Chilton, County Durham
| Chilton | |
| County Durham | |
|---|---|
 Village centre, Chilton | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | NZ285295 |
| Location: | 54°41’24"N, 1°33’0"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 3,908 (2001) |
| Post town: | Ferryhill |
| Postcode: | DL17 |
| Dialling code: | 01388 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | County Durham |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Sedgefield |
Chilton is a village in County Durham, a few miles to the east of Bishop Auckland and a short distance to the south of Ferryhill, on the A167. The bypass on the A167 opened on 20 June 2005, cutting down the traffic through Chilton by up to 80%, though leaving it perhaps an isolated place.
History
Chilton was originally a mining village and called Chilton Buildings. The mine was located on the site of the current primary school, with the miners living in Windlestone Colliery, a series of terraced houses named Albert Street, Arthur Street and Prospect Terrace, locally known as The Five Rows owing to their appearance from the front.
Churches
- Church of England: St Aidan's
- Methodist
- Roman Catholic: Sacred Heart
About the village
Chilton has a post office, a public house, a working men's club, and a Catholic club. It has an NHS healthcare centre, dentist, public library, and two supermarkets serving the local community. There are three take-away restaurants on the main street: a chip-shop, a Chinese restaurant and a couple of pizzerias.
There is a football ground and an all-night automatically lit basketball court, as well as recreation areas with swings, slides and climbing apparatus. There are regular bus services to Ferryhill, Bishop Auckland, Spennymoor, Durham, and other towns and cities outside the county, such as Hartlepool and Darlington.
The village has a primary school, Chilton Primary, but after primary school children must travel, many to Ferryhill Business and Enterprise College.
The town has a thriving allotment community, serving over 200 allotments.
Redevelopment and future
A road bypass now carries traffic around the village, cutting out around 80%[1] of vehicles travelling through the town itself. The bypass itself was implemented in 2005, although the concept was conceived decades before. It has been positively received by the town residents and has made a huge improvement in traffic management in the area. To allow the construction of the bypass, West Chilton Terrace was cut in half, as were the allotments behind. A large amount of the social housing in Chilton and all terraces, were to be demolished (a large percentage of Dale Street has already been demolished), however as of April 2010 phase 2 of the plans have been put on hold due to shortage of local government funding.[2]
Chilton also gained a new war memorial in 2008 to commemorate men from the town who lost their lives in the First and Second World Wars, their names engraved on the marble cenotaph.
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Chilton, County Durham) |
References
- ↑ "BBC NEWS: Bypass 'will cut 80% of traffic'". BBC News. 2005-06-19. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/wear/4109000.stm. Retrieved 2010-11-09.
- ↑ "The Northern Echo: Durham County Council cannot afford the next phases of housing plans". http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/8126925.Communities_in_limbo_with_rejuvenation_delay/. Retrieved 2010-07-10.