Оңтүстік Хэмс округі: Девонның оңтүстік жағалауы

Local government district in Devon, England
the district

South Hams is a local government district on the south coast of Devon, England. Its council is based in the town of Totnes, although the largest town is Ivybridge. The district also contains the towns of Dartmouth, Kingsbridge and Salcombe and numerous villages and surrounding rural areas. Much of the district's landscape is recognised for its natural beauty; the north of the district includes part of Dartmoor National Park, the district's coastline and adjoining areas form most of the South Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and part of the west of the district lies within the Tamar Valley AONB. The district's coast includes the promontories of Start Point and Bolt Head. The neighbouring districts are Torbay, Teignbridge, West Devon, Cornwall (across the Tamar–Tavy Estuary) and Plymouth.

"Ham" is an Old English term which can mean a homestead, river meadow or peninsula. The settled farming areas either side of the largely uninhabited wilderness of Dartmoor were anciently termed the "North Hams" and "South Hams" respectively. The name North Hams fell out of general usage, but the name South Hams continued to be used for the area between Dartmoor and the south coast.

South Hams District Council provides district level services. County level services are provided by Devon County Council. The whole district is also covered by civil parishes, which form a third tier of local government. In the parts of the district within the Dartmoor National Park, town planning is the responsibility of the Dartmoor National Park Authority. The district council appoints one of its councillors to serve on the 19 person National Park Authority.

The council is based at Follaton House, a large converted house on the outskirts of Totnes. The main house dates back to the early nineteenth century and is a Grade II* listed building. The building had been bought by the old Totnes Rural District Council for £26,000 in 1965 and converted to become its offices, transferring to the new South Hams District Council on local government reorganisation in 1974.

The district's geography can be described in terms of three loosely defined bands: a coastal band of bays, headlands, birdlife, fishing and small harbour towns with the estuaries and rias; a middle band with the main, well conserved towns; and a sparsely populated band of upland National Park moorland in the north. For over a century its tourism was concentrated around the railway, with most stations built here from 1847 to 1872 so tourism to its beaches and fishing villages began in earnest later than to the 'English Riviera' east of the area. South Hams' widespread tourism multiplied on the dualling of the A38 and time cutting construction of the M5 and A303 across other parts of south west England. The South Hams, along with nearby Broadsands in Paignton, is the last British refuge of the cirl bunting.

Since the last boundary changes in 2015 the council has comprised 31 councillors representing 20 wards, with each ward election one, two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years. The South Hams district straddles the two parliamentary constituencies of South West Devon and Totnes. In the 2016 EU Referendum it voted to remain with a very high (80.3%) turnout.