# Wallsend
**Wallsend** is a town in the borough of [North Tyneside](https://www.edgepedia.org/north-tyneside), Tyne and Wear, England, on the north bank of the River Tyne. It takes its name from the site of [Segedunum](https://www.edgepedia.org/segedunum), the Roman fort where [Hadrian's Wall](https://www.edgepedia.org/hadrians-wall) reached the Tyne, and it later became known for coal mining and shipbuilding[1](https://www.northeastmuseums.org.uk/segedunum/learning/segedunum-the-fort-site).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Location | North bank of the River Tyne, in the borough of North Tyneside, Tyne and Wear[1](https://www.northeastmuseums.org.uk/segedunum/learning/segedunum-the-fort-site) |
| Name origin | From the town's position at the eastern end of Hadrian's Wall, at the Roman fort of Segedunum[1](https://www.northeastmuseums.org.uk/segedunum/learning/segedunum-the-fort-site) |
| Segedunum fort | Built around AD 124, about five years after main Wall construction began; occupied for around 300 years[1](https://www.northeastmuseums.org.uk/segedunum/learning/segedunum-the-fort-site) |
| Garrison, about AD 200 | A cohort of 480 infantry and 120 cavalry soldiers[1](https://www.northeastmuseums.org.uk/segedunum/learning/segedunum-the-fort-site) |
| Heritage status | Scheduled Ancient Monument (1982); Hadrian's Wall World Heritage Site (1987); part of the Frontiers of the Roman Empire World Heritage Site (2005)[1](https://www.northeastmuseums.org.uk/segedunum/learning/segedunum-the-fort-site) |
| Industrial fame | A world leader in coal mining and shipbuilding[1](https://www.northeastmuseums.org.uk/segedunum/learning/segedunum-the-fort-site) |
| Regeneration funding | More than £6 million from the Department for Transport's City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement for town center improvements[2](https://haveyoursay.northtyneside.gov.uk/wallsend-improvements) |
## Roman Wallsend: Segedunum
Segedunum, the Roman fort at Wallsend, marks the eastern end of Hadrian's Wall, which ran 73 miles (80 Roman miles) from the River Tyne to Bowness-on-Solway and formed the north-west frontier of the Roman Empire for nearly 300 years[1](https://www.northeastmuseums.org.uk/segedunum/learning/segedunum-the-fort-site) • [3](https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/hadrians-wall/hadrians-wall-history-and-stories/history/). [The Wall](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-wall) was begun on the orders of the emperor Hadrian after his visit to Britain in AD 122[3](https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/hadrians-wall/hadrians-wall-history-and-stories/history/). The fort at Wallsend was built around AD 124, as part of an extension of the Wall made some five years after the main construction project had begun[1](https://www.northeastmuseums.org.uk/segedunum/learning/segedunum-the-fort-site).
The fort stands on a plateau overlooking the north bank of the Tyne at a point where the river turns to run to the coast at [South Shields](https://www.edgepedia.org/south-shields), a site chosen to command views down the river towards South Shields and upriver towards Newcastle[1](https://www.northeastmuseums.org.uk/segedunum/learning/segedunum-the-fort-site). Before Roman construction began, the site was under cultivation; freshly dug furrows were filled in by the Romans to form a construction platform[1](https://www.northeastmuseums.org.uk/segedunum/learning/segedunum-the-fort-site). The fort was occupied for around 300 years, and by about AD 200 it was garrisoned by a cohort of 480 infantry and 120 cavalry soldiers[1](https://www.northeastmuseums.org.uk/segedunum/learning/segedunum-the-fort-site).
**Archaeological importance.** Segedunum is the sole site anywhere in the [Western Roman Empire](https://www.edgepedia.org/western-roman-empire) where visitors can view a fort's entire ground plan, and it has been called the most thoroughly excavated fort along Hadrian's Wall[1](https://www.northeastmuseums.org.uk/segedunum/learning/segedunum-the-fort-site) • [4](https://segedunumromanfort.org.uk/files/78515-download-our-guide-map-here.pdf). At the south-east corner of the fort are the remains of the "Branch Wall", the last portion of Hadrian's Wall, which ran down into the River Tyne[5](https://www.northeastmuseums.org.uk/files/14620-download-our-guide-to-walking-hadrians-wall-on-tyneside.pdf). The fort became a scheduled Ancient Monument in 1982, the Wall was made a [World Heritage Site](https://www.edgepedia.org/world-heritage-site) in 1987, and in 2005 the site became part of the Frontiers of the Roman Empire UNESCO World Heritage Site[1](https://www.northeastmuseums.org.uk/segedunum/learning/segedunum-the-fort-site). The fort and museum are managed by North East Museums on behalf of North Tyneside Council[1](https://www.northeastmuseums.org.uk/segedunum/learning/segedunum-the-fort-site).
## Industry
Alongside its Roman past, Wallsend became famous as a world leader in both coal mining and shipbuilding[1](https://www.northeastmuseums.org.uk/segedunum/learning/segedunum-the-fort-site). The Wallsend Colliery B pit is among the sites covered in the Segedunum site's account of the area's history from pre-Roman times to the present[4](https://segedunumromanfort.org.uk/files/78515-download-our-guide-map-here.pdf).
