Land Management

Discover how In World War II (1939-45), Black Down became a key site in the defence of Bristol.
The decoy town at Black Down was one of the first, may have been the largest, of a network of sites across the country designed to divert bombing away from major cities.

During the research into the history of Starfish on Black Down several people shared stories of how they were part of the secret wartime history of the site. Here you will find their recollections of what life was like and how they were involved with the secret world of Starfish.

The Children of Blagdon Primary school with some help from Ruth Coleman (Starfish Producer) and Biggerhouse Film, visited Black Down and researched the story of Starfish to produce a short film. A mixture of live drama and animated sequences tell the fascinating story behind the Decoy town on Black Down during World War II.

The remains of mine workings can be seen across much of central and western Mendip, especially around Shipham, Charterhouse, Priddy and Stockhill Forest. Iron, lead, zinc and ochre have all been mined at various times and places across Mendip. The old mine workings are often characterised by areas of 'gruffy' ground, a local name for uneven hummocky landscape created during mining operations. On eastern Mendip, coal mining was more important.

Discover how spoil heaps produced by the lead mining industry provide a particularly distinctive Mendip habitat.

Find out about the ways in which we use quarried stone and discover how stone in some form enters our lives probably a hundred times even before we leave the house each day.

A guide to the caves of the Mendip Hills broken down into key areas.