Teesside Steelworks Teesside Steelworks The Teesside Steelworks was a large expanse of steelworks that formed a continuous stretch along the south bank of the River Tees from Middlesbrough to Redcar. At its height there were 91 blast furnaces within a 10 mile radius of the area. By the late 1970s, there was only one left on Teesside. Opened in 1979 and located near the mouth of the River Tees close to the river's outfall into the North Sea, the Redcar blast furnace on Teesside was the second largest in Europe. The majority of the steelworks, including the Redcar blast furnace, Redcar and
History of Durham University Russell Group. The idea of Durham University establishing a presence on Teesside was first floated in 1987 and planning began in earnest in 1988 for a "Birkbeck of the North" with around 1,000 students. Teesside was, at that time, the largest conurbation in Europe without a university, and the Teesside Development Corporation had recently been established to try to regenerate the area. In April 1989 a formal announcement was made that Teesside Polytechnic and Durham University were working together "in planning a major development in Higher Education in Cleveland and its adjacent areas". Stresses in the partnership arise in December