All three villages are located to the west of Newcastle-under-Lyme with good road links to Shropshire via the A51 and A53 main trunk roads. A regular bus service also runs between Newcastle-under-Lyme and Market Drayton in neighbouring Shropshire.

These small residential villages have good neighbourhood facilities including a post office, library, shops and schools. Local police also cover the rural villages of Ashley, Knighton, Muckleston, Maer and Aston.

Madeley has its origins in the local mining industry. In more recent years it has grown considerably. There is now a large estate being built, which offers a wide range of housing for residents. Keele is to the west and is home to the well-respected, and internationally renowned, Keele University. Established in 1949, Keele was the first new UK University of the twentieth century. It is the UK's largest campus university and occupies a 617 acre estate, with Grade II registration by English Heritage, the central feature of which is 19th century Keele Hall.