Sheringham facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Quick facts for kids Sheringham
Sheringham from Beeston Hill
Sheringham
Area	4 km² (1.5 sq mi)
Population	7,367 (2011 census)
• Density	1,842/km² (4,770/sq mi)
OS grid reference	TG157430
Civil parish	Sheringham
District	North Norfolk
Shire county	Norfolk
Region	East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	SHERINGHAM
Postcode district	NR26
Dialling code	01263

Police	Norfolk
Fire	Norfolk
Ambulance	East of England

EU Parliament	East of England
UK Parliament	North Norfolk
List of places UK England Norfolk 52°56′24″N 1°12′47″E / 52.940°N 1.213°E / 52.940; 1.213

Sheringham is a lovely seaside town and village area in Norfolk, England. About 7,367 people live there. The town's motto, given in 1953, is Mare Ditat Pinusque Decorat. This is Latin for "The sea enriches and the pine adorns". It shows how important the sea and pine trees are to Sheringham.

History of Sheringham

The old Sheringham Town Hall

The name 'Sheringham' was first written down in 1086 in the Domesday Book. It means 'the home of Scira's people'.

Long ago, Sheringham was made of two villages. Upper Sheringham was a farming village. Lower Sheringham was a fishing village that also did some farming.

Sheringham between 1850 and 1898

The fishing industry was very busy in the late 1800s and early 1900s. This was because trains could carry fish to markets much faster. Fishermen mainly caught crabs, lobsters, and whelks (sea snails). They supplied a lot of crabs and lobsters to London. Today, Sheringham has fewer fishing boats, but fishing is still important.

Sheringham slipway

The town we see today was once Lower Sheringham. It grew a lot when the railway line arrived in the late 1800s. Many of Sheringham's buildings and shops were built around this time. They often use a local stone called flint in interesting ways. The Sheringham Town Hall was finished in 1912.

During the First World War, Sheringham was the first place in Britain to be attacked by air. Two bombs from a Zeppelin hit the town in January 1915. Luckily, no one was hurt.

Sheringham Today

Town centre

Sheringham's town centre has a traditional high street with many local shops. Every Saturday, there is a popular market near the railway station. It brings many people to the town. You can find shops selling old books, antiques, fishing gear, and crafts.

The Sheringham Little Theatre puts on many plays and shows all year. They have a summer season and a popular Christmas pantomime. There are also many places to eat, pubs, and a youth hostel.

In 2013, a Tesco supermarket opened in the town after a long discussion.

Every May, Sheringham hosts an annual Crab and Lobster festival. The town's Carnival is held at the beginning of August.

Otterndorf Green is a small park between the town's railway stations. It reminds people that Sheringham is twinned with the German town of Otterndorf.

The main Church of England church, St Peter's, was built in 1897.

Sheringham Museum

The town's museum is called The Mo. It has a collection of old lifeboats and many interesting displays. It also has a viewing tower and a visitor centre for the Sheringham Shoal Offshore Wind Farm.

Lifeboats

Sheringham is special because it has four of its original lifeboats. The Sheringham Museum Trust owns three of them:

JC Madge (used from 1904 to 1936) was a pulling and sailing boat.
Foresters Centenary (1936 to 1961) was the town's first lifeboat with an engine.
Manchester Unity of Oddfellows (1961 to 1990) was Sheringham's last offshore lifeboat.

Sheringham does not have a harbour. This means lifeboats and fishing boats have to be pulled up the beach by a tractor.

Getting Around Sheringham

Railway

Sheringham railway station is the last stop on the Bittern Line. This train line goes to Cromer and Norwich. Trains run about once an hour. The station platform was updated in 2019 for new trains.

Heritage Railway

The preserved North Norfolk Railway

The railway line past the main station is a special heritage line called the North Norfolk Railway, or the Poppy Line. It runs between Sheringham's original station and Holt. This line uses old steam and diesel trains.

In 2010, a short link was built to connect the heritage railway with the main train network. This means special trains can visit the Poppy Line.

Buses

Local bus services are run by Sanders Coaches. Buses go regularly between Sheringham, Cromer, Aylsham, and Norwich. You can also catch buses to other nearby places like Fakenham and Holt.

Roads

The A148 road goes around the south side of Sheringham. This road connects King's Lynn and Cromer.

Schools in Sheringham

Sheringham has three schools:

Woodfields, for children with disabilities.
Sheringham High School.
Sheringham Community Primary School.

Media in Sheringham

You can watch local news on BBC Look East (BBC One) and ITV News Anglia (ITV1).

