Sotterley

Sotterley, originally Southern-lea from its situation south of the river, is a village and civil parish in the English county of Suffolk, located approximately 4mi south-east of Beccles and 1.5mi east of Willingham St Mary and Shadingfield. The parish is primarily agricultural with a dispersed population of 113 at the 2011 census. The parish council operates to administer jointly the parishes of Shadingfield, Willingham St Mary, Sotterley and Ellough.Sotterley Hall remains at the centre of the parish which now has very few basic services. A saw mill operates in the village, often making use of wood from the 160ha of mixed woodland managed by the Sotterley estate.Sotterley school, which was built in 1873 to replace a parochial school built in 1840 and supported by charitable contributions, closed in 1971. Children now attend primary school in Brampton and high school in Beccles.Sotterley Hall and EstateSotterley Estate is centred on a Georgian mansion house built in 1744, Sotterley Hall, overlooking a lake. The hall is a Grade I listed building and is H shaped with two wings and a central facade with 9 windows. A number of associated buildings close to the hall, including stables, a water tower and cowsheds, are grade II listed buildings.The estate surrounding the house, Sotterley Park, was laid out in the 18th Century and includes some ancient semi-natural woodland including pollarded oak trees and trees of significant size and age. It is believed to have previously been a medieval deer park. The majority of the estate is a Site of Special Scientific Interest of 121ha. The park is particularly important in that the trees "support the richest epiphytic Lichen flora in East Anglia" with 92 species of lichen and 14 of bryophytes.