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List of headlands of the United Kingdom facts for kids

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The United Kingdom has a coastline full of interesting landforms called headlands. A headland is a piece of land that sticks out into the sea, often with steep cliffs. They are also known by other names like 'point', 'ness', or 'head'. In Wales, you might hear 'trwyn' (which means nose), 'penrhyn' (peninsula), or 'pen' (head). In western Scotland, 'rubha' is a common term. These natural features are important for navigation, wildlife, and offer amazing views.

This article lists some of the most important headlands around the UK coast, starting from the Scottish border near Berwick-upon-Tweed and moving clockwise.

Contents

Exploring England's Coastal Headlands

England's long coastline features many different types of headlands, from rocky cliffs to sandy spits. These areas are shaped by the power of the sea and weather over many years.

Northumberland's Notable Points

Northumberland, in the northeast of England, has several interesting headlands.

  • Guile Point is one of the more significant ones.
  • Snook or North Sunderland Point is another key headland in this area.
  • Beacon Point is also a well-known feature.

Lindisfarne's Unique Headlands

Lindisfarne, also known as Holy Island, has its own special headlands.

  • Emmanuel Head is a prominent point on the island.
  • Castle Point is another important landmark here.

County Durham's Coastal Features

Moving south, County Durham offers its own set of headlands.

  • Beacon Point stands out as a significant feature along this stretch of coast.

Yorkshire's Famous Headlands

Yorkshire's coast is home to some very well-known headlands.

  • Filey Brigg is a long, narrow rocky peninsula that stretches into the North Sea. It's a great spot for exploring rock pools.
  • Flamborough Head is a dramatic chalk headland with towering white cliffs and two lighthouses. It's famous for its seabird colonies.
  • Spurn Head is a unique, narrow sand and shingle spit that curves into the Humber Estuary. It's constantly changing shape due to the tides and currents.

Lincolnshire's Sandy Headlands

Lincolnshire's coast is generally flatter, but still has some important points.

  • Donna Nook is a significant area, especially known for its seal colonies.
  • Gibraltar Point is a nature reserve and a major stopping point for migrating birds.

Norfolk's Dynamic Coastline

Norfolk's coast is known for its ever-changing landscape.

  • Blakeney Point is a long, sandy spit that is home to a large colony of seals and many different bird species.

Suffolk's Easternmost Points

Suffolk holds the most easterly point of England.

  • Lowestoft Ness holds the title of the most easterly point in England, Great Britain, and the entire UK mainland.
  • Orford Ness is a wild and remote shingle spit, known for its unique landscape and historical significance.

Essex's Estuary Headlands

Essex has many headlands, especially around its large estuaries.

  • The Naze is a well-known headland with cliffs that are important for geology and fossil hunting.
  • Shoebury Ness is another significant point closer to the Thames Estuary.

Kent's Iconic Forelands

Kent's coast is famous for its white cliffs and historic headlands.

  • Broadness and Lower Hope Point are found along the Thames Estuary.
  • North Foreland is a prominent chalk headland with a lighthouse, marking the eastern tip of the Isle of Thanet.
  • South Foreland is another famous chalk headland, known for its lighthouses that guided ships through the Strait of Dover.
  • Dungeness is a large shingle headland and a unique landscape, home to a nuclear power station and a nature reserve.

Isle of Sheppey's Points

The Isle of Sheppey, off the coast of Kent, has its own distinct points.

  • Garrison Point and Warden Point are key features here.

East Sussex's Dramatic Cliffs

East Sussex is home to one of the UK's most iconic headlands.

  • Beachy Head is a stunning chalk headland with the highest chalk sea cliff in Britain. It's famous for its dramatic views and lighthouse.

West Sussex's Coastal Features

West Sussex also has important headlands.

  • Selsey Bill is a low-lying headland that marks a change in the coastline.

Hampshire's Spits and Points

Hampshire's coast includes several spits, which are like long, narrow headlands made of sand or shingle.

Isle of Wight's Varied Headlands

The Isle of Wight has a diverse coastline with many headlands.

