Editing Shepton Mallet (section)

==Geography==
Shepton Mallet lies in the southern foothills of the [[Mendip Hills]]. The area rests geologically on [[Forest Marble]], [[Blue Lias]] and [[Oolitic limestone]].<ref name="caa12">{{Cite web |url=http://www.mendip.gov.uk/Publication.asp?id=SX9452-A7821E79 |title=Shepton Mallet Conservation Area Character Appraisal and Management Proposals |year=2007 |publisher=Mendip District Council |access-date=30 December 2008 |page=12 |archive-url=http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20110927075028/http://www.mendip.gov.uk/Publication.asp?id=SX9452-A7821E79 |archive-date=27 September 2011}}</ref>

===Nearby cave systems===
To the north of the town are several [[caves of the Mendip Hills]], including [[Thrupe Lane Swallet]], a [[geological Site of Special Scientific Interest]] (SSSI),<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.english-nature.org.uk/Special/sssi/sssi_details.cfm?sssi_id=1000152 |title=Thrupe Swallet SSSI |work=Natural England |access-date=3 January 2009 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110525100219/http://www.english-nature.org.uk/Special/sssi/sssi_details.cfm?sssi_id=1000152 |archive-date=25 May 2011 }}</ref> and the [[St. Dunstan's Well Catchment]], a cave system with a series of spectacularly-decorated caves totalling about {{convert|4|mi|km}} of mapped passage.<ref name="stdunstans"/> The caves at [[Fairy Cave Quarry]] were formed mainly by the erosive action of water beneath the water-table at considerable pressure ("[[phreatic]]" development), but as the water table has fallen, many now lie well above it and the system contains a variety of cave formations ([[stalagmite]]s, [[stalactites]] and [[calcite]] curtains) which in extent and preservation are among the best in Britain. [[Shatter Cave]] and Withyhill Cave are generally seen to be among the finest decorated caves in Britain in terms of sheer abundance of pure white and translucent calcite deposits.<ref>Moseley, Gina (2005), ''A Study into the Microclimatology of Shatter Cave, southwest England with comparison to Uamh an Tartair, northwest Scotland'', presented to the British Cave Research Association.</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.english-nature.org.uk/citation/citation_photo/1000377.pdf |title=St. Dunstan's Well Catchment |publisher=English Nature |access-date=20 July 2006 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090319223422/http://www.english-nature.org.uk/citation/citation_photo/1000377.pdf |archive-date=19 March 2009}}</ref> Small numbers of [[greater horseshoe bat]] (''Rhinolophus ferrumequinum''), [[lesser horseshoe bat]] (''R. hipposideros'') and [[Natterer's bat]] (''Myotis nattereri'') hibernate in the cave system. An area of nationally rare species-rich, unimproved calcareous grassland of the [[British NVC community CG2|Sheep's-fescue-Meadow Oat-grass type]] lies in a field to the east of Stoke Lane Quarry.<ref name="stdunstans">{{Cite web |title=St. Dunstan's Well Catchment |work=English Nature |url=http://www.english-nature.org.uk/citation/citation_photo/1000377.pdf |access-date=20 July 2006 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090319223422/http://www.english-nature.org.uk/citation/citation_photo/1000377.pdf |archive-date=19 March 2009}}</ref>

===Countryside===
The countryside around Shepton is mostly farmed, although there are nearby areas of woodland. About {{convert|1.8|mi|abbr=on}} to the north-east is Beacon Hill Wood, owned by the [[Woodland Trust]]),<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/en/our-woods/Pages/wood-details.aspx?wood=4670 |title=Beacon Hill Wood |publisher=The Woodland Trust |access-date=23 February 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716093821/http://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/en/our-woods/Pages/wood-details.aspx?wood=4670 |archive-date=16 July 2011}}<br />Ordnance Survey {{gbmapping|ST638460}}</ref> at the junction of the [[Fosse Way]] and a [[Roman road]] topping the [[Mendip Hills]], which contain a number of [[tumuli]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.beaconhillsocietymendip.org.uk/M04.html |title=Archaeology in Beacon Hill Wood |publisher=Beacon Hill Society |access-date=23 February 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110905052538/http://www.beaconhillsocietymendip.org.uk/M04.html |archive-date=5 September 2011}}</ref> To the north-west of the town are Ham Woods,<ref>Ordnance Survey {{gbmapping|ST605452}}</ref> within which are the Windsor Hill railway tunnels and a viaduct,<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.somersetheritage.org.uk/record/22878 |title=Viaduct, Ham Woods |work=Somerset Historic Environment Record |publisher=Somerset County Council |year=2007 |access-date=24 February 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161003093436/http://www.somersetheritage.org.uk/record/22878 |archive-date=3 October 2016}}</ref> – remnants of the [[Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.sdjr.net/locations/masbury.html |title=Masbury and Windsor Hill |publisher=Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway |access-date=23 February 2010 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090628013934/http://www.sdjr.net/locations/masbury.html |archive-date=28 June 2009}}</ref> The East [[Mendip Way]] long-distance path passes round the northern edge of Shepton Mallet and through Ham Woods.

