Dartmouth, Devon
Dartmouth (/ˈdɑːrtməθ/) is a town and civil parish in the English county of Devon. It is a tourist destination set on the western bank of the estuary of the River Dart, which is a long narrow tidal ria that runs inland as far as Totnes. It lies within the South Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and South Hams district, and had a population of 5,512 in 2001,[1] reducing to 5,064 at the 2011 census.[2] There are two electoral wards in the Dartmouth area (Townstal & Kingswear). Their combined population at the above census was 6,822.[3][4]
Dartmouth
5,064 (2011)
- Dartmouth
United Kingdom
DARTMOUTH
01803
Governance[edit]
The town was an ancient borough, incorporated by Edward III, known formally as Clifton-Dartmouth-Hardness, and consisting of the three parishes of St Petrox, St Saviour and Townstal, and incorporating the hamlets of Ford, Old Mill and Norton.[28] It was reformed under the Municipal Corporations Act 1835. The town returned two members of parliament from the 13th century until 1835, after which one Member of Parliament (MP) was elected until the town was disenfranchised in 1868. It remained a municipal borough until 1974, when it was merged into the South Hams district, and became a successor parish of Dartmouth with a town council.[29][30]
Dartmouth Town Council is the lowest of three tiers of local government. It consists of 16 councillors representing the two wards of Clifton and Townstal.[31] At the second tier, Dartmouth forms part of the Dartmouth and Kingswear ward of South Hams District Council, which returns three councillors.[32] At the upper tier of local government Dartmouth and Kingswear Electoral Division elects one member to Devon County Council.[33]
Media[edit]
Local TV coverage is provided by BBC West and ITV West Country. Television signals are received from the Beacon Hill TV transmitter and the local relay transmitter situated south east of the town.[48]
Local radio stations include BBC Radio Devon on 104.3 FM, Heart West on 96.4 FM, Greatest Hits Radio South Devon on 105.5 FM, and Radio Exe on 107.3 FM.
The Dartmouth Chronicle is the town's local weekly newspaper.
Education[edit]
[edit]
The town is home to the Royal Navy's officer training college (Britannia Royal Naval College), where all officers of the Royal Navy and many foreign naval officers are trained.
Schools[edit]
Dartmouth has one primary school—St John the Baptist R.C. Primary School, and one all-through school—Dartmouth Academy—for those aged 3–16. Dartmouth also has a pre-school in the centre of town, established for over 40 years and based in the old Victorian school rooms at South Ford Road. It provides care for 2- to 5-year-olds and is run as a charitable organisation.
Sport and leisure[edit]
Dartmouth has a Non-League football club Dartmouth A.F.C. who play at Long Cross.
Dartmouth also hosts the annual "World Indoor Rally Championship", based on slot car racing in the late summer.[49][50]
At the end of August and early September there is the annual Port of Dartmouth Royal Regatta.
Since 1905 Dartmouth has had a greenhouse as part of the Royal Avenue Gardens.[51][52] In May 2013 this building, used for the previous 10 years by Dartmouth in Bloom,[53] a not-for-profit organisation affiliated with Britain in Bloom, was closed as structurally unsound.[54] There are proposals to restore the greenhouse to its prior Edwardian style.[55]