North West Durham was a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament.

The seat was abolished for the 2024 general election and replaced by parts of four new constituencies.

Constituency profile

The constituency was in the northwest of County Durham, in the North East England region. It consisted of the western part of the former Derwentside district (including Consett and Lanchester) and the northern part of the former Wear Valley district (including Weardale, Crook, and Willington).

The majority of the electorate lived in former mining or steel towns, where Labour traditionally have polled higher than other parties, with the remainder being in rural farms and villages throughout valleys cleft from the eastern, rocky part of the Pennines.

History

1885–1918

The constituency was first created for the 1885 general election by the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 as one of eight new single-member divisions of the county of Durham, replacing the two 2-member seats of North Durham and South Durham. It was centred on two main communities, Consett and Lanchester.

It was abolished in 1918 with the creation of Consett as a separate constituency. Lanchester was transferred to an enlarged Barnard Castle seat and Tanfield was added to the new constituency of Blaydon.

1950–2024

On its recreation under the Representation of the People Act 1948, North-West Durham absorbed the abolished Spennymoor seat, with the exception of the town of Spennymoor itself (which was added in 1974). It also regained Lanchester, together with Weardale, from the now abolished Barnard Castle.

As a result of the periodic review of parliamentary constituencies following the re-organisation of local government under the Local Government Act 1972, the seat underwent a major redistribution for the 1983 general election: the town of Consett was regained from the abolished constituency thereof, and Brandon and Spennymoor were transferred to City of Durham and Sedgefield respectively. The boundaries were now similar to the first version of the constituency.

Boundaries

1885–1918

  • The Sessional Division of Lanchester and Consett; and
  • the Parishes of Edmondbyers and Hunstanworth

See map on Vision of Britain website. (NB Boundary Commission proposed name was "Lanchester")

1950–1974

  • The Urban Districts of Brandon and Byshottles, Crook and Willington, and Tow Law; and
  • the Rural Districts of Lanchester and Weardale.

1974–1983

  • The Urban Districts of Brandon and Byshottles, Crook and Willington, Spennymoor, and Tow Law;
  • the Rural Districts of Lanchester and Weardale; and
  • the parish of Brancepeth in the Rural District of Durham.

Spennymoor transferred from Durham with the parish of Brancepeth.

1983–1997

  • The District of Derwentside wards of Benfieldside, Blackhill, Burnhope, Castleside, Consett North, Consett South, Cornsay, Crookhall, Delves Lane, Ebchester and Medomsley, Esh, Lanchester, and Leadgate; and
  • the District of Wear Valley wards of Crook North, Crook South, Howden, Hunwick, St John's Chapel, Stanhope, Stanley, Tow Law, Wheatbottom and Helmington Row, Willington East, Willington West, and Wolsingham.

Gained area comprising former urban district of Consett (incorporating Benfieldside, Consett and Leadgate). Brandon and Byshottles, and Brancepeth transferred to City of Durham, and Spennymoor to Sedgefield.

1997–2010

  • The District of Derwentside wards of Benfieldside, Blackhill, Burnhope, Burnopfield, Castleside, Consett North, Consett South, Cornsay, Crookhall, Delves Lane, Dipton, Ebchester and Medomsley, Esh, Lanchester, and Leadgate; and
  • the District of Wear Valley wards of Crook North, Crook South, Howden, Hunwick, St John's Chapel, Stanhope, Stanley, Tow Law, Wheatbottom and Helmington Row, Willington East, Willington West, and Wolsingham.

The Derwentside District wards of Burnopfield and Dipton transferred from North Durham.

2010–2024

  • The District of Derwentside wards of Benfieldside, Blackhill, Burnhope, Burnopfield, Castleside, Consett East, Consett North, Consett South, Cornsay, Delves Lane, Dipton, Ebchester and Medomsley, Esh, Lanchester, and Leadgate; and
  • the District of Wear Valley wards of Crook North, Crook South, Howden, Hunwick, St John's Chapel, Stanhope, Tow Law and Stanley, Wheatbottom and Helmington Row, Willington Central, Willington West End, Wolsingham, and Witton-le-Wear.

The 1997 boundaries were retained despite the official description of the constituency changing slightly in terms of the names of the local authority wards.

In the 2009 structural changes to local government in England, the local authority districts in Durham were abolished and replaced with a single unitary authority; however, this did not affect the boundaries of the constituency.

Abolition

Further to the completion of the 2023 review of Westminster constituencies, the seat was abolished for the 2024 general election, with its contents distributed four ways:!!Party

|-

|style="color:inherit;background-color: " |

|| 1885 || Llewellyn Atherley-Jones || Liberal

|-

|style="color:inherit;background-color: " |

|| 1914 || Aneurin Williams || Liberal

|-

|

| 1918

|colspan="2" | Constituency abolished

|}

MPs 1950–2024

{| class="wikitable"

|-

!colspan="2"|Election!!Member

|votes = 2,891

|percentage = 36.1

|change = New

Election results 1950–2019

center|thumb|upright=2.5

Elections in the 1950s

Elections in the 1960s

Elections in the 1970s

Elections in the 1980s

Elections in the 1990s

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Elections in the 2000s

Elections in the 2010s

See also

  • List of parliamentary constituencies in County Durham
  • History of parliamentary constituencies and boundaries in Durham

Notes

References

  • North West Durham UK Parliament constituency (boundaries April 1997 – April 2010) at MapIt UK
  • North West Durham UK Parliament constituency (boundaries April 2010 – May 2024) at MapIt UK