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Suffolk

Coordinates: 52°10′N 1°00′E / 52.167°N 1.000°E / 52.167; 1.000
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For other uses, see Suffolk (disambiguation).

Suffolk
Non-metropolitan and ceremonial county
Flag
Coat of arms
Motto: 
"Guide Our Endeavour"
Suffolk within England
Coordinates: 52°10′N 1°00′E / 52.167°N 1.000°E / 52.167; 1.000
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Constituent countryEngland
RegionEast
EstablishedAncient
Time zoneUTC+0 (GMT)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+1 (BST)
UK ParliamentList of MPs
PoliceSuffolk Constabulary
Ceremonial county
Lord LieutenantTimothy Tollemache
High SheriffEdward Greenwell
Area3,800 km2 (1,500 sq mi)
 • Rank8th of 48
Population 
(2022)[1]
768,555
 • Rank33rd of 48
Density202/km2 (520/sq mi)
Ethnicity
97.2% White
Non-metropolitan county
County councilSuffolk County Council
ControlConservative
Admin HQIpswich
Area3,800 km2 (1,500 sq mi)
 • Rank4th of 21
Population 
(2022)[2]
768,555
 • Rank14th of 21
Density202/km2 (520/sq mi)
ISO 3166-2GB-SFK
GSS codeE10000029
ITLUKH14
Websitewww.suffolk.gov.uk
Districts

Districts of Suffolk
  Unitary   County council area
Districts
  1. Ipswich
  2. Suffolk Coastal
  3. Waveney
  4. Mid Suffolk
  5. Babergh
  6. St Edmundsbury
  7. Forest Heath

Suffolk /ˈsʌfək/ is an East Anglian county of historic origin in England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include Lowestoft, Bury St Edmunds, Newmarket and Felixstowe, one of the largest container ports in Europe.[3]

The county is low-lying with very few hills, and is largely arable land with the wetlands of the Broads in the north. The Suffolk Coast and Heaths are an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

History

Main article: History of Suffolk

Administration

By the 5th century the Angles (after whom East Anglia and England are named) had established control of the region. The Angles later became the "north folk" and the "south folk", from which developed the names "Norfolk" and "Suffolk".[4] Suffolk and several adjacent areas became the kingdom of East Anglia, which later merged with Mercia and then Wessex.

Suffolk was originally divided into four separate Quarter Sessions divisions. In 1860, the number of divisions was reduced to two. The eastern division was administered from Ipswich and the western from Bury St Edmunds. Under the Local Government Act 1888, the two divisions were made the separate administrative counties of East Suffolk and West Suffolk;[5] Ipswich became a county borough. A few Essex parishes were also added to Suffolk: Ballingdon-with-Brundon and parts of Haverhill and Kedington.

On 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, East Suffolk, West Suffolk and Ipswich were merged to form the unified county of Suffolk. The county was divided into several local government districts: Babergh, Forest Heath, Ipswich, Mid Suffolk, St. Edmundsbury, Suffolk Coastal, and Waveney. This Act also transferred some land near Great Yarmouth to Norfolk. As introduced in Parliament, the Local Government Act would have transferred Newmarket and Haverhill to Cambridgeshire and Colchester from Essex; such changes were not included when the Act was passed into law.[6]

In 2007, the Department for Communities and Local Government referred Ipswich Borough Council's bid to become a new unitary authority to the Boundary Committee.[7][8] The Boundary Committee consulted local bodies and reported in favour of the proposal. It was not, however, approved by the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government.

