Windy Nook
Windy Nook is an area in Tyne and Wear, England, bordered by Carr Hill to the west, Whitehills Estate and Leam Lane Estate to the east, Felling to the north and Sheriff Hill to the south. It lies on steep, sloping land south of Gateshead, south of Newcastle upon Tyne and north of Durham. In 2011, the Windy Nook and Whitehills ward had a population of 9,781. Formerly part of Heworth, it was incorporated into the newly formed Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead on 1 April 1974.
Windy Nook has a long industrial history, with evidence of milling and pottery in the area. The principal industry, however, was stone quarrying, and the initial settlement grew as this industry flourished. By the turn of the 19th century, several quarries operated in Windy Nook and the largest, Kell's Quarry, provided the sandstone and grindstone used to build St Alban's Church, a Grade II listed building and principal landmark in the village, which was consecrated on 25 August 1842.
The decline in industry in the 20th century saw the population fall to pre-industrial levels. Though today an urban suburb, there are no large commercial areas and the new Tesco store is the largest employer. There remains large areas of green space, however, and it is a popular and high-demand place to live. Residents compare favourably with others in the borough in terms of income, employment levels and educational qualifications.
Windy Nook Nature Reserve is a protected wildlife area, as well as one of the largest environmental sculptures in Europe. Mary Elizabeth Wilson, a serial killer, was known as The Merry Widow of Windy Nook. Joseph Hopper, founder of the aged mineworkers scheme, and John Oxberry, a prominent historian, also hailed from the village.
History
The name Windy Nook derives from "the lofty and exposed nature of the situation it occupies". In 1784, Richard Kell began quarrying at Heworth Shore. His business expanded quickly and, by the turn of the 19th century, Kell and his family had established a second quarry at Windy Nook which was known as Kell's Quarry. This, along with a number of pre-existing, smaller quarries, provided work for the early settlers and by 1820 there existed a "modern but populous village". The quarries of Windy Nook became renowned, described as equally important to the more vaunted quarries of Yorkshire and producing sandstone and 'Newcastle grindstone' of sufficient quality that stones from Kell's Quarry were used to build St Alban's Church and other local buildings.As the quarries prospered, the village continued to grow. In 1834 an account described Windy Nook as "a populous hamlet ... chiefly inhabited by workmen employed in the adjoining quarries. Here are three public houses, one farmstead, a corn-mill and several mechanics". In 1842, a National school was built by subscription, and within six years the building of two more mills and a pottery saw the population increase to around 2,009 inhabitants. The quarries continued to produce high quality grindstone; in 1860 stone from Kell's Quarry was used to build the Exchange Building in Newcastle upon Tyne.
In spite of this industrialisation, residents were still able to enjoy "wildly romantic scenery". Ordnance survey maps of 1862 show that Windy Nook remained isolated from the neighbouring villages at Carr Hill and Sheriff Hill. The principal road, Windy Nook Road, had been established and at the junction between this road and Carr Hill Road, the church of St Alban and the national school are evidenced among a cluster of residential dwellings but there was little else save the quarries which dominated during those formative years. By 1870 there were 430 houses for 2,653 inhabitants which by 1887 had increased again to 3,554.
However, by the turn of the 20th century, the quarries slowly fell into disuse and by the 1960s all of the remaining industrial areas had closed and the quarries infilled, though the sandstone properties at St Alban's Place and Co-Operative Terrace stand as a reminder to Windy Nook's industrial history. The decrease in employment opportunities led to a steady decline in population and although some housing developed along Stone Street and Coldwell Lane, the urban sprawl that enveloped most of the outlying settlements of Gateshead during the early 20th century never reached Windy Nook, so that in 1945 it remained largely unchanged in location and size. Despite some terraced housing being built in at Crossfield Park and Coltsfoot Gardens in the 1970–80s, the character of the suburb today remains suburban; the land is split 50/50 between residential properties and open green space and only 11.3% of the residential properties today are council housing. The result is that Windy Nook is a high-demand area for privately owned and social housing.
Economy
The decline of heavy industry in the 20th century left Windy Nook with no major employer and there was little in terms of economic activity. There is no major commercial area and residents usually travel to neighbouring Felling town centre to shop or use the small shopping area at the junction of Windy Nook Road and Carr Hill Road/Albion Street. However, in November 2011, planning permission was approved for conversion of the Black House Inn at the junction of Carr Hill Road and Coldwell lane into a Tesco Express store. The approval was granted in spite of complaints and concerns as to noise and traffic being raised by local residents. This store is now the largest employer in Windy Nook, employing around 20 staff.Overall, Windy Nook is wholly outside the lowest 20% of residents in terms of income in Gateshead. The unemployment rate in the Windy Nook and Whitehills Ward measured by those who claim Jobseeker's Allowance is 5%, which is the same as the overall Gateshead average, whilst youth unemployment is 10%. The average income of residents in the ward is £23,000 per annum. Some 4.4% of residents are self-employed, which compares with a 4.5% borough average.
