| Benwell | |
|---|---|
 | |
  Benwell Location within Tyne and Wear | |
| OS grid reference | NZ213644 |
| • London | 242 miles (389 km) |
| Metropolitan borough | |
| Metropolitan county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE |
| Postcode district | NE4 NE15 |
| Dialling code | 0191 |
| Police | Northumbria |
| Fire | Tyne and Wear |
| Ambulance | North East |
| UK Parliament | |
Benwell is an area in the West End of Newcastle upon Tyne, in the county of Tyne and Wear, England. Until 1974 it was in Northumberland.
The place-name 'Benwell' is first attested in the Historia de Sancto Cuthberto circa 1050 AD, where it appears as Bynnewalle, from the Old English bionnan walle, meaning "inside the wall". [1] This refers to Benwell's position relative to Hadrian's Wall (adjoining which was the Roman fort of Condercum, [2] hence the modern Condercum Road nearby). The fort was covered over by subsequent development in the area, but the remains of a Roman temple can still be seen in the vicinity. [3] Benwell is situated between Hadrian's Wall to the north and the River Tyne to the south, and in medieval times it was part of the Barony of Bolbec. [4]
By the 13th century the medieval manor of Benwell had been subdivided, originally into two, but then one of the halves was further subdivided. So, although people usually refer to the three sections of Benwell Manor as ‘thirds’, this gives a misleading impression, because one of the ‘thirds’ was larger and wealthier than the other two. This third belonged to the Scot family, who were wealthy merchants from Newcastle and by 1296 they were the principal taxpayers in Benwell. The Scot family later went on to create a deer park in 1367, which later became Scotswood.
In the 16th century Benwell village was arranged in two rows of houses on either side of a wide street or green. A plain oblong tower, three storeys high with battlements around the roof was also recorded as being built. A survey of Benwell from 1578/9 also referred to the existence of a quarry. [5]
In 1540, the Crown, under King Henry VIII, took possession of Benwell Tower from Tynemouth Priory when it dissolved the monasteries.
Early in the 17th century, Benwell was split into smaller estates which were bought by the Shafto [6] and Riddell families who were merchant families interested in exploiting the coal reserves on the banks of the Tyne.
Benwell Colliery was opened in 1766 and operated until 1938. [7]
The original layout of Benwell exists in the form of Benwell Village, Benwell Lane, Ferguson's Lane and Fox and Hounds Lane; however, no buildings still exist other than from the early 19th century. The tower from the 16th century was rebuilt in the 18th century and then all traces were removed when the present hall, Benwell Towers was built in a Tudor style by John Dobson in 1831. [8] Benwell Towers featured in the BBC television show Byker Grove . [9]
By the 1990s, Benwell was widely regarded as one of the most troubled parts of Tyneside, if not the whole of Britain. In April 1994, The Independent reported that unemployment in the area stood at 24% (well over twice the national average) and that drug abuse and arson were both a major problem in the area, with a number of arson attacks known to have been carried out in an attempt to intimidate witnesses to crimes and deter them from giving evidence in court. [10]
Much like similar parts of West Newcastle, since the 2010s, regeneration has been underway with new housing developments and improved community facilities across Benwell, including a 2000-home housing estate, The Rise, [11] and improvements to Benwell's main shopping centres.
North Benwell now has a large ethnic minority population mainly of Eastern Europeans and Bangladeshis, with one of the lowest White British populations in the city, while the Grainger Park estate, which a small portion also falls into neighbouring Elswick also has a large population of mainly Pakistanis, Bangladeshis and some Eastern Europeans with a small number of White British.
The area is represented on Newcastle City Council as part of the Elswick ward, with a Labour, Green and Independent councillor. It is also represented by the Benwell and Scotswood ward, with three Labour councillors, including Jeremy Beecham, the former chairman of the Labour Party and the Local Government Association. He was first elected for Benwell in 1967.
Benwell was formerly a township and chapelry in the parish of St John, [12] in 1866 Benwell became a separate civil parish, on 1 April 1914 the parish was abolished to form Newcastle upon Tyne. [13] In 1911 the parish had a population of 27,049. [14] It is now in the unparished area of Newcastle upon Tyne.