| West Hatch | |
Church of St Andrew, West Hatch |
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West Hatch
West Hatch shown within Somerset |
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| Population | 292 [1] |
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| OS grid reference | ST286209 |
| District | Taunton Deane |
| Shire county | Somerset |
| Region | South West |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | TAUNTON |
| Postcode district | TA3 |
| Dialling code | 01823 |
| Police | Avon and Somerset |
| Fire | Devon and Somerset |
| Ambulance | South Western |
| EU Parliament | South West England |
| UK Parliament | Taunton Deane |
| List of places: UK • England • Somerset | |
West Hatch is a hamlet and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated 5 miles (8.0 km) south east of Taunton in the Taunton Deane district. It has a population of 292.[1]
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The name of the hamlet indicates it lies to the west of Hatch Beauchamp.[2]
The parish of West Hatch was part of the North Curry Hundred.[3] The manor, along with North Curry, was granted to the Bishop of Wells by Richard I in 1189 and then to the dean and chapter of Wells Cathedral.[2]
West Hatch has been the home of an RSPCA Little Creech centre since 1963, when the 17th century farm[4] was purchased for the charity. A new purpose-built centre was constructed in 1997. During the cleanup operation after the beaching of the MSC Napoli cargo ship off the coast of Devon in January 2007, the majority of seabirds covered in oil were sent to the West Hatch RSPCA to be cleaned. It is one of two RSPCA centres in the UK used for this purpose and its work is often featured on national television.
The parish council has responsibility for local issues, including setting an annual precept (local rate) to cover the council’s operating costs and producing annual accounts for public scrutiny. The parish council evaluates local planning applications and works with the local police, district council officers, and neighbourhood watch groups on matters of crime, security, and traffic. The parish council's role also includes initiating projects for the maintenance and repair of parish facilities, as well as consulting with the district council on the maintenance, repair, and improvement of highways, drainage, footpaths, public transport, and street cleaning. Conservation matters (including trees and listed buildings) and environmental issues are also the responsibility of the council.
The hamlet falls within the Non-metropolitan district of Taunton Deane, which was formed on April 1, 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, having previously been part of Taunton Rural District.[5] The district council is responsible for local planning and building control, local roads, council housing, environmental health, markets and fairs, refuse collection and recycling, cemeteries and crematoria, leisure services, parks, and tourism.
Somerset County Council is responsible for running the largest and most expensive local services such as education, social services, libraries, main roads, public transport, policing and fire services, trading standards, waste disposal and strategic planning.
It is also part of the Taunton Deane county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election, and part of the South West England constituency of the European Parliament which elects seven MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.
The parish Church of St Andrew dates from the 15th century, but was extensively restored in 1861 when the north aisle and probably the vestry and organ bay were added by Benjamin Ferrey.[6] The church was rededicated by Bishop Jim Thompson on 10 May 1992.[2]
Media related to [//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:West_Hatch West Hatch] at Wikimedia Commons
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