Cramlington, Northumberland, England, United Kingdom

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Cramlington is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, situated 6 miles north of Newcastle upon Tyne city centre. The name suggests a probable founding by the Danes or Anglo-Saxons. It sits on the border between Northumberland and North Tyneside with the traffic interchange at Moor Farm, Annitsford, linking the two areas.

The area of East Cramlington lies east of the A189, on the B1326 road that connects the town to Seaton Delaval.

History The first record of the Manor of Cramlington is from a mention in 1135 when the land was granted to Nicholas de Grenville. A register of early chaplains begins with John the Clerk of Cramlington (c. 1163–1180). The register continues to the present day.

From the 12th century onwards, its history has been mostly rural, incorporating several farms and the parish church of St. Nicholas (built at a cost of £3,000 during 1865–1868 in the Gothic style). During the early 19th century, coal mining with several mine shafts in the immediate vicinity began to change that. In 1813 Collingwood Main Colliery suffered an explosion of firedamp in which 8 people were killed. Six miners were carrying timber through the "old workings" when their candles set fire to firedamp. The resulting afterdamp and chokedamp resulted in a wider loss of life to men and horses.

The town remained small, however, until 1964 when it was proclaimed a New Town and developers such as William Leech and J.T. Bell developed large housing estates. Those estates have since been named Beaconhill, Collingwood, Eastfield, Mayfield, Shankhouse, Southfield, and Whitelea and the town has effectively become a dormitory town of the much larger city to its south.

During World War I, the North East of England was protected by the No. 36 Home Defence Squadron. The squadron was formed at Cramlington on 1 February 1916 by Capt. R. O. Abercromby, with Cramlington subsequently becoming an important base for military planes and airships. The Airship Station was at Nelson Village. A reference to Cramlington airfield is made in W. E. Johns 1935 book The Black Peril from the extremely popular Biggles series.

Cramlington was the site of two rail accidents. In 1855, the chassis of train's first class carriage failed and in 1926, the Merry Hampton engine and five carriages of the Edinburgh to King's Cross Flying Scotsman express train were derailed by striking miners during the General Strike. The story of the derailment was recounted in the BBC Two programme Yesterday's Witness: The Cramlington Train Wreckers in 1970.

New town development The idea of a new town development in Cramlington was first envisaged in 1958.

In June 1961, Northumberland County Council's Planning Committee approved the draft plans to establish what it hoped would be "Britain's first enterprise town". Sponsored by the council, the development was to be carried by a consortium led by William Leech, which had acquired the land. It was predicted to take 20 years, cost £50m and eventually house 40,000 inhabitants across a four square mile site that also included an industrial zone. A one-way road system was proposed, with the waggon ways of the former pits being repurposed as pedestrians paths.

The plan was finally approved by the Minister of Housing and Local Government in January 1963, by which time the estimated population had grown to 48,000 and the cost projected at £60m. It marked the first time a new town had been developed without the establishment of a government-backed development corporation. The planning officer predicted that it should look like a town in five years and be complete in 20 years. The first factory was to be completed by summer 1963.

In October 1964, an advert inviting investment in the development recorded an area of 2,200 acres, 530 of which were for industry.

In 2017, remnants of an Iron Age settlement was discovered on land destined for further housing development. Despite the interest of the town population and the potential to build upon the increasing town profile and interest created by Northumberlandia, Northumberland County Council decided to proceed with the housing development regardless.