South-west of the town is the [[Friar's Oven]] SSSI, site of herb-rich calcareous grassland classified as the [[British NVC community CG5|Upright Brome (''Bromus erectus'') type]],<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.english-nature.org.uk/citation/citation_photo/1005579.pdf |title=Friar's Oven SSSI Citation Sheet |publisher=English Nature |access-date=22 February 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090319223345/http://www.english-nature.org.uk/citation/citation_photo/1005579.pdf |archive-date=19 March 2009}}</ref> and north-east is the [[Windsor Hill Quarry]] geological SSSI and the [[Windsor Hill Marsh]] biological SSSI, a marshy silted pond with adjacent damp, slightly acidic grassland of interest for its diverse flora, largely due to varied habitats present within a small area. Two species present are rare in Somerset: [[Blysmus compressus|Flat-sedge]] (''Blysmus compressus'') and [[Eleocharis uniglumis|Slender Spike-rush]] (''Eleocharis uniglumis''). Other marshland plants include [[Lythrum salicaria|Purple Loosestrife]], [[Iris pseudacorus|Yellow Flag]] (''Iris pseudacorus''), [[Juncus inflexus|Hard Rush]] (''Juncus inflexus''), [[Juncus effusus|Soft Rush]] (''J. effusus''), [[Butomus umbellatus|Flowering Rush]] (''Butomus umbellatus''), [[Succisa pratensis|Devil's-bit Scabious]] (''Succisa pratensis''), three species of Horsetail ''[[Equisetum]]'' and seven [[Cyperaceae|sedge]]s ''[[Carex]]'' spp.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.english-nature.org.uk/citation/citation_photo/1001243.pdf |title=Windsor Hill Marsh SSSI Citation Sheet |publisher=English Nature |access-date=22 February 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090319223440/http://www.english-nature.org.uk/citation/citation_photo/1001243.pdf |archive-date=19 March 2009}}</ref>

===River Sheppey===
The centre and older parts of Shepton Mallet are adjacent to the [[River Sheppey]], in a valley about {{convert|115|m|abbr=on}} above sea level. The edges of the town lie about {{convert|45|m|abbr=on}} higher. The river has cut a narrow valley, and between Shepton Mallet and the village of [[Croscombe]], to the west, it is bounded by steeply sloping fields and woodland. However, it flows through much of Shepton Mallet itself in underground culverts.<ref name="caa12"/> It occasionally floods after heavy rain, as on 20 October 2006,<ref>{{Cite news |url= http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/low/england/somerset/6068790.stm |title=Fifty homes struck by river flood |work=BBC |date=20 October 2006 |access-date=2 January 2009}}</ref> and again on 29 May 2008,<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/2053640/Floods-in-south-west-England-Clean-up-begins.html |title=Floods in South West England |work=Daily Telegraph |date=30 May 2008 |access-date=2 January 2009 |location=London |first=Richard |last=Savill |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090210050609/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/2053640/Floods-in-south-west-England-Clean-up-begins.html |archive-date=10 February 2009}}</ref> when the rainfall was too heavy for the culverts. Some houses round Leg Square, Lower Lane and Draycott Road were submerged to a depth of {{convert|1|m}}. A study by the [[Environment Agency]] identified that the current standard of flood protection in these parts of the town is insufficient, as it was of a 5–10-year event-standard, whereas current guidelines require protection of a 50–200-year standard.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.mendip.gov.uk/Download.asp?path=%2FDocuments%2FMinutesAndReports%2FMeetings+08%2FCMCP%2F09+Dec+08%2FFlooding+in+Shepton+Mallet%2Eppt |title=Flooding in Shepton Mallet |publisher=Presentation by the Environment Agency to the Central Mendip Community Partnership at Mendip District Council |date=9 December 2008 |access-date=23 February 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110611192717/http://www.mendip.gov.uk/Documents/MinutesAndReports/Meetings%2008/CMCP/09%20Dec%2008/Flooding%20in%20Shepton%20Mallet.ppt |archive-date=11 June 2011}}</ref> In the summer of 2010, the Agency began constructing a flood alleviation scheme at a cost of about £1.3 million.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/static/documents/Leisure/Shepton_Mallet_LL_Factsheet_dec_11.pdf |title=Work to start on Shepton Mallet flood improvements |publisher=Environment Agency |access-date=7 June 2012|date=June 2010 |archive-url=http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20120307171527/http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/static/documents/Leisure/Shepton_Mallet_LL_Factsheet_dec_11.pdf |archive-date=7 March 2012}}</ref>

