Great Aycliffe
| Newton Aycliffe | |
|---|---|
 Coat of arms of Great Aycliffe |
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 Newton Aycliffe
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| Newton Aycliffe shown within County Durham | |
| Population | 26,633 (2011) |
| OS grid reference | NZ2724 |
| Civil parish |
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| Unitary authority | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | NEWTON AYCLIFFE |
| Postcode district | DL5 |
| Dialling code | 01325 |
| Police | Durham |
| Fire | County Durham and Darlington |
| Ambulance | North East |
| EU Parliament | North East England |
| UK Parliament | |
Newton Aycliffe is a town in County Durham, England. Founded in 1947 under the New Towns Act of 1946, the town sits about five miles north of Darlington. It is the oldest new town in the north of England and forms the civil parish of Great Aycliffe.
At the 2001 census, Great Aycliffe had a population of 26,385, although in 2007 Great Aycliffe Town Council reported this had risen to 29,000. It is the largest town within the Sedgefield constituency. Within a radius of 10 miles (16 km) are several towns and villages including Darlington, Bishop Auckland, Shildon and Heighington. To the south of the town is the village of Aycliffe. Newton comes from 'New Town'.
Aycliffe Village is near to the A1(M) junction with the A167 (former A1).
Until 2009, Great Aycliffe was in the borough of Sedgefield, based in Spennymoor. It was the largest town in the borough. Newton Aycliffe has since April 2009 been governed by the Great Aycliffe Town Council and the County Durham Unitary Authority.
Prior to the Newtown development, Aycliffe (originally 'Acley') was the site of a Saxon settlement. The name Acley came from the Saxon words: 'Ac', meaning oak, and 'ley', meaning 'a clearing'. Aycliffe was the location of a church synods in AD 782 and AD 789. Another old name was 'Yacley'. The town's motto is Latin for "Not the Least, but the Greatest we seek".
On the edge of the town is the Bishop Auckland to Darlington railway branch line which is part of the 1825 . George Stephenson's steam locomotive Locomotion No 1 was placed on the rails close to Newton Aycliffe near to where Heighington station is.
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