| Benwell | |
|
Benwell
Benwell shown within Tyne and Wear |
|
| OS grid reference | NZ213644 |
|---|---|
| List of places: UK • England • Tyne and Wear | |
Benwell and Scotswood is an electoral ward of Newcastle upon Tyne in North East England. The ward encompasses the Benwell and Scotswood housing areas, as well as the Newcastle Business Park, which is located on the banks of the River Tyne and houses offices of companies such as British Airways and the AA.The population of the ward is 13,759, 5.3% of the total population of Newcastle-upon-Tyne. Car ownership in the area is 45.1% this is lower than the city average of 54.7%.
Contents |
Scotswood grew during the industrial revolution and provided labour for the huge Vickers/Armstrong military engineering group. The Scotswood Road, which Vickers Armstrong used to dominate, is a main route along the Tyne and is mentioned in the song "Blaydon Races". Benwell, Scotswood and Elswick were the sites of a number of coalmines. The Montague Colliery Disaster occurred on 30 March 1925 and was caused by an inrush of water from the nearby Paradise Pit resulting in the loss of 38 lives.
Scotswood railway station was served by the Newcastle and Carlisle Railway between 1839 and 1967.
The Fenham and Benwell district formed an independent urban district which was incorporated into the City of Newcastle upon Tyne in 1904.
Scotswood was socially destroyed in the early 70's by the local housing counsel. The area became a dumping ground for less desirable tennents of the city after the down turn in industry. The area descended into chaos dissolving the famous Geordie community spirit. Today, most of the residents of Scotswood live in other parts of Newcastle as a result of being forcibly evicted. Much of Scotswood has been demolished in an effort to bring new money to the area as much of the scenic river valley is a gold mine for future real-estate development.
The boundary of the Benwell and Scotswood ward starts at the West Road/A1 roundabout heading south along the A1 to the River Tyne. Then east to the Scotswood Road and William Armstrong Drive junction. Heading north the boundary joins Buddle Road and continues along St Johns Road to Elswick Road. The boundary then heads west onto Adelaide Terrace to the Hodgkin Park Road junction. It continues north to the rear of the allotment gardens and Lismore Place properties. It moves to the west behind Denhill Park properties to Pendower Hall School and follows the school's eastern perimeter north to the West Road to the A1.
The Benwell and Scotswood ward has two nursery schools, six primary schools, one comprehensive secondary school and also a school for children with specific needs.
The ward has both Benwell Library and Denton Burn Library which have computers with free internet access. Benwell Nature Park and Denton Dene South are located within the ward. Scotswood Leisure Centre hosts various sports clubs and fitness classes. The Ward contains three pieces of Play Provision, provided by Newcastle Play Service. These pieces of provision are the Lillia Play Sessions held at the Lillia Youth Centre and two Playcentres, Scotswood Playcentre and Benwell Playcentre. These provide free open access sessions 5 days a week to children aged 5–12 (older children with disabilities and additional needs are welcome)
| Age group | Number |
|---|---|
| Under 16 | 3,011 |
| 16-24 | 1,569 |
| 25-44 | 3,907 |
| 45-64 | 3,055 |
| 65-74 | 1,154 |
| 75+ | 1,045 |
| Ethnicity | Number | % |
|---|---|---|
| White | 13,161 | 95.8 |
| Afro-Caribbean | 35 | 0.3 |
| South Asian | 398 | 2.9 |
| Chinese | 27 | 0.2 |
| Other | 112 | 0.8 |
The ward has 6,411 housing spaces of which 6.4% are vacant this is higher than the city average of 5.3%. Owner-occupied properties stand at 46.9% also lower than the city average of 53.3%. The properties are as follows:
| Property type | Number | % |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | 406 | 6.3 |
| Semi-detached | 3,003 | 46.8 |
| Terraced | 1,404 | 21.9 |
| Flats | 1,601 | 24.9 |
| Other | 3 | 0 |