Shepway

Shepway is a local government district in Kent, England [ [http://www.shepway.gov.uk District Council website] ] . It includes the towns of Folkestone, and Hythe and the Romney Marsh. It is named after the Saxon lathe of Shepway; the Royal Court of Shepway, which met near Lympne at a place called "Shepway Cross", was the principal court of the Cinque Ports Federation [ [http://www.hythe-kent.com/cinque1.htm The Cinque Ports: Royal Court of Shepway] ] .

Governance

The district was formed on April 1, 1974 as a merger of the boroughs of Folkestone, Hythe, Lydd and New Romney, along with Elham and Romney Marsh Rural Districts. Its council offices are in Folkestone.

The District Council consists of 46 councillors representing 22 wards [ [http://www.shepway.gov.uk/UserFiles/File/pdf/democratic-services/District%20Council%20election%20results%203%20May%202007.pdf Elections 2007 to Shepway wards] ] . Those wards are:
*Dymchurch and St Mary's Bay
*Elham and Stelling Minnis
*Folkestone: eight wards (Cheriton; Foord; Harbour; Harvey (two wards, Central and West); Morehall; Park; and Sandgate
*Hythe: three wards (Central, East and West)
*North Downs: two wards (East and West)
*Lydd
*Lympne and Stanford
*New Romney: two wards (Town and Coast)
*North Downs: two wards (East and West)
*Romney Marsh
*Tolsford [Tolsford is an area of small villages below the North Downs and west of Folkestone. It is named after Tolsford Hill] The current composition of Shepway District Council is 39 Conservatives, five Liberal Democrats and two from the People First party.

The third tier of local government in Shepway consists of town councils in Folkestone, Hythe, New Romney and Lydd; and the following parish councils [ [http://www.shepway.gov.uk/content/view/2106/1743/ Details of town and parish councils] ] :
*Acrise (M)
*Brenzett
*Brookland
*Burmarsh
*Dymchurch
*Elham
*Elmsted
*Hawkinge
*Ivychurch
*Lyminge
*Lympne
*Monks Horton (M)
*Newchurch
*Newington
*Old Romney (M)
*Paddlesworth (M)
*Postling
*St Mary in the Marsh
*Saltwood
*Sellindge
*Snargate (M)
*Stelling Minnis
*Stowting (M)
*Sandgate
*Stanford
*Swingfield:(M) "Parishes marked thus are served by a parish meeting, not a parish council"

Geography

Shepway occupies the most southerly part of Kent. It is bounded on the north by Ashford and Canterbury Districts; on the east by Dover District and on the south by the Strait of Dover. The Romney and Walland Marshes cover a good deal of its area to the west; where the North Downs begin to reach the sea there is much more in the way of settlement. The four towns in the District are all located along the coast.

Economy

In economic terms, Shepway is the third most deprived area in Kent, after Thanet and Swale. Like them, it has a high rate of unemployment; poor educational attainment figures; and with the majority of businesses being small operations [ [http://www.shepway.gov.uk/UserFiles/File/pdf/economic-regeneration/regeneration-strategy-2007-17.pdf ‘’Choose Shepway’’: Economic Regeneration Strategy, 2007-2017] ]

The major source of economy is, however, tourism. Events and venues are widely publicised [ [http://www.shepwayonline.co.uk Community website for Shepway] ] [ [http://www.askshepway.co.uk Tourist information and community website for Shepway] ]

Transport

The M20 motorway crosses the District to end at Folkestone. Other main roads include the A259 south coast road and the A260 which takes traffic towards Canterbury. The South Eastern Main Line and High Speed 1 both cross the district: the western end of the Channel Tunnel.is at Cheriton, west of Folkestone.

The Royal Military Canal crosses the northern edge of the Romney Marsh; and the Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway runs out to Dungeness from Hythe.

Several long distance footpaths cross the District, including the Saxon Shore Way and the North Downs Way; shorter walks include the ’’Elham Valley Walk’’ and the ’’Royal Military Canal Path’’.

Notable people from Shepway District

References