Beginning in February 2008, the Boundary Committee again reviewed local government in the county, with two possible options emerging. One was that of splitting Suffolk into two unitary authorities – Ipswich & Felixstowe and Rural Suffolk; and the other, that of creating a single county-wide controlling authority – the "One Suffolk" option.[9] In February 2010, the then-Minister Rosie Winterton announced that there would be no changes imposed on the structure of local government in the county as a result of the Review, but that the Government would be: "asking Suffolk councils and MPs to reach a consensus on what unitary solution they want through a countywide constitutional convention".[10] Following the May 2010 General Election, all further moves towards any of the suggested unitary solutions ceased on the instructions of the incoming Coalition Government, and the administrative structures of the county are therefore unchanged.[11]

See also: Local Government Act 2010 and List of schools in Suffolk

Archaeology

West Suffolk, like nearby East Cambridgeshire, is renowned for archaeological finds from the Stone Age, the Bronze Age and the Iron Age. Bronze Age artefacts have been found in the area between Mildenhall and West Row, in Eriswell and in Lakenheath.[12] Many bronze objects, such as swords, spearheads, arrows, axes, palstaves, knives, daggers, rapiers, armour, decorative equipment (in particular for horses) and fragments of sheet bronze, are entrusted to St. Edmundsbury heritage service, housed at West Stow just outside Bury St. Edmunds. Other finds include traces of cremations and barrows.

In the east of the county is Sutton Hoo, the site of one of England's most significant Anglo-Saxon archaeological finds; a ship burial containing a collection of treasures including a Sword of State, gold and silver bowls and jewellery and a lyre.[13]

Economy

The majority of agriculture in Suffolk is either arable or mixed. Farm sizes vary from anything around 80 acres (32 hectares) to over 8,000. Soil types vary from heavy clays to light sands. Crops grown include:winter wheat, winter barley, sugar beet, oilseed rape, winter and spring beans and linseed, although smaller areas of rye and oats can be found growing in areas with lighter soils along with a variety of vegetables.

The continuing importance of agriculture in the county is reflected in the Suffolk Show, which is held annually in May at Ipswich. Although latterly somewhat changed in nature, this remains primarily an agricultural show.[14]

Below is a chart of regional gross value added of Suffolk at current basic prices published by Office for National Statistics with figures in millions of British Pounds Sterling.

Year Regional Gross Value Added[fn 1] Agriculture[fn 2] Industry[fn 3] Services[fn 4]
1995 7,113 391 2,449 4,273
2000 8,096 259 2,589 5,248
2003 9,456 270 2,602 6,583
Source[15]
See also: Companies based in Suffolk

Well-known companies in Suffolk include Greene King and Branston Pickle in Bury St Edmunds. Birds Eye has its largest UK factory in Lowestoft, where all its meat products and frozen vegetables are processed. Huntley & Palmers biscuit company has a base in Sudbury. The UK horse racing industry is based in Newmarket. There are two USAF bases in the west of the county close to the A11. Sizewell B nuclear power station is at Sizewell on the coast near Leiston. Bernard Matthews Farms have some processing units in the county, specifically Holton. Southwold is the home of Adnams Brewery. The Port of Felixstowe is the largest container port in the United Kingdom. Other ports are at Lowestoft and Ipswich, run by Associated British Ports. BT has its main research and development facility at Martlesham Heath.

Geography

Sheep grazing among the ruins of Bury St Edmunds Abbey, Bury St Edmunds in 1920
See also Geology of Suffolk

There are several towns in the county with Ipswich being the largest and most populous. At the time of the 2011 census, a population of 730,000 lived in the county with 133,384 living in Ispwich. The table below shows all towns with over 20,000 inhabitants.

Rank Town Population Borough/District council
1 Ipswich 133,384 (2011) Ipswich Borough Council
2 Lowestoft 71,000 (2011) Waveney Council
3 Bury St Edmunds 42,000 (2011) St Edmundsbury Council
4 Haverhill 27,041 (2011) St Edmundsbury Council
5 Felixstowe 23,689 (2011) Suffolk Coastal Council
6 Newmarket 20,384 (2011) Forest Heath District Council

Located in the East of England,[16] much of Suffolk is low-lying, founded on Pleistocene sand and clays. These rocks are relatively unresistant and the coast is eroding rapidly. Coastal defences have been used to protect several towns, but several cliff-top houses have been lost to coastal erosion and others are under threat. The continuing protection of the coastline and the estuaries, including the Blyth, Alde and Deben, has been, and remains, a matter of considerable discussion.[17]

The coastal strip to the East contains an area of heathland known as "The Sandlings" which runs almost the full length of the coastline.[18] Suffolk is also home to nature reserves, such as the RSPB site at Minsmere, and Trimley Marshes, a wetland under the protection of Suffolk Wildlife Trust.

