The Parish of Otterford St Leonard's Church, Otterford The ancient parish of Otterford lies between seven and 10 miles from the county town of Taunton and six miles north of Chard. It is an extremely rural area located in the heart of the Blackdown Hills, and Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, with a population of around 380 and a total of 162 residential properties. Many residents live in Bishopswood, the largest village in the south-east corner of the parish. The village has limited facilities a chapel, parish hall and pub. A second pub, – the Holman Clavel at Culmhead, is owned by the parish. The parish hall is well used for various regular activities including Soft Tennis and Badminton, Yoga, Keep Fit class, Bridge group and Short mat bowls. A Whist Drive and Bishopswood Ladies Group meet monthly, and the Yarty Gardening club alternates monthly between Otterford and the nearby village of Buckland St Mary. The Bishop of Winchester held the Parish of Otterford as Lord of the Manor of Taunton Deane from 854AD to around 1822; this was on a secular basis. The history of the parish and the manor are closely intertwined and perhaps the reason why no village has developed around the church, leaving it very isolated. It is not known exactly when the present church of St Leonard was built. The Grade II listings give a date of the 14th century. The small church, situated on the western boundary of the parish and some three miles or so from Bishopswood, is thought to have been a pilgrim church, a halfway resting place for pilgrims travelling from Exeter to Glastonbury. Recent years have seen declining numbers, but this is beginning to be reversed and the time is ready for spiritual progress at Otterford.
The Parish of Otterford St Leonard's Church, Otterford The ancient parish of Otterford lies between seven and 10 miles from the county town of Taunton and six miles north of Chard. It is an extremely rural area located in the heart of the Blackdown Hills, and Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, with a population of around 380 and a total of 162 residential properties. Many residents live in Bishopswood, the largest village in the south-east corner of the parish. The village has limited facilities – a chapel, parish hall and pub. A second pub, the Holman Clavel at Culmhead, is owned by the parish. The parish hall is well used for various regular activities including Soft Tennis and Badminton, Yoga, Keep Fit class, Bridge group and Short mat bowls. A Whist Drive and Bishopswood Ladies Group meet monthly, and the Yarty Gardening club alternates monthly between Otterford and the nearby village of Buckland St Mary. The Bishop of Winchester held the Parish of Otterford as Lord of the Manor of Taunton Deane from 854AD to around 1822; this was on a secular basis. The history of the parish and the manor are closely intertwined and perhaps the reason why no village has developed around the church, leaving it very isolated. It is not known exactly when the present church of St Leonard was built. The Grade II listings give a date of the 14th century. The small church, situated on the western boundary of the parish and some three miles or so from Bishopswood, is thought to have been a pilgrim church, a halfway resting place for pilgrims travelling from Exeter to Glastonbury. Recent years have seen declining numbers, but this is beginning to be reversed and the time is ready for spiritual progress at Otterford.
Blackdown-Assoc-Priest-profile.docx