  • St. Catherine's Point is the southernmost point of the island, with a lighthouse.
  • The Needles are three distinctive stacks of chalk that rise out of the sea off the island's western tip, a truly iconic sight.

Dorset's Jurassic Coast Gems

Dorset's coast is part of the famous Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site, known for its geology.

  • Hengistbury Head is a significant headland with a rich history and important wildlife.
  • Handfast Point (also known as The Foreland) is home to the famous Old Harry Rocks, chalk stacks that stand offshore.
  • Durlston Head and Portland Bill are other prominent headlands, with Portland Bill being the southernmost point of the Isle of Portland.
  • Golden Cap is the highest point on the south coast of Great Britain, offering incredible views.

Devon's Rugged Coastline

Devon's coast is known for its rugged cliffs and beautiful coves.

  • Berry Head is a limestone headland and a National Nature Reserve, important for its birdlife.
  • Start Point and Prawle Point are significant headlands in South Devon, often windy and wild.
  • Bolt Head and Bolt Tail are dramatic granite headlands forming part of the South West Coast Path.

Cornwall's Wild West Coast

Cornwall, the southwestern tip of England, is famous for its wild and beautiful headlands.

  • Rame Head and Gribbin Head are prominent features on the south coast.
  • Lizard Point is the most southerly point of mainland Great Britain.
  • Land's End is the most westerly point of mainland England, a popular tourist spot.
  • Cape Cornwall is another significant western headland.
  • Trevose Head and Tintagel Head are famous headlands on the north coast, with Tintagel linked to the legend of King Arthur.

North Devon's Dramatic Cliffs

North Devon's coast is also very rugged.

Somerset's Coastal Features

Somerset's coast has some interesting headlands, especially around the Bristol Channel.

  • Brean Down is a large, natural pier of limestone that extends into the sea.
  • Sand Point is another important headland in the area.

Discovering Wales's Coastal Beauty

Wales has a stunning and varied coastline, with many headlands known as 'trwyn' or 'pen'.

Glamorganshire's Points

Gower Peninsula's Iconic Headlands

The Gower Peninsula is a beautiful Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

  • Mumbles Head is a well-known landmark with a lighthouse.
  • Worms Head is a famous tidal island, shaped like a dragon, that can only be reached at low tide.

Pembrokeshire's Rugged Coastline

Pembrokeshire boasts some of the most spectacular coastal scenery in Wales.

  • Lydstep Point and St Govan's Head are significant points on the south coast.
  • Linney Head is another dramatic headland.
  • St Ann's Head marks the entrance to Milford Haven.
  • Wooltack Point is a key point on the Marloes peninsula.
  • St David's Head is the most westerly point of mainland Wales, a wild and ancient landscape.
  • Strumble Head/Pen-Caer is a prominent headland with a lighthouse, known for its wildlife.
  • Dinas Head and Cemaes Head are other important features on the north coast.

Ceredigion's Coastal Gems

Ceredigion's coast is known for its charming towns and beautiful bays.

  • New Quay Head is a popular spot in the town of New Quay.

Gwynedd's Northern Headlands

Gwynedd, in North Wales, has many headlands, especially on the Llŷn Peninsula.

  • Trwyn Cilan and Pen y Cil are significant points on the Llŷn Peninsula.

Anglesey's Island Headlands

Anglesey, a large island off the coast of North Wales, has many important headlands.

  • Llanddwyn Island is a beautiful small island accessible at low tide.
  • Carmel Head (Trwyn y Gader) is a prominent headland on the northwest coast.
  • Wylfa Head is known for the Wylfa nuclear power station.
  • Point Lynas (Trwyn Eilian) is a significant point with a lighthouse, important for shipping.

Conwy's Coastal Landmarks

Conwy's coast features some well-known headlands.

  • Great Orme's Head is a massive limestone headland near Llandudno, offering stunning views and unique wildlife.
  • Little Ormes Head is a smaller but still significant headland nearby.

Flintshire's Northern Point

  • Point of Ayr is the northernmost point of mainland Wales, at the mouth of the Dee Estuary.

Northwest England's Coastal Features

The northwest coast of England, facing the Irish Sea, also has its share of headlands.