The west of the county lies on more resistant Cretaceous chalk. This chalk is responsible for a sweeping tract of largely downland landscapes that stretches from Dorset in the south west to Dover in the south east and north through East Anglia to the Yorkshire Wolds. The chalk is less easily eroded so forms the only significant hills in the county. The highest point in the county is Great Wood Hill, the highest point of the Newmarket Ridge, near the village of Rede, which reaches 128 metres (420 ft).

The county flower is the oxlip.[19]

Demography

According to estimates by the Office for National Statistics, the population of Suffolk in 2014 was 738,512, split almost evenly between males and females. Roughly 22% of the population was aged 65 or older, and 90.84% were "White British".[20]

Historically, the county's population has mostly been employed as agricultural workers. An 1835 survey showed Suffolk to have 4,526 occupiers of land employing labourers, 1,121 occupiers not employing labourers, 33,040 labourers employed in agriculture, 676 employed in manufacture, 18,167 employed in retail trade or handicraft, 2,228 'capitalists, bankers etc.', 5,336 labourers (non-agricultural), 4,940 other males aged over 20, 2,032 male servants and 11,483 female servants.[21] The same publication records the total population of the county at 296,304.

Most English counties have nicknames for people from that county, such as a Tyke from Yorkshire and a Yellowbelly from Lincolnshire; the traditional nickname for people from Suffolk is 'Suffolk Fair-Maids', or 'Silly Suffolk', referring respectively to the supposed beauty of its female inhabitants in the Middle Ages, and to the long history of Christianity in the county and its many fine churches (from Anglo-Saxon selige, originally meaning holy).[citation needed]

For a full list of settlements see the list of places in Suffolk.

Notable people

Gainsborough's Mr and Mrs Andrews (1748–49), housed at the National Gallery in London, depicts the Suffolk landscape of his time.
See also: People from Suffolk

In the arts, Suffolk is noted for having been the home to two of England's best regarded painters, Thomas Gainsborough[22] and John Constable – the Stour Valley area is branded as "Constable Country"[23] – and one of its most noted composers, Benjamin Britten.[24] Other artists of note from Suffolk include the cartoonist Carl Giles (a bronze statue of his character "Grandma" to commemorate this is located in Ipswich town centre), poets George Crabbe and Robert Bloomfield,[25] writer and Literary editor Ronald Blythe, actors Ralph Fiennes and Bob Hoskins, actress and singer Kerry Ellis, musician and record producer Brian Eno, singer Dani Filth, of the Suffolk-based extreme metal group, Cradle of Filth, and singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran. Hip-hop DJ Tim Westwood is originally from Suffolk and the influential DJ and radio presenter John Peel made the county his home.[26] Contemporary painter, Maggi Hambling, was born, and resides, in Suffolk.

Suffolk's contributions to sport include Formula One magnate Bernie Ecclestone and former England footballers Terry Butcher, Kieron Dyer and Matthew Upson. Due to Newmarket being the centre of British horse racing many jockeys have settled in the county, including Lester Piggott and Frankie Dettori.

Significant ecclesiastical figures from Suffolk include Simon Sudbury, a former Archbishop of Canterbury; Tudor-era Catholic prelate Thomas Cardinal Wolsey; and author, poet and Benedictine monk John Lydgate.

Other significant persons from Suffolk include the suffragette Dame Millicent Garrett Fawcett; the captain of HMS Beagle, Robert FitzRoy; Witch-finder General Matthew Hopkins; and Britain's first female physician and mayor, Elizabeth Garrett Anderson. Charity leader Sue Ryder settled in Suffolk and based her charity in Cavendish.

