Originally land owned by the Clan Hamilton, a hamlet called Newton appears on William Roy's military survey of Scotland (1750s),[3] and had earlier been labelled (as 'Neutoun') on Timothy Pont's map (1590s).

Most of the civic amenities and shops closed their doors and the premises were knocked down, leaving derelict 'gap sites' which are still present today; however, St Charles' Primary School remained in operation.

Around the same time the Newton Arms public house (originally dating from 1895) re-opened following a programme of refurbishment, providing a gathering point for the growing population which was otherwise lacking in the development.

The first stage of construction included 600 houses and, at a cost of £13.4m,[19] a new nondenominational primary school with a 3G football pitch and nursery class (opened August 2017)[20][21] roughly where the buildings of Newton Farm itself previously stood.

[28] With development having moved north towards the Clyde by 2019, some residents there complained of regular and strong unpleasant smells emanating from the Daldowie area on the opposite side of the river, which contains a sewage treatment plant, waste-to-fuel facility, landfill site and crematorium.

[30] The secluded area around the footbridge to Westburn was a congregating point for local youths for many years, with antisocial behaviour often resulting[31] – this continued after the surrounding land was dug up and fenced off for housebuilding, and after public gatherings were banned during the COVID-19 pandemic in Scotland.

[32] The adjacent hill, not designated for housing, was approved in 2021 for use by Taylor Wimpey to deposit quantities of soil, eventually to be landscaped with new tree planting, despite over 50 complaints from local residents over the disruption to existing wildlife and vegetation in the short term.

A nearby example is Broomhouse, Glasgow, also a large suburban 'Community Growth Area' on green belt land, based around a small mining community with a few relic buildings including a pub, on the site of a demolished country house, traversed by pylons (on the same line), bounded by a minor river and a railway with a station, with few local amenities but close to established suburbs which provide these.

[38][39] A permanent seven-classroom extension costing over £4 million was approved for immediate construction in May 2021[40] (at which time the school was reported as the third-most oversubscribed in Scotland, with an original pupil capacity of around 400 but a roll of over 600)[41] and was completed officially in November 2022.

[20] In addition to this, plans were presented to the local authority in August 2018 for the construction of a standalone nursery facility on the vacant land at Newton Brae (once occupied by St Charles Primary School) anticipated to be built over the following two years.

experienced problems with Broadband Internet access speeds, as the roadside cabinets which supplied the services became oversubscribed due to the number of new homes built in the previously rural location without any expansion of the relevant infrastructure.

Sport in Newton includes bookings of the football pitches by casual groups and local amateur/youth teams,[62][63] fitness classes held in the school halls on evenings and weekends[64] and a road running club established in 2016.

The main recreational features of note in the area are National Cycle Route 75 (Glasgow–Edinburgh) which runs through Westburn as a standalone tarmac cycle path, then switches onto the main roads and runs parallel with the railway line past Newton and towards Uddingston;[67] the Clyde Walkway (Glasgow-Lanark) runs alongside the River Clyde to the north of Newton and skirts new housing and woodland (access points at Clover Crescent, Buttercup Crescent and Honeysuckle Drive) before joining the footpath down to the Rotten Calder and across a footbridge leading on to Uddingston;[68] a basic grass football field and goals in Newton Village, with an 'outdoor gym' and enclosed play area for young children, and further play areas at Shepherds Way, Foxglove Grove, Honeysuckle Drive and Fallow Grove (the latter on the site of Redlawood Farm).

The areas of grassland and woods around Newton are home to various bird and animal species, including a herd of roe deer which are sighted on a regular basis in various locations by residents; these habitats are sometimes disrupted by the ongoing housebuilding work.

However, some of the AA battery buildings survived into the 21st century (albeit heavily vandalised in some cases)[70] and were incorporated – along with a former clay quarry nearby – into the landscape of Redlees Urban Park developed by the local council.