Stanley | |
---|---|
St. Andrew's Church, Stanley | |
Location within County Durham | |
Population | 31,300 (2019)[1] |
OS grid reference | NZ197525 |
Civil parish |
|
Unitary authority | |
Ceremonial county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | STANLEY |
Postcode district | DH9 |
Dialling code | 01207 |
Police | Durham |
Fire | County Durham and Darlington |
Ambulance | North East |
UK Parliament | |
Website | http://www.stanley-tc.gov.uk |
Stanley[2] is a former colliery town and civil parish in County Durham, England. Centred on a hilltop between Chester-le-Street and Consett, the town lies south west of Gateshead.
Stanley was formerly divided into three distinct settlements – the main town of West Stanley and the mining villages of East Stanley and South Stanley. Through a process of gradual expansion, these have become amalgamated into one town, with East and South Stanley no longer officially used as town names (although they are still recognised colloquially).
The civil parish of Stanley was created in 2007 and takes in not only Stanley, but the villages of Annfield Plain, Tanfield, Craghead, Catchgate, Tantobie, Tanfield Lea, South Moor, White-le-Head, Bloemfontein, Clough Dene, Greencroft, Harelaw, Kip Hill, The Middles, New Kyo, No Place, Oxhill, Quaking Houses, Shield Row, and West Kyo. The current parish covers the vast majority of the former Stanley Urban District Council area, with the exception of Dipton and Burnopfield.
Stanley was first mentioned in historical records in 1211.[citation needed] Stanley is referred to in an early thirteenth century episcopal actum—a documented decision— of Richard Poore, Bishop of Durham from 1228 to 1237. The actum, dated between 1228 and 1234, confirms the granting of the vill of Stanley and some land in Durham to William de Kilkenny.[3] The discovery of some neolithic and Roman remains in the area indicate much older occupancy by peoples.[citation needed] The town's name is derived from the Old English stān and lēah, meaning "stony woodland clearing".[4]
The first printed map of the Bishopric of Durham was created in 1576. Published in 1579 as part of the cartographer Christopher Saxton's county atlas, it appears to show Stanley as "Standley".[5] In 1611, John Speed, a famous English mapmaker who built on Saxton's work, created a map of the bishopric that also appears to show Stanley as "Standley".[6]
The 1909 West Stanley Pit Disaster, one of the worst in the history of British coal mining, occurred at West Stanley Colliery on 16 February of that year.[7] 168 men and boys were killed.[8] An explosion at the same colliery in 1882 had killed 13 men.[9]
Over recent decades, Stanley has suffered hard times economically, with the closure of the coal pits followed by the loss of major employers at Ever Ready in nearby Tanfield, as well as the closure of both the British Steel plant and Shotley Bridge General Hospital in the neighbouring town of Consett. Local businesses in Stanley town centre were also significantly affected by the development of the giant MetroCentre shopping complex in nearby Gateshead, with local trade decreasing as a result.
In 1999, the Harry Ramsden's fish-and-chips restaurant chain threatened to sue the eponymous owner of the "Harry Ramadan" fish-and-chip shop on Front Street for trademark infringement.[10] The name was changed. In 2003, plans to convert a derelict hotel on the High Street into a club for swingers received numerous objections,[11] and after the intervention of the then-district council,[12] were dropped.[13]
In 2005, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister granted permission to plans to form a Stanley Town Council. This followed a campaign by local people, including a petition signed by more than 2,000 names, representing 10% of the population that would be covered by the new Town Council. Campaigners promised that the new Town Council would increase the pace of regeneration within the town.
The Stanley Blues Festival took place during the first weekend in August between 1993 and 2007, with appearances by local, national, and international blues artists and renowned musical acts.[14] In 2005, The Animals played a well-received set. In early 2008, however, organisers announced that the Festival was to be discontinued due to insufficient funding.
In June 2008, an arson attack left a historic building on Front Street in ruins, along with a billiards club and several shops.[15] In November 2008, the burnt buildings were demolished.
Stanley was renowned for an annual, two-week summer playscheme, which ran from 1972 to 2013. Based at the former Stanley Youth Centre, it was organised by a group of local people, and recruited international volunteers through VAP (Volunteer Action for Peace—formerly Youth Action for Peace).[16] Children participated in games, activities, and trips to local cultural and leisure venues.
Stanley Youth Centre offered activities to young people Monday to Friday during school term as well as a summer programme. Located at the top of Tyne Road, facilities included a sports hall, pool table, table tennis, meeting rooms and coffee bar. The range of activities available included DJing, volunteering, Duke of Edinburgh Award, babysitting, first aid and youth work courses. The Centre closed in 2016 after many decades of work with young people.[citation needed]
In mid-2023, Stanley Town Council handed back Stanley Civic Hall, the town’s long-standing arts venue and community hub, to Durham County Council.[17][18] Amidst political controversy,[19][20] it closed shortly afterwards, and was put up for sale in early 2024.[21] The Civic Hall was formerly known as the Lamplight Arts Centre, which opened in 1961. The Council had taken over its running in mid-2013.[22] The Civic Hall hosted concerts, recitals, plays and shows in the Alun Armstrong Theatre, had an independent cinema, put on exhibitions, held classes and seminars, and was a weddings and corporate events venue.[23]
Durham County Council was created in 1888 and covered the whole of County Durham.
