Consett
This article needs additional citations for verification. (December 2007) |
Consett | |
---|---|
![]() Christ Church, Consett | |
Population | 27,394 (2001)[1] |
OS grid reference | NZ108511 |
Unitary authority | |
Ceremonial county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | CONSETT |
Postcode district | DH8 |
Dialling code | 01207 |
Police | Durham |
Fire | County Durham and Darlington |
Ambulance | North East |
UK Parliament | |
Consett is a town in the northwest of County Durham, England.
Consett is a town of 27,000 people, high on the edge of the Pennines in northwest Durham. In 1841, it was a village community of only 145, but it was about to become a boom town. Below the ground was coking coal and blackband iron ore. Nearby was limestone. These were the three ingredients needed for blast furnaces to produce iron and steel.
The town is perched on the steep eastern bank of the River Derwent and owes its origins to industrial development arising from lead mining in the area, together with the development of the steel industry in the Derwent Valley, which is said to have been initiated by immigrant German cutlers and sword-makers from Solingen, who settled in the village of Shotley Bridge during the seventeenth century.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Derwent Valley was the cradle of the British steel industry, helped by the easy availability of coal from Tyneside, and the import of high quality iron ore from Sweden via the port of Newcastle upon Tyne. However, following the invention of the Bessemer process in the 19th century, steel could be made from British iron ore (which was otherwise too heavily contaminated by phosphorus) and the Derwent Valley's geographical advantage was lost, allowing Sheffield to become the leading centre of the British steel industry.
Governance
Consett is part of the North West Durham Parliamentary Constituency represented by Labour MP, Pat Glass. Prior to this, Hilary Armstrong held the seat since 1987 and "inherited" the position from her father Ernest Armstrong. Before 1983, the town had its own Member of Parliament.
Consett was part of Derwentside District Council which merged into the unitary authority, Durham County Council on 1 April 2009. The Consett area is currently split into four electoral divisions (Benfieldside; Consett North; Delves Lane and Consett South; and Leadgate and Medomsley), each of which elects two County Councillors.
Consett is part of the North East Region that elects three MEPs (Member of the European Parliament) to the European Parliament. The region is currently represented by Labour MEP, Stephen Hughes, Conservative MEP, Martin Callanan and Liberal Democrat MEP Fiona Hall.
Geography
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Consett sits above the rural Derwent valley on the edge of the boundary of County Durham and Northumberland. The Derwent Reservoir is located just west of the town. It is a town with the usual range of amenities, shops, pubs, night clubs, residential areas and industrial estates. There are a number of villages in its immediate surroundings, some are contiguous (for example Shotley Bridge and Blackhill) some are not (for example Moorside and Castleside).
Consett town centre is around 885 feet (270m) above sea level making it only slightly lower than the town of Alston in Cumbria which is said to be the highest market town in Britain.
Economy
Small and medium-sized businesses now provide most jobs in the area. Phileas Fogg Company (County Durham), with its factory on the town's Number One Industrial Estate, were mildly famous for a few years from 1988 for their snack food "Made in Medomsley Road, Consett" television adverts. The Phileas Fogg Company is now owned by KP Snacks as part of United Biscuits.
Since 2000, several new housing developments have taken place on the former steelworks site and surrounding areas. Derwentside College, formerly sited at Park Road, moved to a new campus at Berry Edge in September 2002 and national retailers have moved into Hermiston Retail Park.
Culture
Consett was the first town in the world to have a Salvation Army Corps Band. The band was formed in December 1879 and went out on the streets playing at Christmas. The original band consisted of just four players, bandmaster Edward Lennox and bandsmen George Storey, James Simpson and Robert Greenwood.[2]
Consett is home to the Empire Theatre, one of County Durham's oldest theatres. Recently refurbished, the theatre stages variety acts, plays and a Christmas pantomime. The theatre also screens blockbuster films at times when there are no live performances.
Consett was once also the home of the unique Iron Theatre, a short-lived playhouse that stood in the town centre near Delves Lane from c.1880 until its demolition just before the First World War. The theatre was the brainchild of Sir David Dale, chairman of the board of directors of the Consett Iron Co. Ltd. and a keen amateur dramatist. Built entirely from the product of his iron and steel works (hence its name), the theatre enjoyed a brief reputation for producing spectacular operatic productions, largely funded at Dale's personal expense. The theatre struggled to survive after Dale's death in 1906 and was demolished for scrap shortly before the First World War.[3]
Several pubs have at least taken names that reflect the town's steel-making past - the Works, the Company, and the Company Row. From its bygone days of a steeltown, with a huge reliance on rail, next to where the main railway station used to be is a club named the Station Club, now opposite a health centre. With the steelworks gone, visitors and inhabitants are beginning to realise the beauty of the picturesque views over the Derwent Valley, and Consett is becoming a popular place to live for commuters from Durham and Tyne & Wear looking for a taste of the country.
