Ouseburn Valley

About Ouseburn Valley

The Ouseburn Valley follows the last stretch of the Ouseburn as it drops to meet the Tyne just east of the Quayside. It was one of the cradles of Tyneside industry, crowded in the 19th century with potteries, lead works, flint mills and glassworks, and the three great viaducts that stride across it, the road, rail and Metro bridges, are a legacy of that age. As the industry left, the valley became Newcastle's studio, music and maker district, but it is greener than its warehouses suggest, and a good riverside path and cycleway run up the burn from the Quayside, about two and a half miles of easy, mostly level walking.

At the heart of the valley is Ouseburn Farm, a free-to-enter city farm set on meadows directly beneath the viaducts, with sheep, goats, pigs and chickens and gardens open to wander. The valley links a cluster of things worth stopping for within a short walk of each other, among them Seven Stories and the Cluny music venue, and the Ouseburn Trust runs guided walks and tours of the Victoria Tunnel, the 19th-century wagonway tunnel that runs 2.5 kilometres under the city from here. Manors and Byker Metro stations are each about ten minutes away, and it is an easy quarter-hour walk back down to the Quayside.

Featured in These Guides

Blog posts and guides that feature Ouseburn Valley.

Moving to Newcastle City Centre: A Guide to Living in the City

What it is really like to live in Newcastle city centre and the quarters around it, from Grainger Town and the Quayside to the Ouseburn and Shieldfield. A practical look at transport, housing, amenities and the trade-offs of centre living.

Best Playgrounds in and around Newcastle City Centre

The city centre is better off for play than you might think, from a woodland playground behind St James' Park to a restored Victorian park with a skate ramp and a wooden climbing tower. Here are the best play areas within reach of the middle of Newcastle.

Best Walks in and around Newcastle City Centre

From the Quayside and the Ouseburn to the Town Moor and the medieval walls, the best walks are all within reach of the middle of Newcastle without a car.