Newcastle City Council

Welcome to Byker Ward Web Pages

General Info

Byker has several distinct neighbourhoods including :

• The Byker Wall Estate (including areas of Dunn Terrace, South Byker and St Lawrence Square)
• Scarborough Road and Byker Old Town area
• Allendale Road and Kingston Avenue area
• St Oswald’s Avenue area
• St Peter’s Basin

Byker has a number of facilities to support the local community.  These facilities include several large and smaller green spaces including Harbottle Park, St. Lawrence Park, Spires Lane Field and St. Oswald’s Green.  

There are children centre services operating from Byker Sands Family Centre in Raby Cross and St Martin’s Centre on Roman Avenue.

The ward has 2 primary schools, Byker Primary School and St Lawrence Primary School.

There are small shopping areas at Raby Cross and Welbeck Road with the main shopping area of Shields Road close by.

East End Pool and Library and Customer Service Centre are located conveniently on Shields Road offering a range of council services to local residents. 

What's going on ...

Decent Neighbourhood Standards

Every neighbourhood in Newcastle will be brought up to a decent standard under a new set of proposals by the city council. 

The council, with residents, wants to create its own Decent Neighbourhoods Standard to ensure consistently good services in each of the city’s 26 wards, with services such as street cleaning, graffiti removal and bin collection being constantly monitored and improved.

Residents who would like to make their views known should visit http://www.letstalknewcastle.co.uk/consultations/index/13 and take part in an online survey.
 

Latest Byker news

Community Housing Trust for Byker - It's a Yes!

The tenants of the Byker estate have spoken and have voted in favour of a new community housing trust!

For more information on the Byker Community Trust proposal and how to get involved please telephone 0800 6128280 or visit our 'Backing Byker' website

Selective Licensing in Byker Old Town and Allendale Road South

From 4 April 2011 all private landlords or their managing agents in the designated areas must apply for a license to the council.  the benefits of Selective Licensing are that it will:

• make sure privately rented properties are well managed
• tackle unprofessional landlords and supporting good landlords
• reduce anti social behaviour
• increase the demand for properties
• make sure the local area is a more attractive place to live
• encourage responsible tenants to stay

For more information about selective licensing contact the Selective Licensing team. tel. 0191 211 6102 or email: selectivelicensing@newcastle.gov.uk  

Online: www.newcastle.gov.uk/selectivelicensing

Byker Warmzone Project

Your local ward committee in the Byker Ward is proud to launch Byker Warm Zone.

Your local Councillors in the ward have taken the decision to make cavity wall and loft insulation free to all households in the Byker Ward. This is for a limited period only and subject to available funding.

In most other wards in the City, families who receive qualifying benefits or are over 60 years old already receive free insulation. The Byker ward is using ward funding to enable every household in the ward to have loft and cavity wall insulation installed for free.

By fully insulating your home you could save up to £300 per year off your fuel bills!  The work only takes 2-3 hours and we only use trusted local installers. 
 
Call Warmzone now on 0191 277 7373 to arrange a free, no obligation survey and you could soon save energy and save money!

Jamie Oliver's Ministry of Food Comes to Byker

Want to learn how to make tasty, simple meals on a tight budget? Jamie Oliver believes that its fun, cool, can save you money, and can help you live a healthier life.  Courses are available at:

St Martin's Centre, Roman Avenue - Tuesdays 6pm-7.30pm

Various sessions also held at the newly opened kitchen on Heaton Road 

£5 per session. All ingredients supplied and you take home everything you cook!  For more information and to book call 07835 836 193 or contact East End Health, 28 Hawthorn House, Heaton Road, Byker, NE6 1SD. E mail: eastendhealth.org.uk.

Heritage

The Byker estate is world famous for its unique 1970’s architecture.  Its skyline can be seen across Newcastle and from as far away as western Gateshead and Northumberland.  It has been the subject of many photographic exhibitions, dramas and films and is now a Grade 2* listed heritage site.

Byker is situated in the east of the city and is home to the world famous Byker wall development.  It was originally built in the 1900’s to house a growing workforce required by shipbuilding and other heavy industries situated on the banks of the River Tyne.  By the 1960’s much of the housing stock built to accommodate the nineteenth century workforce was sub standard, having no inside toilets or proper bathrooms and a backlog of major repairs.  In 1966 it was decided that Byker would be demolished and redeveloped.

In 1969 Ralph Erskine was appointed as project architect.  The Byker estate was built in 11 phases to house 9,500 people and the final phase completed in 1983.It is now world famous for its unique 1970’s architecture.