===Town areas===
[[File:Kilver Court Gardens Shepton Mallet.jpg|alt=View of a garden containing a number of evergreen trees and a palm tree, with a lake in the foreground and the arches of a disused railway viaduct in the background.|thumb|Kilver Court Gardens]]
Shepton Mallet has distinct areas that originated as separate communities around the central point of the church and Market Place.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Stone |first=Alan |title=Shepton Mallet: A Visible History |year=2005 |publisher=Shepton Mallet Local History Group |isbn=0-9548125-1-4 |page=26}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Davis |first1=Fred |last2= Blandford |first2=Alan |last3=Beckerleg |first3=Lewis |title=The Shepton Mallet Story (2nd ed.) |year=1977 |publisher=The Shepton Mallet Society |location=Oakhill, Somerset |isbn=978-0-9500568-1-4 |pages=36–37}}</ref> The town centre consists of two streets: High Street, running south from the Market Place towards the Townsend Retail Park, and the pedestrianised Town Street running north to Waterloo Bridge. To the east, separated from the Market Place by the academy complex, is the parish [[Church of St Peter and St Paul, Shepton Mallet|church of St Peter and St Paul]]. Lower Lane, under Waterloo Bridge along the bottom of the river valley to the north of the town centre, is one of the few parts where the [[River Sheppey]] runs above ground. At the eastern end is Leg Square, surrounded by three large houses originally built by owners of some of the town's mills.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Stone |first=Alan |title=Shepton Mallet: A Visible History |year=2005 |publisher=Shepton Mallet Local History Group |isbn=0-9548125-1-4 |page=16}}</ref><ref name="edengrove"/><ref name="TheManorHouse"/> Close by is Cornhill, on which the former prison stands.

Roughly eastwards, Garston Street, also in the valley-bottom, consists of a row of weavers' and other artisans' cottages dating from the 17th century.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Stone |first=Alan |title=Shepton Mallet: A Visible History| year=2005 |publisher=Shepton Mallet Local History Group |isbn=0-9548125-1-4 |pages=27–28}}</ref> The eastern end of the area, adjacent to Kilver Street, is now occupied by cider breweries. Across Kilver Street (the [[A37 road|A37]]) is [[Kilver Court]], which in the 20th century was a factory, headquarters of a brewing business, and then headquarters of a leather-goods manufacturer.<ref name="Stone23">{{Cite book |last=Stone |first=Alan |title=Shepton Mallet: A Visible History |year=2005 |publisher=Shepton Mallet Local History Group |isbn=0-9548125-1-4 |pages=23–24}}</ref> Behind are Kilver Court Gardens, originally built by [[Showerings]] for the recreation of its staff<ref name="Stone23"/> and set against a backdrop of part of the [[Charlton Viaduct]]. These are now open to the public.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.kilvercourt.com/garden |title=Kilver Court Gardens |access-date=7 April 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120403003403/http://kilvercourt.com/garden |archive-date=3 April 2012}}</ref> On the eastern edge of the town is '''Charlton''', which has former breweries and mills, now converted into a trading estate.<ref name="Stone23"/> Right on the edge of the town is Charlton House, a luxury hotel and spa.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.charltonhouse.com/ |title=Charlton House Hotel and Spa |access-date=23 February 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100306182531/http://www.charltonhouse.com/ |archive-date= 6 March 2010}}</ref>

