Walker, Newcastle upon Tyne

Walker is a residential suburb and electoral ward just east of the centre of Newcastle upon Tyne, England. Walker's name is a hybrid of Old English and Viking Norse, "Wall-kjerr", where "kjerr" is Norse for "marshy woodland". The name therefore means "marshy woodland by the wall", where the wall in question is of course Hadrian's Wall.

Generally speaking Walker is an area between Welbeck Road and the banks of the River Tyne, although the modern city ward of Walker incorporates Pottery Bank and St Anthony's. When most Geordies refer to Walker they also incorporate the areas of Daisy Hill and Eastfield. Walkergate, Walkerdene and Walkerville, which are located between Welbeck Road and the Network rail line are sometimes considered parts of Walker. These two areas, along with Daisy Hill and Eastfield make up the city Ward of Walkergate.

The residents of Walker are type 51 on the ACORN classification and tend to be low income families, single parents and pensioners.

Walker used to have a large shipbuilding industry, particularly the yard of Armstrong Whitworth at High Walker, but this has declined over the past 50 years and now much of the population is chronically unemployed. The area has suffered as a result, though Newcastle City Council's Walker Riverside regeneration scheme aims to revitalise the area with new houses, schools, jobs and community facilities, environmental improvements, and a new neighbourhood centre to be known as the Heart of Walker.

Much of the older and run-down housing stock along Walker Road is in the process of being demolished and replaced with new homes which are a mixture of council and private housing.

The area is notable for Walker Park, the Walker Riverside Park, and the Lady Armstrong Library, as well as the Lightfoot Sports Centre, which is set to undergo a £2.5m refurbishment.

Walker is the birthplace of Eric Burdon, lead singer of The Animals and later War. The Animals recorded a song called Gonna Send You Back To Walker.

Another Walkerite, the author, journalist and broadcaster Keith Topping, titled one of the chapters in his novel The Hollow Men, The St. Anthony's Chinese Takeaway Massacre.

The Newcastle United striker Shola Ameobi grew up in Walker where he played for the famous Walker Central F.C, launched in 1988 by the Wallsend-born former Newcastle United midfielder Lee Clark, and ex-club scout Brian Clark (no relation). Lee Clark has since gone on to manage League One side Huddersfield Town.

Walker is served by the Tyne and Wear Metro, with a station at Walkergate, and has a main bus terminus on Walker Road, although this is quite dilapidated and badly serviced.

Most children attend six local primary schools, (St Anthony's CE, St Vincent's RC, Tyneview, Welbeck, West Walker, and Wharrier Street) in Walker before transferring to Benfield School, a specialist Sports College, or to Walker Technology College[1], a high performing specialist technology and visual arts school for 11-18 year olds.

As part of the new Heart of Walker development, plans have recently been unveiled to open a new state-of-the-art primary school on a site next door to the redeveloped Lightfoot Centre. The £7m project will merge Wharrier Street and St Anthony's primary schools when it opens in Autumn 2012.

Plans for the area's regeneration were approved by the then Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Ruth Kelly.

External links

• Tyne and Wear Archives Service: historical information on Walker
• Newcastle Council Ward Info: Walker