Estates With the establishment of the new town, the area was arranged into estates, primarily with a designator of the part of the town in which the estate was to be found. The estates are: • Nelson Village • High Pit • Northburn (constructed between the late 1980s and the 1990s) • Northburn Manor (constructed in the early 2000s) • Eastfield (constructed primarily in the late 1970s with an estate added in the mid-1990s) • Westwood (constructed in the early 1980s) • Southfield Lea (constructed in the early 1970s) • Southfield Gardens (constructed in the early 2000s) • Mayfield (partially existing prior to the new town designation but with addition building in the late 1960s) • Whitelea (one of the earliest of the new town estates, constructed in the late 1960s and early 1970s) • Barns Park (constructed in the 1970s) • Parkside (constructed in the 1970s) • Beacon Hill (constructed in the 1970s) • Beacon Lane (constructed in the 1970s) • Collingwood Grange (constructed in the late 1960s) • Southfield Lea Westerkirk Extension (constructed in the 1980s) • Bassington Manor [constructed from 2015-2017] • St Nicholas Manor [Currently Under Construction 2018-] • The Fairways and Arcot Manor (Currently Under Construction 2018-) • Collingwood Chase (Constructed in the late 1960s) • Southfield Green (Constructed in the early 1970s).

Industry There are several large industrial zones in Cramlington, most to the town's north-west near the sewage treatment plant, housing major pharmaceutical companies including Merck Sharp and Dohme. Other growing chemical companies including Aesica Pharmaceuticals are also present. The Officers Club menswear firm (now owned by Blue Inc), previously had its headquarters and supply warehouse in Cramlington, in part of the old Wilkinson Blade factory while other companies such as GE Oil & Gas also occupy large sites. Start Football is also headquartered in the town.

Wilkinson Sword established the first factory in the town in 1964. American Air Filter Company later built premises. Brentford Nylons also opened a large site in the town in 1968. Boots, the pharmaceuticals manufacturer, opened their plant in Cramlington in 1983.

Retail The Manor Walks shopping centre was constructed in the centre of the town in the 1970s, and was subsequently expanded in the mid 1990s and in 2003/4. The centre now includes retailers such as Argos, Asda, Boots, Next and Sainsbury's. In 2011, plans were put forward to revamp the main centre and build a new cinema. The scheme also includes improved retail facilities, restaurants and cafes and more car parking spaces.

Manor Walks was extended into the southern car park in 2012 / 2013 and a new Vue Cinema and two new restaurants opened in July 2013. This coincided with the re-opening of a prominent pub in the town (previously the Traveller's Rest but now named John the Clerk of Cramlington). It is hoped that these developments will boost the town's leisure and visitor economies.

The Brockwell Centre, built in 1990 towards the north of the town, consists of a small range of shops and food outlets, alongside a public house, care home and medical centre. A supermarket, built for Netto, but subsequently owned by Somerfield and The Co-operative Group, is presently occupied by Home Bargains.

Healthcare Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust opened the first hospital in England purpose-built for emergency care in the town in June 2015. The Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital cost £75 million. It has emergency care consultants on duty at all times, and a range of specialists available seven days a week. In February 2021, the NHS trust began court action against contractor Lendlease over structural defects identified in the building. A trial is due to start in October 2022.

Landmarks Plessey Woods Country Park lies just to the north of Cramlington, with the River Blyth flowing through the country park. Northumberlandia, a huge land sculpture in the shape of a reclining female figure is located on the outskirts of Cramlington. Within the town itself, Nelson Hill is a prominent landmark to the north of the town centre. Arcot Hall Grasslands and Ponds SSSI is situated to the south-east of the town.

Transport The town is served by Cramlington Railway Station which is on the East Coast Main Line, with services to the MetroCentre, Morpeth and Newcastle upon Tyne provided by Northern. It is also served by a number of bus operators including Arriva North East which provides express services to Newcastle upon Tyne, Morpeth and Blyth, as well as Go North East which runs services to and from North Shields.

The town is located approximately 12 mi (19 km) from Newcastle International Airport and 10 mi (16 km) from North Shields International Ferry Terminal.

Cramlington also has good road transport links, being situated between the A1, A19 and A189 roads.

In line with many of the UK's post-war New Towns, Cramlington has an extensive bicycle network. With a grid spacing of approximately 500 m (1,600 ft), segregated cycle routes are provided free of motorised traffic.