Cheshire's Estuary Points

  • Hilbre Point is located on Hilbre Island in the Dee Estuary.

Lancashire's Coastal Spots

  • Rossall Point and Sunderland Point are notable features along the Lancashire coast.

Cumbria's Varied Headlands

Cumbria's coast ranges from sandy beaches to rocky outcrops.

  • Humphrey Head Point is a prominent limestone headland.
  • St Bees Head is a dramatic red sandstone cliff, the only Heritage Coast in Cumbria, and home to England's largest cliff-nesting seabird colony.

Scotland's Dramatic Headlands

Scotland's coastline is famous for its rugged beauty and dramatic headlands, often called 'mull' or 'ness'.

Dumfries-shire's Points

  • Redkirk Point is a notable point in this area.

Kirkcudbrightshire's Coastal Features

  • Southerness Point and Abbey Head are significant headlands here.

Wigtownshire's Southern Tips

  • Burrow Head is a prominent headland.
  • Mull of Galloway is the southernmost point of mainland Scotland, with a lighthouse and stunning views.

Ayrshire's Western Headlands

  • Bennane Head is a notable feature on the Ayrshire coast.

Argyllshire's Famous Mulls

  • Mull of Kintyre is a famous headland on the Kintyre Peninsula, known from the song.
  • The Oa is a dramatic headland on the Isle of Islay.

Inverness-shire's Island Headlands

Many of Inverness-shire's headlands are found on its islands.

  • Aird an Rùnair on North Uist.
  • Barra Head on Barra Isles.
  • Neist Point on the Isle of Skye, famous for its lighthouse and dramatic cliffs.

Ross and Cromarty's Wild Coasts

Sutherland's Northern Extremes

Sutherland is home to some of Scotland's most remote and dramatic headlands.

  • Stoer Head is known for its sea stack, the Old Man of Stoer.
  • Cape Wrath is the most northwesterly point of mainland Great Britain, a wild and remote area.
  • Faraid Head is a beautiful sandy headland.

Caithness's Far North Points

Caithness is at the very top of mainland Scotland.

  • Dunnet Head is the most northerly point of mainland Great Britain.
  • Duncansby Head is the northeasternmost point of mainland Great Britain, famous for its sea stacks.

Aberdeenshire's Eastern Headlands

Aberdeenshire's coast faces the North Sea.

Fife's Eastern Tip

  • Fife Ness is the easternmost point of the Fife peninsula.

Berwickshire's Coastal Features

  • St Abb's Head is a dramatic rocky headland and a National Nature Reserve, known for its seabird colonies.

Orkney's Island Headlands

The Orkney Islands have many headlands.

Shetland's Northern and Southern Extremes

The Shetland Islands are the northernmost part of the UK.

  • Hermaness on Unst is the northernmost point of the UK.
  • Sumburgh Head on Shetland Mainland is the southernmost point of Shetland, with a lighthouse and puffin colonies.

Northern Ireland's Coastal Outcrops

Northern Ireland's coast is famous for its unique geology and stunning scenery.

County Londonderry's Points

  • Magilligan Point is a long sand spit at the entrance to Lough Foyle.

County Antrim's Iconic Headlands

County Antrim is home to some of Northern Ireland's most famous coastal features.

  • Ramore Head is a prominent headland near Portrush.
  • Giants Causeway is a world-famous area of interlocking basalt columns, formed by ancient volcanic activity. While not a typical headland, it's a unique coastal feature.
  • Benbane Head and Bengore Head are part of the Giant's Causeway coastline.
  • Benmore or Fair Head is a magnificent dolerite cliff, and the northernmost point of Northern Ireland.
  • Garron Point is another significant headland.

County Down's Eastern and Southern Points

County Down has a varied coastline, including the easternmost and southernmost points of mainland Northern Ireland.

  • Burr Point is the easternmost point of mainland Northern Ireland.
  • St John's Point is a notable headland with a lighthouse.
  • Cranfield Point is the southernmost point of Northern Ireland, located at the mouth of Carlingford Lough.
  • Warrenpoint is a town located on a point in Carlingford Lough.

See also

  • List of spits of the United Kingdom
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