History

Clara Vale is a village on the south side of the river Tyne. The village came into being as a purpose built pit village in the late 1800s.

It was built by the Stella Coal Company to serve the workers and families of the Clara Vale Pit. The pit closed in the late 1960s with the village being given category D status but the village has survived and it is still a thriving and vibrant community.

The village hall is the former village school and is the last remaining public building in use in the village. On the site of the pit there is now a nature reserve, run by the Clara Vale conservation group who also manage a community orchard in the village.

Clara Vale is one of the best preserved pit villages in the North. The old school and Methodist church remain, as does the building which housed the old Cooperative store. The only modern housing is one small street built in the style of the village and one bungalow. All other housing is original. The village remains surrounded by countryside and farmland and has largely kept its rural feel and enjoys protection from development due to it being a designated conservation area.