Scoulton | |
---|---|
Holy Trinity Church, Scoulton | |
Location within Norfolk | |
Area | 9.02 km2 (3.48 sq mi) |
Population | 246 (2011 Census) |
• Density | 27/km2 (70/sq mi) |
OS grid reference | TF9800 |
District | |
Shire county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | NORWICH |
Postcode district | NR9 |
Police | Norfolk |
Fire | Norfolk |
Ambulance | East of England |
Scoulton is a small village and civil parish in the county of Norfolk, England, situated 16 miles (26 km) west of the city of Norwich and 21 miles (34 km) north-north-east of Thetford.
The villages name means 'Skuli's farm/settlement'
Scoulton lies on the main road between Norwich and the market town of Watton. Increasingly a dormitory for workers in Norwich's insurance and other service industries, it was traditionally agricultural, relying particularly on the production of sugar beet and on pig farming. It has a fine, partially thatched Saxon church.
The civil parish has an area of 9.02 km2 (3.48 sq mi)[1] and in 2011 had a population of 246[1] in 99 households.[2] The population is split between two main areas of settlement and a number of small, isolated farms. For the purposes of local government, the parish falls within the district of Breckland.[3]
Scoulton is known for its artificial and heavily wooded lake or "mere", which was the product of extensive flint quarrying and a breeding ground of the black-headed gull. Large numbers of eggs were harvested in the Middle Ages. The gull colony survived until at least the 1950s.[4] The harvested eggs formed the basis of a now obsolete dish known as Scoulton Pie. The collection of these eggs is depicted on the village sign.[5]