Sue Bright

I have worked in or on the edge of the valley since 1985 when I remember selling bags of abrasive paper and cloth to Tim Kendal from 36 Lime Street.  I moved to ERB Services/Newcastle Autocentre in 1996 to teach my mother how to do accounts in Sage and have worked in their accounts department since then – becoming a shareholder last year. 

In 2005, as vice-chair of the Ouseburn Business Forum I was invited to coordinate Ouseburn Festival during the Tall Ships Race and have continued to be involved in the festival, helping to shaping it into a registered charity in 2008.

I was vice-chair of Ouseburn Management Board until its demise in 2011 when some of the members formed Ouseburn Futures in order to continue the valuable and never-ending work of regenerating this valley that means so much to all of us, particularly those that get to work and play here most days – and now the growing number of people that get to live here too.

My roots are deep within the Ouseburn Valley – dating back to the 1850s when my paternal great, great grandfather lived in Ouseburn as a Chelsea Out-Pensioner and his daughter was one of the first to marry at St Dominic’s Priory.  My maternal grandfather lived just up the road in Heaton Park Road in the 1920s where my Mother was born in the flat above the shop on Cardigan Terrace. 

Passionate about heritage, I am a dedicated genealogist and local history writer with a degree in Information and Library Management and a teaching qualification in Further Education.  Author of ‘Bridging the Ouseburn’ and ’30 years of Regeneration’, I am currently working on a history of The Biscuit Factory.