St Edmund

King of East Anglia and Christian martyr St Edmund (after whom the town of Bury St Edmunds is named) was killed by invading Danes in the year 869. St Edmund was the patron saint of England until he was replaced by St George in the 13th century. 2006 saw the failure of a campaign to have St Edmund named as the patron saint of England, but in 2007 he was named patron saint of Suffolk, with St Edmund's Day falling on 20 November. His flag is flown in Suffolk on that day.[27]

Education

Primary, secondary and further education

See also: List of schools in Suffolk

Suffolk has a comprehensive education system with fourteen independent schools. Unusually for the UK, some of Suffolk has a 3-tier school system in place with primary schools (ages 5–9), middle schools (ages 9–13) and upper schools (ages 13–16). However, a 2006 Suffolk County Council study concluded that Suffolk should move to the 2-tier school system used in the majority of the UK.[28] For the purpose of conversion to 2-tier, the 3-tier system has been divided into 4 geographical area groupings and corresponding phases. The first phase was the conversion of schools in Lowestoft and Haverhill in 2011, followed by schools in north and west Suffolk in 2012. The remainder of the changeovers to 2-tier will take place from 2013, for those schools that stay within Local government control, and not become Academies and/or free schools. The majority of schools thus now (2013) operate the more common primary to high school (11–16). Many of the county's upper schools have a sixth form and most further education colleges in the county offer A-level courses. In terms of school population, Suffolk's individual schools are large with the Ipswich district with the largest school population and Forest Heath the smallest, with just two schools. In 2013, a letter said that "...nearly a fifth of the schools inspected were judged inadequate. This is unacceptable and now means that Suffolk has a higher proportion of pupils educated in inadequate schools than both the regional and national averages."[29]

The Royal Hospital School near Ipswich is the largest independent boarding school in Suffolk.

The Castle Partnership Academy Trust in Haverhill is the county's only All-through Academy Chain. Comprising Castle Manor Academy and Place Farm Primary Academy, the Academy Trust supports all-through education and provides opportunities for young people aged 3 to 18.

Sixth form colleges in the county include Lowestoft Sixth Form College and Suffolk One in Ipswich. Suffolk is home to four further education colleges: Lowestoft College, Easton & Otley College, Suffolk New College (Ipswich) and West Suffolk College (Bury St Edmunds).

Tertiary education

University Campus Suffolk, a collaboration between the University of Essex, the University of East Anglia, partner colleges such as Suffolk New College and local government, began accepting its first students in September 2007. The main Ipswich based waterfront campus building is due for completion in September 2008.[30] Prior to this Suffolk was one of the few English counties not to contain a university campus.

Culture

Dialect

The Suffolk dialect is distinctive.

Sport

Football

The county's sole professional football club is Ipswich Town. Formed in 1878, the club were Football League champions in 1961–62, FA Cup winners in 1977–78 and UEFA Cup winners in 1980–81.[31] Ipswich Town currently play in the Football League Championship – the next highest ranked team in Suffolk is Lowestoft Town who participate in the Conference North, followed by Bury Town and Leiston of the Isthmian League Premier Division, one division below Lowestoft.

Horse racing

The town of Newmarket is the headquarters of British horseracing – home to the largest cluster of training yards in the country and many key horse racing organisations including the National Stud,[32] and Newmarket Racecourse. Tattersalls bloodstock auctioneers and the National Horseracing Museum are also in the town.[33][34] Point to point racing takes place at Higham and Ampton.[35]

Speedway

Speedway racing has been staged in Suffolk since at least the 1950s, following the construction of the Foxhall Stadium, just outside Ipswich, home of the Ipswich Witches. The Witches are currently members of the Premier League, the UK's second division.[36] National League team Mildenhall Fen Tigers are also from Suffolk.[37] 'Casper' from the Edinburgh Monarchs speedway squad was also a native of Suffolk for a brief period in the 1970s.

