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Ponteland ( ) is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England. It is northwest of Newcastle upon Tyne.
Built on marshland near St Mary's Church and the old bridge, most marshland has now been drained to make way for housing. In the industrial era, the settlement expanded with the development of Darras Hall. Parts of Ponteland have some of North-East England's most expensive houses; being just outside Newcastle, near the airport and on the edge of rural countryside.
The civil parish includes the old village of Ponteland, the Darras Hall estate, and the villages of Kirkley, Medburn, Milbourne and Prestwick.
Kirkley is thought to originate in the Brittonic word whose modern Welsh form is cruc meaning 'hill', compounded with the Old English word hlæw, also meaning 'hill'.
Christian worship in Ponteland has expanded to other denominations in recent centuries. The Ponteland Methodist Church opened in 1841. An 1848 review appreciated Ponteland also hosted places of worship for Scottish Presbyterians and a Wesleyan chapel.
In 1867, an Anglican sister church to St Mary's opened in Milbourne, one of Ponteland's wards. In 1884, a Catholic church was established at St Matthews, now part of the Hexham and Newcastle Catholic diocese. In the twentieth century, a United Reformed Church opened in Darras Hall.
In the 13th century, Ponteland narrowly escaped conflict when the Treaty of Newcastle (1244) ensured a last minute peace between Scottish and English forces. The treaty bears the name of Ponteland's nearest city but was actually signed in the village.
in High Callerton adjoining Ponteland, fortified against (presumably Scottish) raiders]] During the 14th century, Ponteland was less fortunate. Scottish forces destroyed part of Ponteland Castle, as prelude to the Battle of Otterburn in 1388, northwest of Ponteland. Taking advantage of English distractions in the Hundred Years’ War with France, 1337–1453, this battle saw a decisive defeat for English forces and the expansion of Scottish influence in Ponteland's Middle Ages experience.
While Ponteland Castle was never rebuilt as a military stronghold, it transformed into a public house. Known as The Blackbird, this still serves the Ponteland community, nearly seven hundred years after the destruction of its original purpose.
Parts of Darras Hall were used as a prisoner-of-war camp in the Second World War. The camp was designated number 69 of several hundred camps across Britain and held Italian and German prisoners of war. Reflecting the post-war growth of the village, Ponteland High School opened in 1972. The affluent housing estate of Darras Hall is a popular choice for many of North East England's wealthy residents and many people associated with Newcastle United live in the parish including Alan Shearer, Peter Beardsley, Steven Taylor, George Hall, Phil Barton and Terry McDermott.
In 2005, Darras Hall received considerable media attention when a convicted rapist moved to the estate, after purchasing a house with his National Lottery winnings.
In the early 21st century, an expanding Ponteland and the adjoining Darras Hall was home to approximately 11,000 people.
St Mary's churchyard includes the Grade II listed 18th-century tombstones of Matthew Forster and William Turnbull.
Ponteland previously boasted a small castle or tower house, which was largely destroyed by the Scottish army under the Earl of Douglas, the day before the 1388 Battle of Otterburn. The remains were incorporated into the building now occupied by the Blackbird Inn, which is rumoured to contain an old tunnel connecting it to St Mary's Church across the road. The tunnel was supposedly bricked up behind the fireplace in The Tunnel Room.
A plaque outside The Blackbird records:
To the north of Ponteland is another public house with links to Scotland. This marks an occasion during the Jacobite rising of 1745, where Scottish armies advanced into England to further claims to the English throne. During this incursion, Charles Edward Stuart, popularly Bonnie Prince Charlie, reputedly bathed at a Ponteland public house. Marking this occasion, the house is still called The Highlander.
One of the oldest houses, or farms at the time, in the Darras Hall area is Little Callerton House. The Old Mill, the house where Alan Shearer used to live, and various other dwellings in the area belonged to Little Callerton House, which is approximately 450 years old. On the edge of the estate at High Callerton, Rebellion House is a 16th-century Bastle house, altered and extended in the 17th century.
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Ponteland has a largely Christian population, with 7,774 Christians (71.2%). This is followed by those of no religion, at 1,920 or 17.6% of the population.
| !Religion (2011) !Number !Percentage | ||
| Christian | 7,774 | 71.2 |
| No religion | 1,920 | 17.6 |
| Not stated | 681 | 6.2 |
| Muslim | 189 | 1.7 |
| Sikh | 153 | 1.4 |
| Hindu | 137 | 1.3 |
| Buddhist | 24 | 0.2 |
| Jewish | 22 | 0.2 |
| Other | 21 | 0.2 |
There are now four Primary schools in Ponteland: Ponteland Primary School, Darras Hall Primary School, Richard Coates Church of England Primary School and Ponteland Community Primary School. There is one Secondary school, Ponteland Community High School, which educates pupils aged 11–18.
Ponteland Community High School has recently been remade.
Ponteland railway station was once served by the Ponteland Railway branch line of the North Eastern Railway (later part of the London & North Eastern Railway) from Newcastle, including a short spur to Darras Hall. Plans to electrify the line were abandoned in 1907, however, and the spur line lost passenger services in 1929 when volume fell below expectations. However, a substantial part of Ponteland's railway connections have been resurrected as part of the Tyne & Wear Metro system to serve Newcastle Airport.
Reflecting its rural surroundings, Ponteland has several country walks. These concentrate around Ponteland Park and include a walk from the Diamond Inn to Kirkley and from Medburn to the Highlander Inn.
Ponteland has five public houses: The Seven Stars, The Blackbird, The Badger, The Diamond Inn and The Pont Tap.
Ponteland also has a Sainsbury's, Waitrose, Co-op Food and a few coffee shops and restaurants.
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