Warmscombe farm is about two kilometres south of Hele, on the spur of a hill. Warmscombe Wood is on the side of the hill to the north. Warmscombe was probably part of the Saxon Manor of Ilfracombe. The place name comes from Old English Waermund's ham(m), the last element meaning 'an enclosure'. Many other local place names are from Old English, often with a Saxon personal name as their first element, for example Berrynarbor (originally Hurtesburie), Ilfracombe, Campscott, Mullacot, Winsham and Haggington.

Warmscombe is so-called (twice!) on the first OS map of 1809; and on the 1839 Ilfracombe Tithe map (transcription Warmscombe owned by Catherine Copner, held by Dennis Buckingham); Called Warnscombe in the 1851 Census; Warmscombe and Warmscombe Woods are so-called on the OS map of 1891.

"Very likely identical to Warmundesham 1311 Ass, Warmodesham 1330 SR(p). ‘Waermund’s ham(m)’ " (Gover et al 1932 p 48)

"If we examine the sites of all the places which either contain or possibly contain hamm we find that a very large proportion are definitely away from streams, only a few lie by streams, while a still smaller number lies within well marked river bends. This makes it clear that in the vast majority of cases hamm in Devon can only mean 'enclosure'. It is very doubtful if it ever had the sense 'river meadow' which has been sometimes assigned to that term." (Gover et al 1932 p 678)