Village Green Town Centre Sedgefield County Durham TS21 2AU

Parking is available (off-street and side streets) around the Village Green. You can also access this route via public transport. From Durham to Sedgefield take Arriva bus no. X1. From Darlington to Sedgefield take Arriva bus no. 21. 

[1] You are starting from the Village Green with the church behind you. Turn left along the Village Green until you reach Rectory Row to your left. Turn into it.

In one of the houses at the back of Rectory Row, lived the parson in 18th century. The story goes, that the parson died shortly before the tithes were to be paid to him. His wife feared that she would not get the money and therefore pickled him. He sat his body in the window, opened the curtains in the morning and showed him sitting there to conceal his death.

[2] Follow it until you see a public footpath sign to your right. Turn into the footpath and follow it. You will pass Sedgefield Primary School on your right and have Ceddesfield on your left. At the end of the footpath bear left and walk alongside the houses of Eden Drive.

[3] Take the first footpath to your right and follow it with the play grounds on your left.

[4] Take the next footpath on the left to walk along the play ground. Don’t turn left in front of the houses but keep walking and you will reach a road behind the houses.

[5] Turn left there and walk up the street. You will walk past a duck pond on your left and reach Wykes Close. Walk past the first street that turns into Wykes Close and at the second one, turn right to take the public footpath which leads up between the bungalows.

[6] Turn left at the top to walk alongside the Heated Wall.

[7] Turn right immediately after the Heated Wall with the bungalows to your left. Follow this path and at the end of it, turn right and immediately left again to reach Cross Street.

[8] Walk up Cross Street, passing a pottery to your left. At the end of the street, you will reach Front Street. Turn left there to walk back up to the Village Green and the starting point. On the way there, you will pass the church on your left as well as a nice pub. 

On Shrove Tuesday, a traditional ball game is held in Sedgefield. It has been held there since at least the thirteenth century. At exactly one o'clock, a leather ball is passed through the bull ring and the trades men and farmers begin to battle for the possession of the ball. Today, this ball game is held more casual and it is free for all. The trades men had their goal in Spring Lane and the farmers' goal was a pond in the north of the village. The game ends at 4 pm when the ball is passed through the bull ring again.