Middlesbrough is one of those places that on the border of two distinct areas of Britain: the North East and North Yorkshire.
Arguably it is part of both regions, yet fits comfortably into the identity of neither. Perhaps better suited to the North East, with its connotations of urban deprivation and industry, Middlesbrough has never been a driving force for the region, or one of its better known towns. We’re still smarting from the decision 11 years ago to change the name of our own Teesside Airport to Durham Tees Valley, the argument being that Durham is more familiar to most than Teesside. However, you only have to drive around the area to see that road signs still point to Teesside Airport.
But many consider Middlesbrough to be a part of North Yorkshire, as historically it was within North Riding. For a time, we were situated in the county of Cleveland, before that was abolished in 1996, leaving us a part of the Tees Valley. It is often argued that we still part of North Yorkshire, although most Yorkshire residents probably wouldn’t claim Middlesbrough as their own, even though some of the outlying residential areas are apparently keen to join the rural county on an official basis.
Whatever the technical answer is, I think we’re actually fortunate to be situated in between two such beautiful areas of the country, as it gives us the best of both worlds.
We have the rolling hills and craggy moorland of North Yorkshire on our doorstep, along with the North East’s dramatic coastline. We’re less than an hour’s drive from some great cities including York, Durham and Newcastle, which provide us with plenty of shopping, cultural, historical and social opportunities.
As our boundaries are unclear, we’re often lumped in with both regions, which can bring a lot of benefits, both for individuals and for the town itself. For example, as a writer, in the past I’ve been able to enter competitions dedicated to both North East and North Yorkshire residents.
Another benefit is that this regional uncertainty gives Middlesbrough its own distinct identity. We have our own accent, our own dialect and a passionate love for where we live. We’re proud of our roots and know that there are many special things about this area, whether it belongs to the North East or North Yorkshire.
hrishi says
So finally an article that tries to explain where Middlesbrough is actually located :).. I have been looking for this for a long time. You see, I was born in Middlesbrough- though I left the UK when I was 6 months old….
It was maddening to find the Wikipedia entry give the region as North-East and the ceremonial county as North Yorkshire! I understand that the regions no longer have any administrative significance, apart from the elections to the European Parliament. So do the residents of Middlesbrough elect the North-Yorkshire member or the North-East member? Are there ceremonial counties which belong to two regions?- because if the Wiki entry is to be believed, North Yorkshire has parts of the North-East and Yorkshire and Humber in it.
Amy Lord says
Hi Hrisi, the issue of where Middlesbrough is technically located is one that I think a lot of people struggle with – including me! As I understand it, everything up to the River Tees is North Yorkshire, so Middlesbrough is in North Yorkshire, although it isn’t under the authority of North Yorkshire County Council. However, residents in Nunthorpe, on the outer edge of Middlesbrough, have been campaigning to have the boundary redrawn so that they fall under the control of NYCC. Middlesbrough is covered by two MPs – Middlesbrough and Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland. I’m not sure how it works for the European Parliament. North Yorkshire has several MPs who don’t cover Middlesbrough. As far as I’m aware, North Yorkshire doesn’t cover any of Yorkshire and Humber, although they work together, along with East Riding, as part of the LEP. North Yorkshire has two tiers of local government, so there is NYCC at county level, along with seven district councils: Craven, Hambleton, Harrogate, Richmondshire, Ryedale, Scarborough and Selby. The outcome of the current devolution bids to government may have an affect on this, as there are various opposing bids covering Yorkshire that propose a change to the way the region is governed. Middlesbrough is part of the Tees Valley Combined Authority, along with Stockton, Darlington, Hartlepool and Redcar and Cleveland Councils, and have their own bid for devolution, which is again separate from the North East Combined Authority, covering the rest of the region. So Middlesbrough is a complicated town that doesn’t fit easily into the surrounding counties and has its own sense of identity.
hrishi says
That was one comprehensive answer. Thanks for that, Amy :).
I read quite a bit on the topic yesterday and I ended up with an article on Wikipedia that confirmed my suspicions:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counties_of_England#Institutions
It had a line that mentioned North Yorkshire and Lincolnshire being the only ceremonial counties to exist in two regions. I looked further into this and it turns out that Stockton-on-Tees (only the part south of the River Tees), Middlesbrough and Redcar and Cleveland are parts of North Yorkshire that exist in the North East Region. The article on the North East European Parliament constituency also mentions that it includes “parts of North Yorkshire”, without going into too much detail.
Amy Lord says
Thanks Hrishi, that sounds like an interesting post – will check it out!