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Chipping Sodbury is a market town in the unitary authority of South Gloucestershire, south-west England, founded in the 12th century by William Crassus (or le Gros). The villages of Old Sodbury and Little Sodbury are nearby.
At the 2001 census the population of Chipping Sodbury was 5,066, but in the last decade the town has become part of a much larger built-up area due to the rapid expansion of nearby Yate, with which it is contiguous to the west. At the census the combined population of Yate and Chipping Sodbury was 26,855.
Chipping Sodbury is the principal settlement in the civil parish of Sodbury, which also includes the village of Old Sodbury. Little Sodbury is a separate civil parish. Sodbury parish council has elected to be known as Sodbury Town Council.
Chipping Sodbury hosts a twice yearly Mop Fair, usually the last weekends of March and September. The town holds a Festival Week in early June. There is a farmers' market twice a month, on the second and fourth Saturdays.
A Victorian Evening is held on the first Friday in December. The event starts in the afternoon when school choirs perform in the street. The evening's events begin with the arrival of Father Christmas when snow is guaranteed (from a blower). The streets are lined with stalls from local charities and organisations and old time amusements, including a Ferris wheel, Helter Skelter and two children's rides. Choirs sing, bands play, and stalls bring a market feel. A Hog Roast is held.
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