Whittle Dene is located 12 miles (19 km) to the west 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...

, 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...

 straddling the B6318 Military Road, and is a complex of reservoirs and treatment works forming the last stage in the supply of drinking water

Drinking water

Drinking water or potable water is water pure enough to be consumed or used with low risk of immediate or long term harm. In most developed countries, the water supplied to households, commerce and industry is all of drinking water standard, even though only a very small proportion is actually...

 to 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...

 and 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...

.

History

A major requirement of piped water within Newcastle was in connection with fire-fighting and it was a local insurance company, the Newcastle Fire Office, which provided some of the earliest water supply points. The fire office obtained much of its water from flooded colliery workings in the Coxlodge area, the water being pumped out by a windmill and run via a brick conduit to a reservoir on the Town Moor. Better-planned proposals led to the Whittle Dene Water Company being established in 1845. Reservoirs were planned at Whittle Dene above the village of Ovingham. These reservoirs, completed in 1848, at last gave Newcastle and Gateshead a steady, clean and regular supply of water. At this point the major works of the new company were completed and later described as ‘the greatest step with reference to the hydraulic supply of a Town that has been taken in the Kingdom’. Following those early beginnings the Newcastle and Gateshead Water Company came into being, gradually extending its area of supply and increasing its supply points.

The complex forms part of a series of reservoirs along the A68 which are connected by tunnel

Tunnel

A tunnel is an underground passageway, completely enclosed except for openings for egress, commonly at each end.A tunnel may be for foot or vehicular road traffic, for rail traffic, or for a canal. Some tunnels are aqueducts to supply water for consumption or for hydroelectric stations or are sewers...

s and aqueduct

Aqueduct

An aqueduct is a water supply or navigable channel constructed to convey water. In modern engineering, the term is used for any system of pipes, ditches, canals, tunnels, and other structures used for this purpose....

s from Catcleugh Reservoir

Catcleugh Reservoir

Catcleugh Reservoir is a reservoir in Northumberland, England adjacent to the A68 road; just north of Byrness; and to the south of the border with Scotland.-History:...

 to Whittle Dene; from where drinking water

Drinking water

Drinking water or potable water is water pure enough to be consumed or used with low risk of immediate or long term harm. In most developed countries, the water supplied to households, commerce and industry is all of drinking water standard, even though only a very small proportion is actually...

 is supplied to 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...

, 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...

, and some surrounding areas. The reservoirs that form the chain are, from northwest to southeast: Catcleugh Reservoir

Catcleugh Reservoir

Catcleugh Reservoir is a reservoir in Northumberland, England adjacent to the A68 road; just north of Byrness; and to the south of the border with Scotland.-History:...

 → Colt Crag Reservoir

Colt Crag Reservoir

Colt Crag Reservoir is a relatively shallow reservoir in Northumberland, England adjacent to the A68 road, and north of Corbridge. The A68 road at this point runs along the course of Dere Street, a Roman road.-History:...

 → Little Swinburne Reservoir

Little Swinburne Reservoir

Little Swinburne Reservoir is a small reservoir in Northumberland, England about to east of the A68 road, and about north of Corbridge. The A68 road at this point runs along the course of Dere Street, a Roman road.-History:...

 → Hallington Reservoirs

Hallington Reservoirs

Hallington Reservoirs are located near the small village of Colwell, Northumberland, England on the B6342 road off the A68 road, and north of Corbridge...

 → Whittle Dene.

Buildings

The reservoir keeper’s house at Whittle Dene was designed by John Dobson

John Dobson (architect)

John Dobson was a 19th-century English architect in the neoclassical tradition. He became the most noted architect in the North of England. Churches and houses by him dot the North East - Nunnykirk Hall, Meldon Park, Mitford Hall, Lilburn Tower, St John the Baptist Church in Otterburn,...

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Flora and fauna

There are a huge variety of habitats including conifer and mixed plantations, neutral grassland and marshy grassland. The whole complex is designated as a Local Wildlife Site due to its importance for wildlife. By the end of March, the first sand martins

Sand Martin

The Sand Martin is a migratory passerine bird in the swallow family. It has a wide range in summer, embracing practically the whole of Europe and the Mediterranean countries, part of northern Asia and also North America. It winters in eastern and southern Africa, South America and South Asia...

 can usually be seen over the reservoirs and summer visitors continue to increase throughout April and May when large numbers of swallow

Swallow

The swallows and martins are a group of passerine birds in the family Hirundinidae which are characterised by their adaptation to aerial feeding...

s and swift

Swift

The swifts are a family, Apodidae, of highly aerial birds. They are superficially similar to swallows, but are actually not closely related to passerine species at all; swifts are in the separate order Apodiformes, which they share with hummingbirds...

s gather to feed on the insects around the site. Breeding birds usually include great crested grebe

Great Crested Grebe

The Great Crested Grebe is a member of the grebe family of water birds.- Description :The Great Crested Grebe is long with a wingspan. It is an excellent swimmer and diver, and pursues its fish prey underwater. The adults are unmistakable in summer with head and neck decorations...

 and tufted duck

Tufted Duck

The Tufted Duck, Aythya fuligula, is a medium-sized diving duck with a population of close to one million birds.- Description :The adult male is all black except for white flanks and a blue-grey bill. It has an obvious head tuft that gives the species its name.The adult female is brown with paler...

. A floating raft, installed on the Great Northern Reservoir in 2008, is designed to attract nesting tern

Tern

Terns are seabirds in the family Sternidae, previously considered a subfamily of the gull family Laridae . They form a lineage with the gulls and skimmers which in turn is related to skuas and auks...

s.
The presence of both fish and freshwater mussels mean that the site is frequented by otter

Otter

The Otters are twelve species of semi-aquatic mammals which feed on fish and shellfish, and also other invertebrates, amphibians, birds and small mammals....

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