[[File:Norah Fry Shepton Mallet.jpg|alt=Workhouse building.|thumb|left|Norah Fry Hospital, formerly the Shepton Mallet Union Workhouse]]
On the south side of the town is a triangle of land bounded on the east by the [[A37 road|A37]], on the north by the former [[East Somerset Railway]], and on the west by Cannard's Grave Road: Tadley Acres is a modern housing development built on land partly belonging to the [[Duchy of Cornwall]]. The development has been praised for its design quality and use of local, natural building materials.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.cabe.org.uk/files/housing-audit-2006.pdf |title=Housing audit: Assessing the design quality of new housing in the East Midlands, West Midlands and the South West |publisher=Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment |pages=28–31, 50–53 and 62 |year=2007 |access-date=19 February 2010}}</ref> North of the former railway is Collett Park. Across Cannard's Grave Road from Tadley Acres is the [[Mid-Somerset Show]]ground. Just to the south-west of the town centre, on a site which at the start of the 20th century had been the grounds of the former Summerleaze House<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www1.somerset.gov.uk/archives/Maps/OS62htm/4112.htm |title=Shepton Mallet: 2nd Edition Ordnance Survey Map |publisher=Somerset Record Office |year=1903 |access-date=23 February 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100110101355/http://www1.somerset.gov.uk/archives/maps/os62htm/4112.htm |archive-date=10 January 2010 }}</ref> and then a shoe factory, is the Townsend Retail Park, built in 2006–2007.

West Shepton, the south-west corner of town, contains the former Shepton Mallet [[Poor law union|Union]] [[Workhouse]], a Grade II listed building of 1848.<ref>{{NHLE |desc=Norah Fry Hospital |num=1345246 |access-date=22 September 2011}}</ref> Later serving as the [[Norah Fry]] mental hospital, it is now a housing development.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.norahfrysheptonmallet.co.uk/ |title=Norah Fry (Shepton Mallet) Ltd |access-date=22 September 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120402193820/http://www.norahfrysheptonmallet.co.uk/ |archive-date=2 April 2012}}</ref> On the nearby western edge is a modern community hospital. Down the valley are the hamlets of Darshill, once the site of several mills,<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www1.somerset.gov.uk/archives/hes/downloads/EUS_Shepton_MalletText.pdf |title=Shepton Mallet |last=Gathercole |first=Clare |work=Somerset Urban Archaeological Survey |publisher=Somerset County Council |year=2003 |access-date=2 February 2010 |page=22 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717063246/http://www1.somerset.gov.uk/archives/hes/downloads/EUS_Shepton_MalletText.pdf |archive-date=17 July 2011}}</ref> and Bowlish, which contains several grand clothiers' houses.<ref name="Bowlish houses"/> The sloping fields by the river between Bowlish and the rest of Shepton are known as The Meadows. To their east is Hillmead, a council estate of the 1960s.<ref name="Mendip District Council"/>

===Climate===
Like much of South West England, Shepton Mallet has a [[temperate|temperate climate]] wetter and milder than the rest of England. The annual mean temperature is about {{convert|10|°C|°F|abbr=on}} with seasonal and [[Diurnal motion|diurnal]] variation, but due to the modifying effect of the sea, the range is less than in most other parts. January is coldest, with mean minimum between {{convert|1|and|2|°C|°F|abbr=on}}. July and August are warmest, with mean daily maxima around {{convert|21|°C|°F|abbr=on}}. In general December is the dullest month and June the sunniest. South-west England is favoured, particularly in summer, as the [[Azores High]] extends its influence north-eastwards to the UK.<ref name="climate"/>

[[Cumulus cloud|Cloud]] often forms inland, especially near hills, and reduces exposure to sunshine. The average annual sunshine totals around 1600 hours. [[Precipitation (meteorology)|Rainfall]] tends to tie in with Atlantic [[Low pressure area|depressions]] or with convection. In summer, convection caused by solar surface-heating sometimes forms shower clouds and much of the annual precipitation falls as showers and [[thunderstorms]] at that time of year. Average rainfall is {{convert|800|–|900|mm|in|abbr=on}}. About 8–15 days of [[snowfall]] is typical. November to March have the highest mean wind speeds, June to August the lightest. The prevailing wind is from the south-west.<ref name="climate">{{Cite web |title=South West England: climate |work=Met Office |url=http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/sw/ |access-date=20 September 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110605003222/http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/sw/ |archive-date= 5 June 2011}}</ref>