Lydford-on-Fosse | |
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Lydford stores |
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Lydford-on-Fosse shown within Somerset | |
Population | 511 (2011) |
OS grid reference | ST565305 |
District | |
Shire county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | SOMERTON |
Postcode district | TA11 7 |
Dialling code | 01963 |
Police | Avon and Somerset |
Fire | Devon and Somerset |
Ambulance | South Western |
EU Parliament | South West England |
UK Parliament | |
Lydford-on-Fosse is a village and civil parish in the Mendip district of Somerset, England. The parish includes the village of West Lydford and hamlet of East Lydford.
Lydford-on-Fosse straddles the Fosse Way, an ancient Roman road which linked the cities of Lincoln and Exeter. The village takes its name from two Saxon words, Lyd torrent or noisy stream and Ford a passage crossing a river, and was established before the Norman Conquest. The villages of East and West Lydford are to the east and west of the ford which was where the Fosse Way crossed the river Brue.
A place where a river could be forded became a meeting place and a centre for trade and the granting of a charter for a fair and weekly market in the reign of Henry III (1216 - 1272) suggests that Lydford was already a place of some importance by that time. Fair Place, West Lydford, is where the fair was held. At least 1800 years of recorded history of East and West Lydford, with entries for both in the Doomsday Book, have led to the Parish now known as Lydford on Fosse.
The parish of West Lydford was part of the hundred of Catsash, while East Lydford was in Somerton Hundred.
The modern A37 trunk road follows the route of the ancient Fosse Way through the parish.
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.