Clee St. Margaret

Clee St. Margaret
Ford on the Clee Brook
Clee St. Margaret
Clee St. Margaret shown within Shropshire
Population	162 (2011)[1]
OS grid reference	SO564844
Civil parish	Clee St. Margaret
Unitary authority	Shropshire
Ceremonial county	Shropshire
Region	West Midlands
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	CRAVEN ARMS
Postcode district	SY7
Dialling code	01584
Police	West Mercia
Fire	Shropshire
Ambulance	West Midlands
EU Parliament	West Midlands
UK Parliament	Ludlow
Website	http://www.clee.org.uk/

Clee St. Margaret is a small village and civil parish in the Clee Hills area of Shropshire, England.

There is a 900-year-old parish church and a village hall, but no pub. Clee St. Margaret had five pubs earlier during the height of the quarrying on nearby Brown Clee Hill. Historically the settlement also had a shop, a Methodist Chapel, a school and a post office.

Clee St. Margaret is seven miles north east (about a fifteen-minute drive) from the market town of Ludlow. It lies at approximately 205 metres (673 ft) above sea level.^[2] The Clee Brook passes through the settlement, as a 50-metre long, shallow ford. Local land use includes two small vineyards and extensive sheep grazing.

Population

The population in 2001 of Clee St. Margaret was 126 people, 65 being males and 61 being females. Over the years the population of this small village has declined as in 1871 it was over double today's average standing at a population of 297 residents. The graph below represents how the population has dropped from 1800 to 1960 showing how it has fallen to the current population now.^[3]

Housing

The number of houses has also fluctuated. From 1841 to 1961 this number fell from 71 to 51 houses. Today it has 65 houses.^[4]

• 
  Clee St Margaret,Housing Depletion

In recent years there has been a slight rise in the number households. This may be due to the housing density declining in recent years. In 1931, 1609 people were living with more than one person whereas in 2001 only 510 residents in South Shropshire were living with more than one person.^[5] The average house price of Clee St Margaret was about £281,462 in April 2012. Prices are relatively low compared to the rest of England because of the location and because most houses are small.^[6] Modern amenities are made available such as broadband.^[7]

Education

Clee St. Margaret's population is made up mostly of families and couples. The education level for the area of South Shropshire has improved greatly. In 1851 school attendance was lower than those not attending, however in 2001, 716 children were attending and only 191 stayed at home.^[5] There are two primary schools within 6 km radiance and five playgroups centres within 7 km radiance.^[8]
The proportion of residents with a degree living in the South Shropshire district is relatively low. The residents without a degree are 23,029 and those with a degree are 5,393.^[5]

Employment

In 1881 the land was generally used for agriculture. Most of the male residents worked in agriculture, and the females were employed in domestic services or offices.

Today, the service sector provides the most employment, employing 10,364 residents of South Shropshire, while 1855 are employed in agriculture.^[4] Most of the population travel on average, 38.80 km to work^[5] implying they are employed in services in Kidderminster or Shrewsbury where the industry is thriving.^[9]

Governance

The village falls part of the electoral ward simply called Clee. This ward includes most of the villages in the Clee Hills with a total population taken at the 2011 Census of 4,595.^[10]

Religion and politics

The main religion in Clee St Margaret and the surrounding area of South Shropshire is Christianity, with Islam and Buddhism following.^[5] The church was renewed in 1860 and is used regularly for Christian worship^[4]

Clee St Margaret is in the Conservative-held constituency of Ludlow. The Member of Parliament for the constituency is Philip Dunne who has been Minister for Defence Procurement since 4 September 2012. He voted for the rise in tuition fees for 2011.^[11]

Climate

Clee St Margaret is located within The Midlands of England causing it to experience a mixture of both southern and northern climatic conditions. When rainfall is concerned it is a transitional area between Wales and the East of England. As the Midlands region is at some distance from the sea, the annual range of temperature is more pronounced than in most parts of the UK. It is subjected to sharp winter frosts and occasional very hot summer days, particularly in the south and east of the region where Clee St Margaret is located. These temperature extremes of both winter and summer are a key characteristic of the Midlands climate.^[12]
Clee St Margaret's temperature is naturally very reflective of the midlands average climate. Its coldest months are January and February reaching highs of 7 °C and lows of 0 °C. Its warmest months are July and August with highs of 21 °C and lows of 10 °C.^[13]

References

External links

Media related to Clee St. Margaret at Wikimedia Commons

Ceremonial county of Shropshire
Unitary authorities	Shropshire Council Telford and Wrekin Council
Major settlements	Bishop's Castle Bridgnorth Broseley Church Stretton Cleobury Mortimer Clun Craven Arms Ellesmere Ludlow Market Drayton Much Wenlock Newport Oswestry Shifnal Shrewsbury Telford (Dawley Madeley Oakengates Wellington) Wem Whitchurch See also: List of civil parishes in Shropshire
Rivers	Camlad Clun Corve Ledwyche Onny Perry Rea Rea Brook Redlake Roden Severn Teme Tern Unk Vyrnwy Worfe
Canals	Llangollen Canal Montgomery Canal Shrewsbury Canal Shropshire Union Canal
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