Sadberge, Tees Valley

Sadberge, Tees Valley, has won the People category for the North England region of the 2008 Calor Village of the Year® award.

Situated to the north east of Darlington, the Tees Valley village of Sadberge has a population of approximately 630.

Because of its position close to the A66, a lot of the people who have moved to the village in recent years commute to work in the nearby towns of Darlington or Teesside.

A lot of the remaining residents are older villagers, many of whom have lived in Sadberge for a considerable number of years.

Combined, these demographic details could perhaps lead to the creation of a somewhat divided village without a true sense of community.

However, the strength in Sadberge lies in the fact that residents have recognised their circumstances and chosen to adapt to them, working hard to draw the community together in the face of all these issues and achieving this with great success.

Sadberge residents are friendly and neighbourly and there is an informal village network of care, which is particularly important for the elderly residents. A great example of the village’s community spirit is the project to construct a new barbecue patio at the back of the village hall. 

The patio, dedicated to the memory of a much-loved village character, was constructed by volunteer workers, and the materials were paid for by donations from local businesses and individuals.

A pro-active Parish Council, which operates through excellent communication with villagers, is key to all that is achieved in Sadberge. In order to prepare for a recently compiled Parish Plan questionnaires were sent out to residents which were returned with an impressive 70% response rate.

Consultative open meetings were also held as part of the Parish Plan preparatory work where important issues were discussed with members of the community who chose to participate.

The first of four overall objectives in the Plan is to maintain the sense of community, highlighting what an essential part of village life in Sadberge this is and how the associated challenges have been embraced by one and all.