Bedlington
| Bedlington | |
|---|---|
 St. Cuthbert's Church, Bedlington | |
  Bedlington Location withinNorthumberland | |
| Population | 18,470 |
| OS grid reference | NZ258819 |
| Civil parish |
|
| Unitary authority | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | BEDLINGTON |
| Postcode district | NE22 |
| Dialling code | 01670 |
| Police | Northumbria |
| Fire | Northumberland |
| Ambulance | North East |
| UK Parliament | |
Bedlingtonis a town and formercivil parishinNorthumberland,England, with a population of 18,470 measured at the 2011 Census.[2][3]
Bedlington is an ancient market town, with a rich history of industry and innovative residents. Located roughly 10 miles northeast of Newcastle and Newcastle Airport, Bedlington is roughly 10 minutes from theA1 road,in southeast Northumberland. Other nearby places includeMorpethto the northwest,Ashingtonto the northeast,Blythto the east andCramlingtonto the south. In 1961 the parish had a population of 29,403.[4]
The town has evidence of habitation from theBronze Age,with a burial site being located just behind what is now the main Front Street. A cluster of Bronze Agecistburials were discovered during excavation of the site in the 1930s. St Cuthbert's Church is the longest standing building in the town, with parts of this dating back to the 11th century and recently celebrated being 1000 years old. The church is in the heart of the original sandstone conservation town centre. Most of the medieval town has disappeared with many of the historic buildings and factories being demolished over the years, but there are still nods to medieval street layouts. The main Front Street is currently made up of Georgian and Victorian buildings.
At key points in history, before and during theIndustrial Revolution,goods made in Bedlington made it to all corners of the globe through the distribution of nails and trains that were made in Bedlington from some 250 years ago. With large industry first being attracted to Bedlington over 250 years ago, in the form of its world-renowned iron works, mining became an intrinsic part of Bedlington from 1838. The coal industry remained at the heart of the town until the closure of the mines in the 1980s. Today Bedlington's Front Street is host to a number of well-established eating and drinking venues, and there is an emergence of new establishments and retailers entering the town.
The parish of Bedlington constituted the historic exclave ofCounty Durhamcalled Bedlingtonshire.
History
[edit]The place-name "Bedlington" is first attestedcirca1050 in a biography ofSaint Cuthbert,where it appears as "Bedlingtun". The name means "the town of Bedla's people".[5]
Bedlington and thehamletsbelonging to it were bought byCutheard,Bishop of Durham, between 900 and 915, and although locally in the county of Northumberland, it became part of the county palatine (from Lat.palatium,a palace) of Durham, over whichBishop Walcherwas granted royal rights byWilliam the Conqueror.
When these rights were taken fromCuthbert Tunstall,Bishop of Durham, in 1536, Bedlington among his other properties, lost its special privileges, but was confirmed to him in 1541 with the other property of his predecessors. Together with the other lands of the see of Durham, Bedlington was made over to the ecclesiastical commissioners in 1866. Bedlingtonshire was made part of Northumberland for civil purposes by acts of parliament in 1832 and1844.
Bedlington became an industrial town with aniron worksand several coal mines, however subsequent closure of these industries in the latter half of the 20th century caused the town to undergo many changes, becoming more of adormitory townfor those working in the surrounding areas. The last of the residential housing estates, formerly built for the mining families of the town, were taken over and razed by the council with residents evicted from the 'Pit Rows' estate in the early to mid 1970s, as was part and parcel of the government's national policy of this time.
The most important historic building in Bedlington was Bedlington Old Hall, which consisted of a 15th-centurypele towerwith a long early 18th-century stone block adjoining, occupying a prime location on the high street. It was controversially demolished in 1959 and replaced with council offices, which are now themselves empty and for sale.
The parish was abolished on 1 April 1974 and became anunparished areainWansbeckdistrict.[6]
Development
[edit]
The town has three supermarkets, a post office, and several other smaller shops.
A weekly market is held on Thursdays at the market place. The number of market stalls is now also starting to decline.
Transport
[edit]Air and Sea
[edit]The nearest airport isNewcastle Airport,which provides scheduled domestic flights, flights covering many major cities in Europe, long haul international flights and holiday charter flights. There is a port in nearbyNorth Shieldswith daily passenger services toIJmuidenin theNetherlands.
Bus
[edit]The town's main bus operator is Arriva North East. Arriva links Bedlington to Ashington, Morpeth, Cramlington, Blyth, Stakeford and Newcastle. The X21/X22 bus services link Ashington, Guide Post, Bedlington Station,Regent Centre,Gosforth and Newcastle Haymarket. The X21/X22 provides a combined 10 minute service on Monday - Friday daytimes. The 2 bus service link Morpeth, Guide Post, Bedlington Station and Blyth.