New developments
There are plans for a new £20,000,000 sports complex, incorporating a swimming pool, regional tennis centre and new football stadium for Consett A.F.C. ("The Steelmen") as part of Durham County Council's plans for the regeneration of Consett. These plans involve the demolition of the former headquarters of Derwentside District Council at Consett Civic Centre and the relocation of Consett AFC to Crookhall. The site will be be redeveloped and the new Consett Academy built there.[4]
On 5 July 2010, the Secretary of State for Education announced plans for the overhaul of England's school building programme. The announcement stated that it would be "irresponsible to carry on regardless with an inflexible, and needlessly complex programme." Many building programmes that had not commenced were cancelled but the plans for Consett Academy and an academy at nearby Stanley were "for discussion."[5]
Local opponents to the building of an academy on the Belle Vue site in Consett unsuccessfully launched an application to have the land registered as a village green. This would have prohibited the development of the land. A public inquiry was held at Consett Civic Centre during the week commencing 12 July 2010.[6] Finally, on 11th April 2011, Durham County Council's Highways Committee turned down the application to grant village green status for the Belle Vue area [7]
Notable people
- Alun Armstrong, actor. Born in nearby Annfield Plain, original cast member of Les Misérables, playing Monsieur Thénardier. Also in New Tricks and The Mummy Returns.
- Rowan Atkinson, (born January 6, 1955 in Consett, County Durham), star of the Blackadder and Mr. Bean comedy series.[8] Atkinson was born to Eric Atkinson and Ella May, Anglican farmers in the town of Consett.
- Alan Campbell, the present MP for Tynemouth and former Home Office Minister for Crime Reduction and Government Whip was born in the town.
- Mark Clattenburg. English football Referee.
- Paul Collingwood, England and Durham cricketer, born in Shotley Bridge.
- Graeme Danby, is an opera singer born in the town.[9] He is Principal Bass with English National Opera.[9] He also devotes a great deal of his schedule to working with charitable trusts.[9][10]
- Anthony Hutton, Big Brother winner.
- Susan Maughan, singer, who reached #3 in the UK Singles Chart in 1962 with "Bobby's Girl".
- Bob Murray, kitchen & bathroom magnate and former chairman of Sunderland AFC.
- John Robson, professional footballer for Derby County and Aston Villa who missed only one game in Derby County's championship winning 1971-72 season under the management team of Brian Clough and Peter Taylor[11]
- Frank Clark, professional footballer and football manager. Played for Newcastle United in their Inter-Cities Fairs Cup winning team in the 1968-69 season then went on to play for Nottingham Forest under the management team of Brian Clough and Peter Taylor where he won a European Cup winner's medal in 1979. He went on to be Assistant Manager at Sunderland AFC then at Leyton Orient. He was then Manager for Leyton Orient, Nottingham Forest and Manchester City. He is now Vice Chairman of the League Managers' Association.
- Matthew Tait - England international and ex Newcastle Falcons Rugby Union player. He now plays for Sale Sharks. Born in Shotley Bridge but brought up in the nearby town of Wolsingham.
- Steve Thompson - musician, songwriter, producer. website. Born 1952 at the Grove. Served apprenticeship in the steelworks and began performing career at the Freemason's Arms with Consett band, Bullfrog. Later left the Steelworks and the area to begin a successful career in the music industry. Returned briefly in 2000 to the Empire Theatre with a musical entitled Steeltown.
- Barry Venison - retired footballer and pundit was born in Shotley Bridge Hospital, although is from Stanley.
- Denise Welch, ex-star of Coronation Street and Soldier Soldier drama series. Married to Tim Healy and now starring in Waterloo Road on BBC1 and Loose Women on ITV1.
- Keith Strachan born in Consett. Award winning composer and musical theatre director. Compositions include "Mistletoe and Wine" and the theme music for Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?[12]
- Michael Kay is a footballer who plays in the right back position. He currently plays for Sunderland after progressing through their academy and is a former England Under-17 international.
- Ben Clark (footballer) plays at Centre Half and current club captain for Gateshead in the Blue Square Premier. Formerly represented England upto Under 19 level and has had spells at Manchester United, Sunderland and Hartlepool.
References
- ^ 2001 Census Profiles (Numbers) for Major Centres in County Durham, Durham County Council, Retrieved on 10 August 2007
- ^ Salvation Army Firsts, Salvation Army Collectables. Retrieved on 16 December 2007.
- ^ http://durhamtheatrehistoryforum.moonfruit.com/
- ^ "Consett's regeneration". Durham County Council. 2009. Retrieved 2010-07-17.
- ^ "Overhaul of England's school building programme". Department for Education. 2010-07-12. Retrieved 2010-07-17.
- ^ "Village green status inquiry is underway". The Northern Echo. 2010-07-13. Retrieved 2010-07-17.
- ^ "Durham County Council Highways Committee minutes". Durham County Council. 2011-04-11.
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ignored (help) - ^ Barratt, Nick (25 August 2007). "Family Detective - Rowan Atkinson". The Daily Telegraph.
- ^ a b c "Honourary degree for opera couple". BBC News. BBC.co.uk. 2006-07-19. Retrieved 2008-09-19.
Graeme Danby was born in Consett and studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London. He is Principal Bass with the English National Opera.
- ^ Tunney, John (2008-09-04). "Big night for Sir Bobby sells out". The Journal. Retrieved 2008-09-19.
- ^ BBC (3 August 2004). "Rams' match remembers John Robson". BBC. Retrieved 2010-09-04.
- ^ Nick Smurthwaite (21 March 2005). "Million pound notes - Keith Strachan". The Stage. Retrieved 2010-03-23.
External links
- Planning Search, with weekly lists and major developments (outstanding)
- Local history of Consett and surrounding areas
- Consett.net, local forum for Consett
- Durham County Council
- Detailed information on iron / steel works
- Consett AFC
- Consett Forums - Lively local forums. Established 2005
- Consett & Stanley Advertiser - local free paper