Knowle St Giles
| Knowle St Giles | |
 Malherbie Court, Knowle St Giles |
|
  Knowle St Giles Knowle St Giles shown within Somerset | |
| Population | 244 [1] |
|---|---|
| OS grid reference | ST345115 |
| Civil parish | Chard |
| District | South Somerset |
| Shire county | Somerset |
| Region | South West |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | CHARD |
| Postcode district | TA20 |
| Dialling code | 01460 |
| Police | Avon and Somerset |
| Fire | Devon and Somerset |
| Ambulance | South Western |
| EU Parliament | South West England |
| UK Parliament | Yeovil |
The parish includes the village of Cricket Malherbie.
History
In the Domesday book of 1086, Knowle St Giles is recorded as having small holdings by five villani and four bordarii. In the medieval period this grew with the reclamation of forest on Windwhistle Hill.[2]
The parish of St Giles Knowles was part of the South Petherton Hundred.[3]
Governance
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 village falls within the Non-metropolitan district of South Somerset, which was formed on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, having previously been part of Chard Rural District.[4] 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 Yeovil 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.
Landmarks
Cricket Court was erected as a country house in 1811 for Admiral Stephen Pitt, his family being cousins of the Earl of Chatham.[5]
The road bridge over the River Isle is a Grade II listed building.[6]
Religious sites
The former Church of St Giles is no longer consecrated and has been converted into a private house.[7]
The church in Cricket Malherbie, which is dedicated to St Mary Magdalene, has 12th-century origins, but was rebuilt around 1855 by Rev J.M. Allen. It has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade II* listed building.[8]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Statistics for Wards, LSOAs and Parishes — SUMMARY Profiles" (Excel). Somerset Intelligence. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
- ↑ Havinden, Michael. The Somerset Landscape. The making of the English landscape. London: Hodder and Stoughton. p. 97. ISBN 0-340-20116-9.
- ↑ "Somerset Hundreds". GENUKI. Retrieved 20 October 2011.
- ↑ "Chard RD". A vision of Britain Through Time. University of Portsmouth. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
- ↑ "Cricket Court, and attached balustraded walling around basement areas". Images of England. Retrieved 2008-02-01.
- ↑ "Road Bridge over River Isle". British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 2 September 2011.
- ↑ "Former Church of St Giles". Images of England. English Heritage. Retrieved 2009-02-28.
- ↑ "Church of St Mary Magdalen". Images of England. Retrieved 2008-02-01.