Rail
[edit]Construction is currently underway on the construction of theNorthumberland Line,which will reinstate passenger railway services fromAshingtonto Bedlington,Blyth,Seaton Delaval,ShiremoorandNewcastle.Passenger services are currently scheduled to begin operation in Bedlington[7]in late 2024 or early 2025.
Road
[edit]TheA189Spine Road sits about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) east of the town centre and links Ashington, Blyth, Cramlington,Killingworth,Gosforth and Newcastle. TheA1is about 3 miles (4.8 km) from the town centre and provides connectivity to Scotland and London. The town also has other roads like the A193, A1068, A1147 and the B1331.
Education
[edit]Bedlington is served by two secondary schools:Bedlington Academy(previously Bedlingtonshire Community High School) andSt Benet Biscop Catholic Academy.They are both in Bedlington, but they do take in children fromStakeford,Guide Post,Choppington,Stanningtonand even areas ofMorpeth.Bedlington is also served by three primary schools: Bedlington Station Primary School, Stead Lane Primary School and St Bede's Primary School. One of the few middle schools left in England is Meadowdale Academy. This is soon to change however as Meadowdale is to change to a primary school. The town of Bedlington also has two first schools: Whitley Memorial C of E School and Bedlington West End County First School. Whitley Memorial C of E School became a primary school at the start of the summer 2021 term. Pupils may also commute around 13 miles (21 km) south toNewcastle upon Tyneif they choose to attend an independent school.
Local parish
[edit]One of the most important surviving historic buildings is the Anglican parish church, which is dedicated toSt. Cuthbert.It is reputed that the church takes its dedication from an event that occurred 12 December 1069: fleeing northwards from the Conqueror's army, the monks of Durham are said to have rested the body of St Cuthbert in Bedlington Church. The building, originally of Saxon design, was rebuilt about a hundred years later. Little of either the Saxon or the Norman church has survived.
There is a Roman Catholic congregation who worship in a relatively new church called St Bede's. In addition, there is a Salvation Army chapel.
Hartford Hall lies within the parish. Much of the riverside land between Bedlington and the hall forms the Bedlington Country Park, a designatedlocal nature reserve.[8][9]
Local media
[edit]Local newspapers include theEvening Chronicleand theJournal,which also coverTynesideand the rest of southeast Northumberland. TheNewspost Leaderis weekly and covers most of the former district ofWansbeck.The community-run Bedlington Website Bedlington.co.uk was started in 1998. It has been active in many of the recent initiatives to promote the town.
Local radio stations areBBC Radio Newcastle,Capital North East,Heart North East,Smooth North East,Hits Radio North East,and Koast Radio, a community based station.[10]Local television news programmes are provided byITV News Tyne TeesandBBC Look North.
Notable residents
[edit]- John Birkinshaw— inventedwrought ironrails in 1820
- Daniel Gooch(1816–1889) — railway and cable engineer
- John Viret Gooch(1812–1900) — railway mechanical engineer
- Thomas Longridge Gooch(1808–1882) — civil engineer
- Jayne Middlemiss(born 1971) — TV presenter, radio presenter and former model
- Denis Murphy(born 1948) — Labour Party MP for Wansbeck from 1997 to 2010
- Kenneth Pearson(born 1951) — cricketer
- Kathy Secker(1945–2015) — television presenter and former model
- Chris Dobey(born 1990) — darts player
- Callan Rydz(born 1998) — darts player
Twin towns
[edit]Bedlington istwinnedwithSchalksmühleinNorth Rhine-Westphalia,Germany.
Neighbouring towns
[edit]See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^"West Bedlington Town Council".westbedlington.org.uk.
- ^"Population 2011,East Bedlington".Retrieved25 June2015.
- ^"West Bedlington population 2011".Retrieved25 June2015.
- ^"Population statistics Bedlington CP/AP through time".A Vision of Britain through Time.Retrieved25 January2022.
- ^Ekwall, Eilert(1960).Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Place-names(4th ed.). Oxford: Clarendon Press. p. 34.OCLC400936.
- ^"Northumberland Central Registration District".UKBMD.Retrieved25 January2022.
- ^markellis32 (17 January 2024)."Passenger Services Confirmed for Summer 2024".Northumberland Line.Retrieved18 January2024.
{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^"Bedlington Country Park".Local Nature Reserves. Natural England. Archived fromthe originalon 8 August 2014.Retrieved4 August2013.
- ^"Map of Bedlington Country Park".Local Nature Reserves. Natural England.Retrieved4 August2013.
- ^"Koast Radio".Retrieved4 January2024.
External links
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