Classic Gold Brunel FM is a UK new radio station broadcasting to the town of Swindon and outside areas of close proximity, it is part of The Local Radio Company group of stations. ...
The Bristol Evening post is published Monday-Saturday and |
