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Callow Rock quarry

Cheddar, SomersetQuarries in the Mendip HillsSomerset geography stubsUse British English from February 2023
Callow Rock Quarry
Callow Rock Quarry

Callow Rock quarry is a limestone quarry located in Shipham Gorge between Cheddar and Shipham on the Mendip Hills, Somerset, England. The quarry has been operating since the early 20th century primarily as a Lime quarry producing a quality product of high purity for the chemical industry. It is now operated by Bardon Aggregates. In 1922 a plant was built to make hydrated lime. It also now contains a large concrete production plant. Local residents driving past on Shipham Hill always know to be wary of treacherous driving conditions caused by mud on the road from quarry vehicle wheels.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Callow Rock quarry (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Callow Rock quarry
Callow Drove, Sedgemoor Shipham

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N 51.298536 ° E -2.799728 °
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Callow Drove

Callow Drove
BS25 1RQ Sedgemoor, Shipham
England, United Kingdom
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Callow Rock Quarry
Callow Rock Quarry
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Cheddar Wood
Cheddar Wood

Cheddar Wood (grid reference ST445552) is an 86.9-hectare (215-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest at Cheddar in the Mendip Hills, Somerset, England, notified in 1967. Cheddar Wood and the smaller Macall's Wood near Cheddar Gorge are what remains of the wood of the Bishops of Bath and Wells in the thirteenth century and of King Edmund the Magnificent's wood in the tenth. It lies on carboniferous limestone with rock showing through the thin topsoils. In 1801 the wood was larger than it is today. During the nineteenth century its lower fringes were grubbed out to make strawberry fields, most of which have reverted to woodland. It was coppiced until 1917.This site comprises a range of habitats which includes ancient and secondary semi-natural broadleaved woodland, unimproved neutral grassland and a mosaic of calcareous grassland and acidic dry dwarf-shrub heath. Two nationally rare plant species are present. Additional interest lies in the invertebrate fauna. Cheddar Wood is one of only a few English stations for starved wood-sedge (Carex depauperata), which grows in the lane along the east side of the wood. The nationally rare purple gromwell (Lithospermum purpurocaeruleum) grows in the lane along the west side of the wood.Butterflies include silver-washed fritillary (Argynnis paphia), dark green fritillary (Argynnis aglaja), pearl-bordered fritillary (Boloria euphrosyne), holly blue (Celastrina argiolus) and brown argus (Aricia agestis). The slug Arion fasciatus, which has a restricted distribution in the south of England, and the soldier beetle Cantharis fusca also occur.The site is managed as two nature reserves by Somerset Wildlife Trust Cheddar Wood Edge which covers 7.1 hectares (18 acres) of old strawberry fields, is now reverting to semi species-rich limestone grassland and scrub with ancient woodland hedges, and Cheddar Wood itself which has restricted access allowed by permit.

Batts Combe quarry
Batts Combe quarry

Batts Combe quarry, grid reference ST460550 is a limestone quarry on the edge of Cheddar village on the Mendip Hills, Somerset, England. It has been operating since the early 20th century and is currently owned and operated by Singleton Birch Ltd. The output in 2005 was around 4,000 tonnes of limestone per day, one third of which was supplied to an on-site lime kiln, the remainder being sold as coated or dusted aggregates. The limestone at this site is close to 99% carbonate of calcium and magnesium (dolomite). In former years it was a major supplier of limestone for railway track ballast purposes. A lime-burning kiln at the site was closed for a while in 2006 after testing showed quicklime dust was escaping into the atmosphere. The kiln, which produced 200,000 tonnes of quicklime a year for use in the steel industry, required £300,000 of investment to resolve the problems. The closure followed an earlier warning from the Environment Agency when the company was notified that it should tighten up procedures at the site. Quicklime dust is a health hazard, which in large quantities can cause skin irritation and damage to the eyes and throat. In March 2009 however the lime kiln closed, supposedly indefinitely, following a drop in demand from the site's sole customer, Corus.; the quarry has since been taken over by Melton Ross, Lincolnshire-based Singleton Birch. There is some evidence of a Bronze Age field system at the site. Boxes were placed in Hanson woodland adjoining the company's Batts Combe quarry to encourage dormice to breed, and monitored with the help of pupils from Wells Cathedral School.

Sidcot School
Sidcot School

Sidcot School is a British co-educational private school for boarding and day pupils, associated with the Religious Society of Friends. It is one of seven Quaker schools in England. The school is based in the Mendip Hills near the village of Winscombe, Somerset and caters for children between the ages of 3 and 18. Children aged from 3 to 11 are educated in Sidcot Junior School, which is located on its own site adjacent to the main campus. About 130 of the school's 525 pupils (2010) are in this junior school. In the senior school, nearly half of the 395 pupils are boarders. Over 29 different countries are represented making up 25% of the school. Boarders board in the grounds in one of the 6 boarding houses. The girls' houses are Newcombe, School House Girls and Meadowside, and the boys' are School House Boys and Wing House. Although a Quaker School, pupils come from a variety of different faiths and cultures. All pupils are expected to join in with a short Meeting for Worship every Friday morning instead of assembly. Prior to September 2013, Sidcot school operated a 3 house system named after explorers: Nansen, Shackleton and Rhodes. A new House system was introduced at the beginning of the 2013 Autumn term. There are four houses in the revised house system named after the cardinal points of the compass: North, East, South and West, each house has a colour: Blue, Yellow, Green and Red respectively. The houses are mainly used for sports days and house matches of sport. One of the principal aims behind the new system is to allow greater interaction between students in the Senior and Junior Schools. The introduction of House Assemblies at points in the term facilitates students to work together within their Houses. All staff are aligned to a House and given the opportunity to participate in its life as well as support House events. In addition to its sports centre that houses a 25m pool and equestrian facilities, Sidcot has built a new creative arts block, with extensive drama, art and music facilities, which opened in June 2009. It is open to the public for exhibitions, courses and workshops. Many past pupils and teachers are members of the Sidcotians (Alumni Network).