Geography and topography
At latitude 54.938° N and longitude 1.5703° W, Windy Nook lies south-east of Gateshead and from London. It sits on a bed of coal, freestone and sandstone known locally as the "Grindstone Post" and occupies an elevated position with a steep slope running from north to south to a maximum natural height of above sea-level. This distinctive, steep topography provides residents with "fantastic" views; especially to the north and in some places panoramic views across the Team Valley in the west and towards the North Sea in the east. Around 50% of the land is green space; a combination of urban green space, natural fields, wildlife corridors and a nature reserve. These combine to improve the quality and feel of the area.Official documents indicate that the boundaries of Windy Nook are Albion Road in the north, Windy Nook Road to the west, Stone Street and the adjoining streets to the south and the Fiddler's Three public house to the east. Windy Nook was part of County Durham until it was incorporated into the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead by the Local Government Act 1972. It is now bordered by settlements which are also part of the metropolitan borough. These are Sheriff Hill to the south, Carr Hill to the west, Felling to the north, Whitehills Estate and Leam Lane Estate to the east.
Demography
According to the United Kingdom Census 2001, Windy Nook has a population of 2,628 – 52% of the population are female, slightly above the national average, whilst 48% are male. Less than 1% of the population are from a black or other minority ethnic group, as opposed to 9.1% of the national population.Windy Nook has a low proportion of lone parent households at some 7.2% of all households. This is one of the lowest figures in Gateshead and compares with a borough average of 11.5%. Some 31.1% of households have dependent children, as opposed to 29.5% nationally and 28.4% in Gateshead. The Index of Multiple Deprivation, which divides England into 32,482 areas and measures quality of life to indicate deprivation, splits Windy Nook into halves and lists the eastern half in the top 20% of all deprived areas in England in 2011. The western half is not considered deprived.
In 2011, Windy Nook had a population of 3,165, compared with 9,781 for the Windy Nook and Whitehills.
| Windy Nook compared 2011 | Windy Nook | Windy Nook |
| White British | 96.2% | 97.1% |
| Asian | 1.5% | 0.9% |
| Black | 0.3% | 0.2% |
In 2011, only 3.8% of Windy Nook's population were non-white British, compared with 2.9% for the ward of Windy Nook and Whitehills and 8.0% for the town of Gateshead. The amount of Ethnic Minorities resident in Windy Nook is low compared with other Gateshead districts like Felling, Deckham and Saltwell.
Population change
The population of Windy Nook rose steadily through the 19th century but decreased as industry declined and is now at the lowest level since 1842.| Year | 1842 | 1870 | 1887 | 2001 |
| Population | 2,009 | 2,653 | 3,554 | 2,628 |
Governance
| Candidate name | Political party | Number of votes | % of votes cast |
| Pat Ronan | Labour | 1,963 | 82.8% |
| Kyle Murray | Conservative | 228 | 9.6% |
| Lisa Angela Marie Bradbury | Liberal Democrats | 179 | 7.56% |
Windy Nook was initially an ecclesiastical district in the parish of Jarrow, but after the Local Government Act 1972, it is today wholly within the council ward of Windy Nook and Whitehills in the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead and is approximately in area. It is represented by three councillors. In June 2012, they were Jim Turnbull, Tom Graham and Pat Ronan.
Windy Nook is part of the Westminster parliamentary constituency of Gateshead. It was previously in the Gateshead East and Washington West constituency which was abolished by boundary changes before the 2010 UK General Election. For many years the MP was Joyce Quin, who retired on 11 April 2005 and was awarded a life peerage into the House of Lords on 13 June 2006 and is now Baroness Quin.
The present MP Ian Mearns, is a member of the Labour party and his office is in Gateshead. He replaced Sharon Hodgson who successfully campaigned in the newly formed constituency of Washington and Sunderland West. In the 2010 UK General Election, Mearns was elected with a majority of 12,549 over Frank Hindle. The swing from Labour to the Liberal Democrats was 3.9%.
Windy Nook is in a safe Labour seat. Mearns' success in 2010 followed of Sharon Hodgson, who in the 2005 UK General Election polled over 60% of the votes cast whilst in 2001, Joyce Quin was returned with a majority of 53.3%.