Population 408 (2011) Region South West Sovereign state United Kingdom Local time Saturday 1:05 PM District Sedgemoor | OS grid reference ST399367 Country England Post town BRIDGWATER Shire county Somerset Dialling code 01458 | |
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Weather 13°C, Wind W at 31 km/h, 84% Humidity UK parliament constituency Bridgwater and West Somerset | ||
Moorlinch is a village and civil parish where the Polden Hills meet the Somerset Levels in the Sedgemoor district of Somerset, England.
Contents
Map of Moorlinch, Bridgwater, UK
History
The village was known as Mirieling in 971 and the name is believed to come from the Saxon myrge and hlinc meaning pleasant hill.
The parish of Moorlinch was part of the Whitley Hundred.
Moorlinch formed part of the Polden Estate held by Glastonbury Abbey from Saxon times until the dissolution of the monasteries in 1539. Then is descended with Shapwick manor to the Rolle family.
In 1900 the village windmill was demolished and the machinery moved to Ashton windmill in Chapel Allerton.
Governance
The parish meeting has responsibility for local issues, including setting an annual precept (local rate) although it is one of only two parishes in Bridgwater District which do not raise ANY levy on its residents. The parish meeting 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 meetings 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 Sedgemoor, which was formed on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, having previously been part of Bridgwater Rural District, which 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 Bridgwater and West Somerset 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.
Geography
Moorlinch SSSI is part of the extensive grazing marsh grasslands and ditch systems of the Somerset Levels and Moors. Lying in the Parrett Basin at the foot of the Polden Hills, the area drains by gravity into the King’s Sedgemoor Drain.
Religious sites
The Church of St Mary dates from the 13th century and has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade I listed building.