Locking, North Somerset

Locking is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England. It is a predominantly quiet residential area of North Somerset, 3. 5mi south east of the town of Weston-super-Mare and houses a large farming contingent. As well as a pub and church the village has a village hall, school (Locking Primary School), a post office, two hairdressers, a Chinese takeaway, a reptile shop and petrol service station comprising car sales and a mechanical workshop. The village gave its name to RAF Locking, which has now closed and proposals are under consideration for an employment and residential development for the site that could deliver 25 hectare (62 acres) of employment space and up to 1, 800 new homes. In July 2011, North Somerset Council gave planning permission for the £50 million LeisureDome to be constructed on the site. It will contain a 210m indoor ski slope, other leisure facilities and a number of shops and restaurants. HistoryThe village of Locking is small but has a long history. There is evidence of Roman settlements nearby. The name "Locking" has a Saxon derivation probably meaning "Locc's people" and it was in the Saxon period that the church and village grew. The parish was part of the Winterstoke Hundred. John Plumley, who at the time was Lord of the Manor, had been a supporter of the Duke of Monmouth and participated in the Battle of Sedgmoor. Following the rout of Monmouth's forces, Plumley returned to Locking, and when the King's men came looking for him, he was given away by his dog whose barking alerted them to Plumley hiding in a nearby tree. The manor was subsequently acquired by Edward Colston of Bristol. In 1708 he endowed the manor to free school he established in his home city in 1708.

Locking is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England. It is a predominantly quiet residential area of North Somerset, 3. 5mi south east of the town of Weston-super-Mare and houses a large farming contingent. As well as a pub and church the village has a village hall, school (Locking Primary School), a post office, two hairdressers, a Chinese takeaway, a reptile shop and petrol service station comprising car sales and a mechanical workshop. The village gave its name to RAF Locking, which has now closed and proposals are under consideration for an employment and residential development for the site that could deliver 25 hectare (62 acres) of employment space and up to 1, 800 new homes. In July 2011, North Somerset Council gave planning permission for the £50 million LeisureDome to be constructed on the site. It will contain a 210m indoor ski slope, other leisure facilities and a number of shops and restaurants. HistoryThe village of Locking is small but has a long history. There is evidence of Roman settlements nearby. The name "Locking" has a Saxon derivation probably meaning "Locc's people" and it was in the Saxon period that the church and village grew. The parish was part of the Winterstoke Hundred. John Plumley, who at the time was Lord of the Manor, had been a supporter of the Duke of Monmouth and participated in the Battle of Sedgmoor. Following the rout of Monmouth's forces, Plumley returned to Locking, and when the King's men came looking for him, he was given away by his dog whose barking alerted them to Plumley hiding in a nearby tree. The manor was subsequently acquired by Edward Colston of Bristol. In 1708 he endowed the manor to free school he established in his home city in 1708.