Dec 30, 2015
Settlement
• A settlement is a place where people live
• Most people live in permanent settlements
• Some people are unfortunate to live in temporary settlements
Permanent or Temporary Settlement?
Types of settlementSite Characteristics
Defensive Difficult to attack e.g. hill-top or island
Hill-foot Sheltered, with flat land for building and farming
Gap Lower, more sheltered land between two hills
Wet point Close to water in a dry area
Dry point On higher, dry area close to wet land e.g. marshes or flooding rivers
Route centre Focus of routes (e.g. roads) from surrounding area
Bridging point Where bridges can be built over a river
Which type of settlement?
Bridging Point
Defensive
Hill-foot
Gap site
Route Centre
Wet Point
Dry Point
Which type of settlement?
• Settlement 1 is a Gap site because it is a lower and more sheltered site between two hills.
• Settlement 2 is a wet-point because it is close to water in a dry area.
• Settlement 3 is a dry-point because it is a higher, drier site above wetland.
• Settlement 4 is a Route Centre because it is a focus of routes (roads and river) in this area.
• Settlement 5 is a Hill-foot site because it is is sheltered and flat for building and farming.
Importance of Individual Sites
• The importance of individual sites changed over time.
• Which features do you think were more important in early times and which do you think were more important more recently?
Importance of Individual Sites Years
AgoFeature Reason
Good defence Hard to attack, e.g. Hill top, island
Close to water For water and fish supplies
Close to woodland For fuel, building materials and food
On useful farmland To provide food
Flat land Makes building easier
Good communications By road and river
Importance of Individual Sites Now
Feature Reason
Close to resources As materials for industry e.g. coal
Close to ports To transport materials or goods
Faster communication
As industry grew and developed e.g. canals, railways and more recently, motorways and airports.
Pleasant environment
For a) larger number of retired people and b) hi-tech industries which wish to be in attractive areas
Warkworth
River means enemies can
only attack from 1 side
Defence
Food and water supplies
Building houses
Trade
Communications
Castle defends the south side
River and roads can be used for
trade
River stops housing being
built to east and west
N
Trees are good for hunting
animals
Flat land is great for farming, as shown by the
pattern of fields
River and roads can be used for communication
Sea can be used for trade
Sea can be used for fishing for food
Flat land good for building housing
Wet land not ideal for building
houses
Settlement shapes
• The spacing of places is very different all across the country
• In the countryside houses can be scattered randomly with space between each house - this is called dispersed
• Some settlements have grown along a road – this is called linear
• Towns or villages may be compact, with shops, offices, and houses all very close together – this is called nucleated
Settlement ShapesThere are 3 basic shapes of rural settlements
Dispersed settlements have buildings scattered about with undeveloped land in-between
Linear settlements have buildings which are stretched out along a road, in a line
Nucleated settlements have a defined centre like a market square or crossroads
Dispersed Linear Nucleated
Settlement sizes
• An isolated settlement consisting of one house• A settlement of only a few houses and without a
church• A settlement with a few services, such as a church,
public house and a small shop• A larger settlement with several shops, churches, a
senior school, supermarkets, a doctor, dentist, banks and a small hospital
• A very large settlement with a large railway station, shopping complex, cathedral, large hospital, museum, university and office blocks
Hamlet VillageFarmCity
Town
Farm
Hamlet
Village
Town
City
What type of settlement is this?
Hamlet
CityVillageFarm
Town
Middlesbrough and Hartlepool Map
Pick 4 settlements (a town, village, hamlet and farm) on the map and fill out the table below for each one:
Settlement Name Whitby
Settlement Types Town
Grid Reference 8911
Description Nucleated settlement at the mouth of the River Esk
Advantages Some areas are on top of the hill, so it is good defensively. It is also next to a water supply and is a route centre for the north-south road and the road from the west.
Disadvantages It cannot grow to the east because of the sea. Some areas may flood.
Special features and functions
Abbey, hospital, bus and railway stations, 5 churches