## Town center regeneration
**The Ambition for Wallsend.** North Tyneside Council's regeneration work centers on a town center masterplan of 14 projects, largely tied to a place or building, with projects covering Business Support, Employment Support, and Events & [Animation](https://www.edgepedia.org/animation) applying across the masterplan area[6](https://legacy.northtyneside.gov.uk/sites/default/files/web-page-related-files/1a%20Report-Wallsend%20Town%20Centre%20Masterplan%20%28Ambition%20for%20Wallsend%29.pdf). Responses from residents, businesses, and stakeholders, gathered through a digital and face-to-face engagement exercise between 19 January and 3 March 2023, were largely positive, except for the proposed Housing Streetscape Improvements, where residents of streets south of High Street West raised concerns including the loss of on-street parking and the possibility that seating would attract anti-social behavior[6](https://legacy.northtyneside.gov.uk/sites/default/files/web-page-related-files/1a%20Report-Wallsend%20Town%20Centre%20Masterplan%20%28Ambition%20for%20Wallsend%29.pdf).
The town center's difficulties were quantified in a 2010 strategic framework report, which recorded a high leakage of expenditure of £154.5 million per year from the town center to other areas, a significant decline in the retail environment, and a linear form considered unsustainable for modern shopping, along with a considerable number of vacant shops and premises[7](https://my.northtyneside.gov.uk/sites/default/files/web-page-related-files/Final%20report%20part%202.pdf).
**Recent investment.** As part of a larger grant given to the North East Mayoral Strategic Authority covering the seven local authorities of the [North East](https://www.edgepedia.org/north-east), Wallsend's improvements fall under more than £6 million that the [Department for Transport](https://www.edgepedia.org/department-for-transport)'s City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement program has allocated to North Tyneside; this money is restricted to schemes that upgrade public spaces and make walking, wheeling, or cycling easier, safer, and more appealing[2](https://haveyoursay.northtyneside.gov.uk/wallsend-improvements). Proposals open for consultation until Sunday 8 November 2026 include a new Forum Square giving the Market Woman statue a more prominent place, a segregated West Street cycleway, and new High Street crossings[2](https://haveyoursay.northtyneside.gov.uk/wallsend-improvements) • [8](https://www.whitleybaynews.co.uk/wallsend-town-centre-improvements-consultation/). Under this program, Segedunum Roman Fort and Museum is also slated for redevelopment, adding to the over £1.7 million that has already gone toward a new roof, a ventilation system, and a lift.[2](https://haveyoursay.northtyneside.gov.uk/wallsend-improvements)
**Recognition.** Wallsend was shortlisted in the High Street Transformation category of Visa and the British Retail Consortium's Let's Celebrate Towns competition 2025, following the council's establishment of a High Street Transformation board for Wallsend in 2023, which brought together residents, voluntary organizations, businesses, council officers, and councillors[9](https://northtyneside.gov.uk/news/34924/wallsend-high-street-transformation-recognised-prestigious-let-s-celebrate-towns).
## References
1. [Segedunum – the Fort site, North East Museums](https://www.northeastmuseums.org.uk/segedunum/learning/segedunum-the-fort-site)
2. [Wallsend Town Centre Improvements, Our North Tyneside Voice](https://haveyoursay.northtyneside.gov.uk/wallsend-improvements)
3. [History of Hadrian's Wall, English Heritage](https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/hadrians-wall/hadrians-wall-history-and-stories/history/)
4. [A UNESCO World Heritage Site, Segedunum Roman Fort guide and map](https://segedunumromanfort.org.uk/files/78515-download-our-guide-map-here.pdf)
5. [Wallsend Roman Fort (Segedunum), North East Museums walking guide](https://www.northeastmuseums.org.uk/files/14620-download-our-guide-to-walking-hadrians-wall-on-tyneside.pdf)
6. [An Ambition for Wallsend, North Tyneside Council report, 19 July 2023](https://legacy.northtyneside.gov.uk/sites/default/files/web-page-related-files/1a%20Report-Wallsend%20Town%20Centre%20Masterplan%20%28Ambition%20for%20Wallsend%29.pdf)
7. [River Tyne North Bank SDFP and Masterplan Final Report, part 2, North Tyneside Council/One North East, March 2010](https://my.northtyneside.gov.uk/sites/default/files/web-page-related-files/Final%20report%20part%202.pdf)
8. [Wallsend Town Centre: £6m Plans Open for Views to 8 Nov, Whitley Bay News, 24 September 2026](https://www.whitleybaynews.co.uk/wallsend-town-centre-improvements-consultation/)
9. [Wallsend High Street transformation recognised in Let's Celebrate Towns competition, North Tyneside Council](https://northtyneside.gov.uk/news/34924/wallsend-high-street-transformation-recognised-prestigious-let-s-celebrate-towns)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Places and geography › Settlements and neighborhoods › Cities and towns › Cities, towns, and villages of Western, Northern, and Southern Europe › Cities and towns of England › Cities and towns of Northern England*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license