Doxford Park (known locally as ''Doxy Park'') is a suburb of Sunderland,

Tyne and Wear Tyne and Wear () is a metropolitan county in North East England, situated around the mouths of the rivers Tyne and Wear. It was created in 1974, by the Local Government Act 1972, along with five metropolitan boroughs of Gateshead, Newc ...

, located to the south-west of the city centre. Once part of the historical township of

Silksworth Silksworth is a suburb of the City of Sunderland, Tyne and Wear. The area can be distinguished into two parts, old Silksworth, the original village and township which has existed since the early middle ages, and New Silksworth, the industrial ...

in the Middle Ages, Doxford Park consisted of agrarian land and a manor before being constructed into a modern housing estate in the 1960s. Surrounded by the A19, the suburb now houses one of the city's largest business districts, the

Doxford International Business Park Doxford International is a business park located at the A19 / A690 interchange on the outskirts of Sunderland, in the North East of England. Previously it was a greenfield site, it was designated as an Enterprise Zone in 1990 in response to ...

History

The area that now compromises Doxford Park and the surrounding suburbs was part of the historical township of

of which was a part of

Bishopwearmouth Bishopwearmouth is a former village and parish which now constitutes the west side of Sunderland City Centre, merging with the settlement as it expanded outwards in the 18th and 19th centuries. It is home to the Sunderland Minster church, which ...

. It was composed of farmland which ultimately belonged to the church, as did neighbouring Farringdon. Its modern name was derived from the Doxford Family who later acquired the land and the historic Doxford Hall. The Doxford family were pivotal in Sunderland's maritime and engineering history, founding Sunderland's shipyard

William Doxford & Sons William Doxford & Sons Ltd, often referred to simply as Doxford, was a British shipbuilding and marine engineering company. History William Doxford founded the company in 1840. From 1870 it was based in Pallion, Sunderland, on the River Wea ...

Regeneration

From the 21st century onwards, Doxford Park experienced massive revival with its signature "box" like housing demolished and large scale private development pursued. Renamed 'Beckwith Green' the development has been split into 6 phases with phases 1 to 3 of the project now complete. The plans for Phase 4 include 40 extra care apartments, 40 apartments and 14 bungalows. The aim is to create a village where residents can continue to live independently but with support always to hand. Planning permission for phase 5 of the regeneration program was submitted to Sunderland Council in Nov 2012 - however there has been no confirmation from Gentoo as to when construction on phase 5 will commence. At the centre of the suburb lies a

shopping centre A shopping center (American English) or shopping centre ( Commonwealth English), also called a shopping complex, shopping arcade, shopping plaza or galleria, is a group of shops built together, sometimes under one roof. The first known colle ...

built in the late 1970s and initially named the ''President Carter Shopping Centre'', after

U.S. President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 76th governor of Georgia from 1 ...

following an official visit to the region in 1977. Following redevelopment in mid-1990s the centre is now a large

Morrisons Wm Morrison Supermarkets, trading as Morrisons, is the fifth largest supermarket chain in the United Kingdom. As of 2021, the company had 497 supermarkets across England, Wales and Scotland, as well as one in Gibraltar. The company is headqu ...

supermarket. Doxford Park is home to one school Mill Hill Primary School and an adjoining nursery ill Hill Nursery The

Portland School Portland is a locality on the western side of Whangarei Harbour in Northland, New Zealand. Whangarei is about 10 km to the north. Tikorangi is a hill to the west with a summit 161 m above sea level. The major industry is Portland Cemen ...

for children with

special needs In clinical diagnostic and functional development, special needs (or additional needs) refers to individuals who require assistance for disabilities that may be medical, mental, or psychological. Guidelines for clinical diagnosis are given in b ...

was opened in the nearby Chapelgarth area in December 2001 by

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

Tony Blair Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of th ...

. For

secondary education Secondary education or post-primary education covers two phases on the International Standard Classification of Education scale. Level 2 or lower secondary education (less commonly junior secondary education) is considered the second and final pha ...

, most children from the area go to Farringdon Community Academy in the nearby estate of Farringdon.

References

External links

Venerable Bede School

Benedict Biscop CofE School
{{T&W places City of Sunderland suburbs Sunderland