Cricket

Suffolk C.C.C. compete in the Eastern Division of the Minor Counties Championship.[38] The club has won the championship three times outright and has shared the title one other time as well as winning the MCCA Knockout Trophy once.[39] Home games are played in Bury St Edmunds, Copdock, Exning, Framlingham, Ipswich and Mildenhall.[40]

Arts

Founded in 1948 by Benjamin Britten, the annual Aldeburgh Festival is one of the UK's major classical music festivals. Originating in Aldeburgh, it has been held at the nearby Snape Maltings since 1967.[41] Since 2006, Henham Park, has been home to the annual Latitude Festival. This mainly open-air festival, which has grown considerably in size and scope, includes popular music, comedy, poetry and literary events. The FolkEast festival is held at Glemham Hall in August[42] and attracts international acoustic, folk and roots musicians whilst also championing local businesses, heritage and crafts. In 2015 it was also home to the first instrumental festival of musical instruments and makers.[43] More recently, LeeStock Music Festival has been held in Sudbury.[44]

Novels set in Suffolk include The Fourth Protocol, by Frederick Forsyth, Unnatural Causes by P.D. James, Dodie Smith's The Hundred and One Dalmatians, The Rings of Saturn by W. G. Sebald,[45] and among Arthur Ransome's children's books, We Didn't Mean to Go to Sea and Coot Club. Roald Dahl's short story The Mildenhall Treasure is set in Mildenhall.[46] ory

A TV series about a British antiques dealer, Lovejoy, was filmed in various locations in Suffolk.[47] The reality TV Series Space Cadets was filmed in Rendlesham Forest, although the producers fooled participants into believing that they were in Russia.[48] Several towns and villages in the county have been used for location filming of other television programmes and cinema films. These include the BBC Four TV series Detectorists,[49] an episode of Kavanagh QC, and the films Iris and Drowning by Numbers.'

The Rendlesham Forest Incident is one of the most famous UFO events in England and is sometimes referred to as "Britain's Roswell".[50]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Components may not sum to totals due to rounding
  2. ^ includes hunting and forestry
  3. ^ includes energy and construction
  4. ^ includes financial intermediation services indirectly measured

