From Hadrian's Wall to the industrial revolution, from urban desolation to creative regeneration, from wonderful bridges to underground wonders, Ouseburn has a fascinating heritage that gives the valley a unique and treasured character. At the Ouseburn Trust, we are equally dedicated to looking towards Ouseburn's future as we are to honouring its past. 

We aim to

1. Support the preservation of Ouseburn's physical, cultural and societal history 

2. Create opportunities for local communities to engage with the area's heritage

3. Act as a voice for the Valley's heritage, ensuring regeneration and development is sensitive and inclusive of local history

4. Make Ouseburn's heritage accessible to all

Current heritage projects

Guided walks 

To celebrate and share Ouseburn Valley's long and rich heritage, we operate a programme of walks around Ouseburn. We host both regular activities and special, one-off events. Our programme is designed, managed, and delivered by our dedicated heritage volunteers, with the support of our Heritage Officer. 

Become a volunteer walking tour guide

Heritage talks 

We launched a programme of winter heritage talks in the autumn of 2018. It's a project we're keenly exploring further, in particular, after seeing how much audiences engaged with the content and speakers. If you'd like to present a topic relating to Ouseburn as part of a future talk, get in touch. 

Ouseburn heritage research

Our team of dedicated heritage research volunteers work hard to gather and collate research about Ouseburn and the people who lived here. We strive to make their findings accessible to anyone who may be interested or can use them a learning tool. 

Access our public research log | View our Ouseburn on Film archive |  Review Ouseburn Heritage issues (out of production since 2004) 

Become a volunteer heritage researcher

Photo archives 

We maintain an archive of photographs of Byker and Ouseburn. We've also been given the care of two large photographic archives:

  • Richard Blosse collection - Changing Byker in the 1980s
  • Davey Pearson collection - Part of a complete collection of works from 1970 - 2000, including Ouseburn and Tyneside photos as well as London, Paris, Ireland, political demonstrations and art themes. You can see a selection of the photos on our Flickr page and read an introduction to his life and work here Remembering Davey Pearson.

The archive is stored physically in our offices, and electronically using industry-standard MODES software. It is being catalogued and updated by a team of dedicated volunteers, who are available to conduct searches on behalf of researchers and the general public.

We do not currently have any photo archivist volunteering positions. 

Oral archives 

We have a collection of over 50 interviews with local residents, former residents and regeneration participants. These have been transcribed by volunteers and we are making short themed clips available through our guided walks and heritage projects.

Ouseburn Heritage Hub 

We are exploring the opportunity to develop a heritage and culture hub with open-air community space at 26 Lime Street, including the slipway and Motor Boat Club. Our aim is to create a sustainable asset for the Valley. The space will not only act as a tool for visitors but also be a key asset for local residents and businesses. 

Keep your eye on our blog, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to hear announcements. 

The Ouseburn Heritage Group

The Heritage Group is a collective of Trustees, volunteers and heritage enthusiasts who monitor and drive forward our heritage objectives and projects. The group holds a business meeting every quarter with open themed meetings in the two months in between to explore heritage themes across the valley.  

The Heritage Group allows you to link together with a cross section of other volunteers from across the Trust to pool the skills and expertise of the Group on a series of larger projects. I offered my services to the group as I can use the skillset that I've gained whilst a member of the Trust team as well as utilising my expertise gained in industry. You can invest as much or as little time as you want. There are plenty of fascinating projects to research the past at the Ouseburn Trust, and this could be your ideal role.

Alistair Collin, Ouseburn Trust volunteer and Heritage Group member

Learn more about the Ouseburn Heritage Group