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Stanley is a busy, rural, County Durham market town situated on the A693 between Chester-le-Street and  Consett. The name Stanley means a 'stony woodland clearing' and when the current town was founded in 1297 this was probably an appropriate name.

The area is renowned for Roman remains and the origins of Stanley were discovered in 1730 by Sir Nicholas Tempest when a Roman Camp dating from 120-240 AD was unearthed behind the current Northern Bus Depot.

The Camp was linked to the North Sea at Arborea (South Shields) by a roman road which ran through Kibblesworth and Causway (Causey).

The town gained prominence in the 19th century when extensive coal and mineral mining all around the town made Stanley the logical centre for the trade and transport of coal and aggregates. Inns, Lodgings, Stables,  Entertainment, Recreation and Shops became the trade of Stanley folk and in this context, little has changed in the last 100 years.

Although the whole area is now very rural we are proud of our industrial past and have some unique reminders in the parish. Foremost of these is the world famous North of  England Open Air Museum at Beamish that depicts life in the early part of the century.

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