References

  1. ^ "Mid-2022 population estimates by Lieutenancy areas (as at 1997) for England and Wales". Office for National Statistics. 24 June 2024. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
  2. ^ "Mid-Year Population Estimates, UK, June 2022". Office for National Statistics. 26 March 2024. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
  3. ^ "Top 50 Container Ports in Europe". World Shipping Council. Archived from the original on 11 May 2015. Retrieved 17 July 2015. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  4. ^ "English Place Names". englishplaceneames.co.uk. James Rye. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  5. ^ "Local Government Act, 1888" (PDF). legislation.gov.uk. Government of Great Britain. Retrieved 21 October 2015.
  6. ^ "Local Government Act 1972". legislation.gov.uk. National Archives. Retrieved 21 October 2015.
  7. ^ "unitaryipswich.com". unitaryipswich.com. Retrieved 6 June 2015.
  8. ^ [1]
  9. ^ "Suffolk structural review". The Electoral Commission. Retrieved 21 September 2009.
  10. ^ "Unitary authorities-Exeter and Norwich get green light; Suffolk to decide locally; no change for Norfolk and Devon". Department for Communities and Local Government. Archived from the original on 14 February 2010. Retrieved 10 February 2010. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  11. ^ "Pickles stops unitary councils in Exeter, Norwich and Suffolk". Department for Communities and Local Government. Retrieved 25 July 2010.
  12. ^ Hall, David (1994). Fenland survey : an essay in landscape and persistence / David Hall and John Coles. London; English Heritage. ISBN 1-85074-477-7., p. 81-88
  13. ^ "Sutton Hoo History". nationaltrust.org. The National Trust. Retrieved 22 October 2015.
  14. ^ "The Suffolk Show". suffolkshow.co.uk. Suffolk Show 2015.
  15. ^ pp. 240–253
  16. ^ [2] Archived 2008-04-07 at the Wayback Machine
  17. ^ [3] Archived 2009-09-25 at the Wayback Machine
  18. ^ [4] Archived 2012-10-18 at the Wayback Machine
  19. ^ "Oxlip | Plant & fungi species | Wild plants". Plantlife.org.uk. Retrieved 6 June 2015.
  20. ^ "Area Profile Suffolk Observatory". suffolkobservatory.info. GeoWise. Retrieved 21 October 2015.
  21. ^ 'The British Almanac' – 1835
  22. ^ "Biography". Gainsborough's House. Retrieved 30 October 2008.
  23. ^ "Constable Country walk". The National Trust. Retrieved 30 October 2008.
  24. ^ "Interviews: Benjamin Britten 1913 – 1976". BBC Four online. Archived from the original on 28 January 2007. Retrieved 30 October 2008. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  25. ^ Cousin, John W. "A Short Biographical Dictionary of English Literature". Project Gutenberg. Retrieved 30 October 2008.
  26. ^ Lusher, Adam (21 October 2006). "John Peel leaves his wife £1.5m, oh, and 25,000 records". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 14 November 2008. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  27. ^ Flag flying in St Edmundsbury
  28. ^ "Suffolk Free Press". Sudburytoday.co.uk. Retrieved 6 June 2015.
  29. ^ "Letter to local authority DCS following focused school inspections" (PDF). Retrieved 29 February 2016.
  30. ^ [5] Archived 2012-03-07 at the Wayback Machine
  31. ^ "Club honours". Ipswich Town F.C. Archived from the original on 13 December 2005. Retrieved 14 April 2008.
  32. ^ "Suffolk Tourism". www.suffolktouristguide.com. Retrieved 2 February 2009.
  33. ^ "Tattersalls". tattersalls.com. Tattersalls Ltd. Retrieved 21 October 2015.
  34. ^ "National Horseracing Museum". National Horseracing Museum. Retrieved 21 October 2015.
  35. ^ "Courses". www.pointingea.com. Retrieved 14 April 2008.
  36. ^ "Ipswich Speedway Official Website". ipswichwitches.co. Ipswich Speedway. Retrieved 21 October 2015.
  37. ^ "Mildenhall Fen Tigers". mildenhallfentigers.co. Mildenhall Speedway. Retrieved 21 October 2015.
  38. ^ "Minor Counties Cricket Association". =Cricinfo. Retrieved 27 August 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link)
  39. ^ "Minor Counties Roll of Honour". www.ecb.co.uk. Retrieved 27 August 2008.
  40. ^ "Minor County Grounds". Cricinfo. Retrieved 27 August 2008.
  41. ^ "Aldeburgh Festival History". aldeburgh.co.uk. Aldeburgh Music. Retrieved 21 October 2015.
  42. ^ http://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/may/31/music-festivals-2014-best-folk-world
  43. ^ "Instrumental at Folk East". folkeast.co.uk. FolkEast Ltd. Retrieved 21 October 2015.
  44. ^ "LeeStock Music Festival". leestock.org. Leestock Musical Festival Ltd. Retrieved 21 October 2015.
  45. ^ "The Rings of Saturn". nytimes.com. New York Times. Retrieved 8 December 2015.
  46. ^ "Roald Dahl and the Mildenhall Treasure". britishmuseum.org. The British Museum. Retrieved 21 October 2015.
  47. ^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0090477/locations
  48. ^ "Space Cadets". ukgameshows.com. UK Game Shows. Retrieved 21 October 2015.
  49. ^ Season 1, DVD extra 'Behind-the-Scenes'
  50. ^ "UFOFiles Rendlesham Forest". telegrapg.co.uk. The Telegraph. Retrieved 21 October 2015.
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Suffolk.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Suffolk.
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