[1] The parish, which covers an area of 866 ha,[1] straddles the boundary of the Exmoor National Park lying on the southern edge of the Brendon Hills, and is close to the border with Devon.

In the Domesday Book the village was recorded as Scheligate, possibly meaning 'the opening on the boundary'.

[1] At that time it was held by Robert de Gatemore under Roger Arundel along with another manor in the parish known as Milton.

[5] The district council is responsible for local planning and building control, local roads, council housing, environmental health, markets and fairs, refuse collection and recycling, cemeteries and crematoria, leisure services, parks, and tourism.

It is also part of the Tiverton and Minehead county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.