The Urban District Council area of Stanley was created in 1894. Prior to this, Stanley had been administered for the purposes of the Poor Law and sanitation by the Lanchester Union. The initial Stanley District comprised West Stanley, Shield Row and South Moor, whilst separate Urban District Councils were created in Annfield Plain and Tanfield. After a governance review in 1937, the three Councils were combined and Craghead was transferred from the Lanchester Rural District to form a larger Stanley Urban District.
Under the local government re-organisation of 1974, Stanley Urban District was merged with the Consett Urban and Lanchester Rural Districts to create Derwentside District Council, which was the lower tier authority until a further re-organisation in 2009 abolished all the District Councils in County Durham and combined all local government functions into a unitary authority under Durham County Council.
Politically the local authority is dominated by the Labour Party, with 7 of the town's 8 allotted seats on Durham County Council being held by the party. The town lies in the North Durham Parliamentary constituency, which it shares with Chester-le-Street, and is represented at Westminster by Labour MP Kevan Jones. Prior to 1983 the town formed part of the Consett constituency (now part of North West Durham). The electoral ward named Stanley had at the 2011 Census a population of 9,053.[24]
In recent decades, with the decline of traditional industries and the encroachment of large supermarkets and chain stores, 'Old Stanley' has declined, with many locally owned shops and pubs closing.
The town's main shopping area, Front Street, is pedestrianised, housing independent shops alongside large chains such as Boots. A market is held on Front Street on Thursdays and Saturdays. There are also supermarkets such as Asda and Iceland located within the town. Tesco may construct a new supermarket on the Clifford Road Retail Complex site, which currently accommodates the Clearance Bargains store and a range of empty buildings that had previously housed Kwik Save, Presto, a furniture shop, and an indoor market.[25] Tesco continued to own the land but subsequently sold it to TJ Morris. The former Kwik Save site was then redeveloped into a large Home Bargains store, opening in July 2018. The store created 60 new jobs for the area.[26]
Stanley has also added a Domino's, a larger Greggs store (both opening December 2022) and a drive-thru Starbucks (opened in March 2023) in a newly developed site off of Agnes Street.[27]
Refurbishment of Stanley town centre in recent years has seen the opening of a new solar-powered bus interchange and an extension to the Louisa Centre leisure facility incorporating a new town swimming pool. A new health centre, Stanley Primary Care Centre, was opened in February 2010 along with a Sure Start children's centre.[28][29]
Stanley is about 4 miles (6.4 km) from Junction 63 of the A1(M) motorway. Stanley Bus Station[30] is an interchange for lines served by several operators.[31] The nearest Tyne & Wear Metro stations are Felling, Stadium, and Gateshead, each around 7.87 miles (12.67 km) away; all three serve both lines of the Metro's network. The closest railway station, at Chester-le-Street, is on the East Coast Main Line and about 3.5 miles (5.6 km) from Stanley. Newcastle International Airport lies 12.8 miles (20.6 km) away, and the Newcastle International Ferry Terminal some 13 miles (21 km).
Further information: List of schools in Durham |
As well as a number of primary schools,[32] Stanley has two secondary schools. These are:
The town is also served by St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, based in the nearby village of Lanchester.
The C2C Cycle Route skirts Stanley to the north.[33] This 140-mile (230 km) route links Whitehaven (Cumberland) on England's north-west coast with Roker Beach (Sunderland) on the north-east coast.
The Louisa Centre,[34] a sports and leisure complex, contains a gym, a 25-metre swimming pool (with a 300-seat spectators' gallery), a small pool, a sports hall, a shooting range, a soft play area, a nursery, meeting rooms, a café, and Stanley Library.[35]
The Stanley Indoor Bowls Centre, with a large arena and grandstand, offers play for people of all ages and abilities.[36] Inaugurated in 1977, it has hosted several top-level international events.[37] The Centre also provides meeting facilities for a range of community groups and clubs, and can be hired for private functions.
Under the umbrella of SAYC, the Stanley Area Youth Consortium,[38] trips and activities for children and young people in the wider Stanley area are offered by an array of youth clubs and voluntary associations.
These include Stanley Young People’s Club, focused on the South Stanley and South Moor areas; Oxhill Youth Club, founded in 1962,[39] which runs the Duke of Edinburgh's Award scheme locally; the Activity Den,[40] based in Tanfield Lea, active for nearly 20 years;[41] Beamish Community Football Club;[42] PACT House, a community hub;[43] and several community halls, schools, and churches.
There are two memorials to the 1909 West Stanley Pit Disaster: one unveiled in 1913, four years after the event,[46] and another unveiled in 1995, 86 years after.[47] In addition, a memorial headstone to mark the mass graves of those who died was dedicated in 2005.[48][49]