Clara Vale
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Clara Vale is a small village situated on the south bank of the River Tyne in Tyne and Wear, North East England. Once an independent village in County Durham it became incorporated into the new metropolitan county of Tyne and Wear in 1974 and later became part of the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead.
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[edit] Location
Clara Vale stands on the south bank of the river Tyne in a low-lying and quite secluded spot. Crawcrook borders the village to the south. To the north, across the river, is the village of Wylam in Northumberland. It is notable for being the first settlement in Tyne and Wear that the river Tyne reaches and passes after leaving Northumberland.
[edit] History
Clara Vale came into existence as a purpose built colliery community in the late nineteenth century. Built by the Stella Coal Company, it thrived next to the nearby pit of Clara. However, by the 1960s, the mine closed down. So too had many other nearby pits such as Emma, Greenside and Stargate.
[edit] Politics
In local government, Greenside is located in the 'Crawcrook, Greenside and Clara Vale ward' of Gateshead Council. The ward is at the far west of Gateshead and borders part of the Tynedale district of Northumberland. The ward is served by three councillors, all Liberal Democrats. Gateshead Council is Labour controlled.
Clara Vale is located within the parliamentary constituency of Blaydon. Its current MP is Labour's Dave Anderson.
[edit] Modern-day Clara Vale
After the collapse of the coal industry in the 1960s Clara Vale has managed to survive and is still a vibrant community. In the present day it has rather affluent residents and employment tends to be in managerial and professional roles who are attracted to the area for its quiet and rural character. Farming is also an important sector in the area.
Clara Vale remains a remarkable community and is still only a very small village, barely larger than a hamlet. This is largely due to a great lack of recent development in the area. There is very little in the way of modern housing, only the one terraced street, built in the traditional style of the village. Of the other non-pit housing and buildings, there is only the chapel and school. There are no local shops.
By avoiding the suburbanisation experienced by nearby towns and villages such as Crawcrook, Greenside and Ryton. Clara Vale has retained its rural character completely. Farms and countryside surrounds the village. This includes a local nature reserve which stands at the site of the old colliery.
Due to its small size, Clara Vale has limited amenities and local services. However, nearby Crawcrook and Ryton offer a range of shops and services and both of these are within walking distance of the village so whilst Clara Vale remains seculded, it is by no means isolated. Clara Vale does, however, have three nearby golf courses. Ryton golf course, in Clara Vale itself; Tyneside golf club in Ryton and, over the river to the north, Close House golf club in Wylam.