Local radio stations include BBC Radio Norfolk, Heart East, and Greatest Hits Radio East. There is also a local online station called Poppyland Community Radio.

The town has two local newspapers: North Norfolk News and Eastern Daily Press.

Places of Worship

St Joseph's Roman Catholic Church

Inside St Joseph's Church, showing the high altar.

The Roman Catholic Church of St Joseph is on Cromer Road. It was designed by a famous architect, Sir Giles Gilbert Scott. Building started in 1902, and the church was finished in 1935. It is a large church made of red brick. Inside, it has tall arches and interesting decorations. Many of the religious artworks came from Austria.

St Joseph's Catholic church

The Church of England Parish Church of St Peter was built in 1897.

War Memorial

The war memorial

The war memorial remembers the people from Sheringham and Beeston Regis who died serving in the two world wars. It is located on a traffic island where several roads meet. It is a tall stone cross, about 26 feet (8 meters) high, and was unveiled in 1921. The names of those who died are carved on the base of the cross.

Important Buildings and Parks

In 1811, the Sheringham Estate was bought by Abbot and Charlotte Upcher. They asked Humphry Repton to design Sheringham Hall. The Hall is still a private home. However, the beautiful parkland around it, called Sheringham Park, is looked after by the National Trust. Visitors can explore the park.
The Dales was once a large home and is now a hotel.
Sheringham watermill was mainly a paper mill from about 1750 to 1865. A blue sign marks where it used to be.
The Masonic Hall on Cromer Road used to be a cinema.

Offshore Wind Farm

Sheringham is also home to a large wind farm called the Sheringham Shoal Offshore Wind Farm. It has many wind turbines that create electricity from the wind. It is located about 11 to 14 miles (18 to 22 kilometers) offshore.

The Oddfellows Hall

The Oddfellows Hall was built in 1867. It was first used as the original RNLI Lifeboat station. It was also a meeting place for fishermen and boat builders. Over the years, it has been a craft centre, a model railway display, and even a shoe factory. After being empty for a while, it was fully renovated and reopened in 2007 for community use.

Beeston Bump

Sheringham is located near a hill called Beeston Bump. This hill is a special geological site. During the Second World War, it was a secret listening station.

Sea swimmers on Sheringham seafront, East Anglia

Beeston Bump is a type of hill called a kame. It was formed by glaciers melting between 10,000 and 15,000 years ago, at the end of the last Ice Age. The land is still slowly rising in this area, a process called isostatic readjustment.

Sea Defences

The coast of Sheringham is protected by a concrete seawall, which also acts as a promenade. This wall is very important for protecting the town from natural erosion. In 1953, a big storm damaged the old wooden sea defences.

In front of the seawall are structures called groynes. These stop sand and shingle from being washed away by the sea. To the east, towards West Runton, the seawall ends. There, a timber system of walls and groynes was built in 1976. However, this system is no longer being maintained, and the coastline will be allowed to change naturally in that area.

Sport and Leisure

Sheringham has a Non-League football club called Sheringham F.C.. The Sheringham Golf Club opened in 1891. In 2016, it was announced that a disused pipe stretching 50 metres into the sea would become the North Sea's first "snorkel trail". A new sports and leisure centre, called The Reef Leisure Centre, opened in 2021. It has a swimming pool and a gym.

Notable People

Many interesting people have connections to Sheringham:

Tony Colman, a politician, was born here.
Olive Edis had photo studios in town and was Britain's first female WW1 war photographer.
Magdalen Goffin, an English writer, was born in Sheringham.
Patrick Hamilton, a writer, lived and died in the town.
King Nicholas I (Nick Copeman) was a local character who appeared on TV.
Craig Murray, a former British Ambassador, grew up in Sheringham.
Benjamin Pulleyne, a vicar, was also headmaster of Gresham's School.
Ernest Shackleton, a famous explorer, lived in Sheringham for a time.
Allan Smethurst, known as the "Singing Postman", grew up here.
Stephen Spender, an English poet, lived in a house on the cliffs.
Edward Ingram Watkin, an English writer, lived in the town.
John Short Hewett, a cleric and academic, was a vicar in Sheringham.
Ralph Vaughan Williams, a famous composer, lived in Sheringham and wrote part of A Sea Symphony here.

Twin Towns

Sheringham is twinned with two towns:

Otterndorf, in Germany. Otterndorf is near the mouth of the River Medem.
Muzillac, in Brittany, France.

Location Map

**Where is Sheringham?**
North Sea	North Sea	North Sea
Weybourne		Beeston Regis
	Sheringham

Upper Sheringham	East Beckham	Aylmerton