Ouston is a village in County Durham

County Durham

County Durham is a ceremonial county and unitary district in north east England. The county town is Durham. The largest settlement in the ceremonial county is the town of Darlington...

, approximately 5 miles to the south-west of the city of Newcastle upon Tyne

Newcastle upon Tyne

Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...

 in the north-east of England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. The main village of Ouston (formerly called Ulkerton in earlier medieval times) is adjoined by the 1970s built housing estate known as Urpeth Grange but both are referred to colloquially as Ouston by locals.

Schools

There are three schools in Ouston: St. Benet's Catholic Infant & Junior School, Ouston Infant and Ouston Junior school. Ouston Junior School was opened in December, 1964 and is often the venue for local cross country events. The Junior School also provides a venue for several community activities.

Ameneties

There are two pubs: the Red Lion in Ouston and The Cherry Tree in Urpeth Grange. A Working men's club

Working men's club

Working men's clubs are a type of private social club founded in the 19th century in industrial areas of the United Kingdom, particularly the North of England, the Midlands and many parts of the South Wales Valleys, to provide recreation and education for working class men and their families.-...

 (The Ranch) is also situated in the neighbouring village of Perkinsville

Perkinsville, County Durham

Perkinsville is a village in County Durham, in England. It is situated immediately to the north of Pelton, to the north-west of Chester-le-Street....

. Shops are limited to a Post Office

Post office

A post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...

 and a couple of general stores. Organisations based in the village include the Ouston and Urpeth Conservation Volunteers.

Transport

There are regular bus routes through Ouston with the Go North East

Go North East

Go North East is the largest operator of bus services in North East England, United Kingdom. Go North East operates services in the counties of Tyne and Wear, County Durham and Northumberland...

 bus company. The 34 and 34A run from Ouston to Chester-le-Street

Chester-le-Street

Chester-le-Street is a town in County Durham, England. It has a history going back to Roman times when it was called Concangis. The town is located south of Newcastle upon Tyne and west of Sunderland on the River Wear...

 and the 28 and 28A buses run from Chester-le-Street

Chester-le-Street

Chester-le-Street is a town in County Durham, England. It has a history going back to Roman times when it was called Concangis. The town is located south of Newcastle upon Tyne and west of Sunderland on the River Wear...

 through Ouston and into Newcastle upon Tyne

Newcastle upon Tyne

Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...

 via Gateshead

Gateshead

Gateshead is a town in Tyne and Wear, England and is the main settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead. Historically a part of County Durham, it lies on the southern bank of the River Tyne opposite Newcastle upon Tyne and together they form the urban core of Tyneside...

. The 28 and 28A buses are named "The Waggonway" and are decorated with the picture of a coal train. The inside of the buses advertise Beamish Museum

Beamish Museum

Beamish, The North of England Open Air Museum is an open-air museum located at Beamish, near the town of Stanley, County Durham, England. The museum's guiding principle is to preserve an example of everyday life in urban and rural North East England at the climax of industrialisation in the early...

, a local outdoor museum which is renowned for its "real life" interaction with visitors and information about life in County Durham during different time periods.

Locality

The village itself was mostly constructed in 1961 with the showhomes being in Ardrossan opposite the Junior School which opened in 1964. Over time the village expanded to its current size with further expansion continuing from Penhill, Urpeth, in the early 1970s onwards. In recent years the housing development has rebegun in earnest in Turnberry and Woodlands, the former being a disused farmer's field with some World War II bunkers in it and the latter being an area next to the council estate (The Brooms) in an area near Walter's Wood.

Ouston is a quiet village with only one main road through it, which even at busy times of the day is still quiet. The village is surrounded by countryside, farm life and stunning views of Newcastle upon Tyne

Newcastle upon Tyne

Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...

.

External links

• Ouston Junior School website
• http://www.oustonvillagers.org.uk/amenities.htm Community Amenties in Ouston
• http://www.chester-le-streetschools.org.uk/athletics/athletics_history.htm Cross Country at Ouston Junior School