Elwick Parish Council

You are invited to visit one of the most welcoming communities in the north-east of England. This web-site is designed to give information about the Parish Council and the wider community it serves.

 

Elwick is the largest parish, by geographical size, in Tees Valley, though many people say we have more sheep than people! The A19, as it runs from the river Tyne 40 miles to the north, cuts straight through the parish as it heads to, and over, the river Tees, 10 miles to the south, dividing the eastern part in which sits the ancient village of Elwick, from the western where the growing conurbation of Wynyard sits to the south-west. Wynyard, once part of Elwick parish became a stand-alone parish council in May 2022. Directly to the south is the parish of Dalton Piercy, whilst a mere 4 miles to the east is Hartlepool town, itself bounded on its eastern edge by the North Sea. 

The parish is broadly agricultural, with dairy production the main industry – there are 4 working farms in the village itself with many more along the A19 and Coal Lane. This latter earned its name as once being the road by which coal came from the Durham coalfields to the port of Stockton, on the Tees, from where it was sent all around England to fuel the Industrial Revolution).

 

 

is one of the prettiest in the north-east of England; it lies on the southern edge of a limestone escarpment from which natural springs send water coursing, especially after heavy rains; the land on which the village lies is bounded by ‘becks’ (streams) that lie in deep valleys to east and west. In early medieval times the village would have been completely hidden from view being surrounded by woodland, and indeed, until the middle of the last century, though the woodlands had long since been cut down, it was still pretty much hidden from travellers passing along the Stockton to Sunderland Road, even as it passed close to the village; it is interesting to note that, until the second World War, there was no proper road to Hartlepool, just a cart track. From the 1950s onwards the village began to expand eastwards and northwards to its current size of around 240 dwellings. When the main road became the A19 dual-carriageway, and was slightly raised in the process, a glimpse of this newer part of the village could be seen. Even today, travellers from Hartlepool cannot see the village until almost upon it.

The village was first laid out by the Normans, based on an earlier Saxon settlement; it is typical of a Norman village having the dwellings surrounding an enclosed village green, that runs east to west. The green and the area around it, has been given Conservation Area status by Hartlepool Borough Council. The Parish Council maintains the green and the trees upon it on behalf of residents and to the benefit of both residents and our many visitors.  We have a small Wildlife Garden at the top of Greenlea, developed at the turn of the century as part of a 'Britain in Bloom' entry, by the Elwick Residents Association. The garden is now maintained by the Parish Council and has now undergone a complete renovation. To the west end of the village, at the bottom of the hill known as Church Bank, (it leads to the church which is situated at the top of the bank on the other side, and was not originally built for the use of village residents - and thereby hangs a tale!), lies the James Grieves Memorial Playing Field. The Playing Field is leased by a local farmer to the Parish Council, in memory of his son, and has been equipped over the last 30 years with a range of wooden play equipment, for use mostly by children under 12. There is an area equipped with football goalposts, though it would be rather over-egging it to call it a football pitch; it is well-used both by local children for a kick-about, but also by local Sunday-league teams and a ladies’ team, for training.

The village, and its surrounding farms, is served by the church of St. Peter’s, whose vicar, the Reverend Canon Janet Burbury, is also vicar of the mother church of the parish, St. Mary Magdalene at Hart, 2 miles to the north-east. Both now lie within the Diocese of Durham (to learn more about the history of the church, the village and the wider parish, do read the information provided on the ‘Elwick Village History’ page, it is really fascinating!).

The village primary school caters for 100 children drawn from both Elwick and Dalton Piercy villages as well as the town.  We are lucky to have 2 public houses - The Spotted Cow and The McOrville as well as the Coopers of Elwick Shop and Tea Room, and a dairy at Home Farm which sells raw milk, for which people travel from all over the north-east. A Post-Office van visits twice a week early on Monday and Wednesday afternoons and, introduced only in early 2020, we have the Tees Flex rural bus service, providing much-needed public transport between our rural community and our neighbouring urban centre of Hartlepool. (See the ‘Tees Flex Rural Bus Service’ page for further information).

The WI Hall, situated on the south side of the village green, not only hosts the Women’s Institute’s own monthly meetings, held at 7.00pm on the 1^st Monday of the month, but an active Young Farmers Club on a Tuesday evening, at 7.00pm once a fortnight, an Art Club every Tuesday morning between 10.00am and 12.00, a craft group, ‘Needles and Pins’ from 10.00am ‘til noon every Wednesday and ‘Rising Stars’, a performing arts group for children aged 6 and upwards, on Sundays, 10.00am -1.00pm and, of course, our own Parish Council meetings at 7.00pm on the last Monday of the month. All these groups are very welcoming and would be delighted to see you! Contact details for all the organisations mentioned are listed below.

A defibrillator is situated on the wall of The Spotted Cow.  

The church produces a monthly magazine on behalf of residents, ‘Village Life’, which covers Elwick village, Dalton Piercy, Hart and the Bishop Cuthbert estate in Hartlepool (our Vicar’s parish!). 

The Parish Council organises a number of Social events throughout the year and a monthly ‘Litter Pick’ around Elwick village, usually on the first Saturday of the month, although the weather is not always accommodating. (For more information, check out the ‘Events Calendar’).

The Annual Parish Meeting is an opportunity for the public to express their opinion on what the Parish Council is doing and to make suggestions for new activities or services they would like to see made available.

It is a special meeting, held once a year, between 1 March and 30 June, where the Parish Council invite the press and public to hear reports from the Parish Council, Ward Councillors, Police, PCC, school and other parish organisations, about what they have achieved and their plans for the coming year. It is also an opportunity to discuss important issues such as the Parish Plan or the proposed By-pass. It is not the Annual Meeting of the Parish Council itself. In Elwick, the Chairman of the Parish Council will normally chair the Annual Parish Meeting. If s/he is unable to attend, either another Parish Councillor or the Clerk will chair the meeting.

No votes taken on items discussed at the Annual Parish Meeting ae binding on the Parish Council, although Councillors will consider them at their next meeting. Suggestions that are seen to be well supported, if found to be financially viable, will probably be implemented, though this may not be until the new financial year as the budget has already been agreed for the current year.

Only those members of the public on the electoral roll are entitled to vote on an issue – other members of the public may attend and express their views, but cannot vote.

The Parish Council’s Standing Orders are suspended for the Parish Meeting.

All this could make for a terrible formal affair, but here in Elwick we like to mix business with pleasure if we can, so, whilst we do conduct the formal business of the meeting, we also have wine & cheese, coffee & cake and use the occasion to be sociable, and get to know who does what and when!