It is part of the ecclesiastical parish of Redmarshall which came under the auspices of the Bishop of Durham, and is situated north of the River Tees, about 5 miles to the west of Stockton-on-Tees, and until boundary re-organisation in 1974 was part of the County of Durham. It is 160 ft. above sea level, and was essentially a small agricultural village, the farmhouses and cottages built on either side of the main village street, probably an old drovers road, with a slow flowing stream running alongside the south of the settlement.