The idea of Durham University establishing a presence on Teesside was first floated in 1987 and planning began in earnest in 1988 for a "Birkbeck of the North" with around 1,000 students.

In April 1989 a formal announcement was made that Teesside Polytechnic and Durham University were working together "in planning a major development in Higher Education in Cleveland and its adjacent areas".

[1] Stresses in the partnership arose in December 1989, when Durham approved plans for a new Institute of Health Studies without discussions with the Polytechnic.

Nevertheless, plans went ahead and a site opposite Stockton-on-Tees on the south bank of the river, home to Head Wrightson engineering works until their closure in 1987, was chosen.

[1] The Joint University College on Teesside (JUCOT) was formally launched on 3 September 1991 by Michael Fallon, Schools Minister and MP for Darlington.

Later that year Durham's statutes were modified to allow it grant joint degrees, regulations for the degrees to be awarded by JUCOT were established, and JUCOT was formally incorporated as a Limited Company established under a joint venture agreement between Durham and Teesside.

[11] On 14 May 2009 the Infinity Bridge was opened, linking the Queen's Campus and the Teesdale Business Park to the North Shore development.

[13] In 2015, University College London used Queen's Campus as the first of five case studies into university and community-led urban regeneration, in parallel with the announcement of the development of their UCL East campus at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in east London.

[14] In November 2015 it was announced that the university would not be renewing its option on development of the site on the north bank of the Tees and would be holding a consultation on the future of the Queen's Campus.

[15] In February 2016 it was announced that the university's working group had recommended moving the colleges and academic activities currently at the Queen's Campus to Durham City from September 2017.

The ISC also continued to use the privately owned Rialto Court accommodation, which was previously used by the Queen's Campus colleges.

[24] A bus connects Queen's Campus to Durham City, with a one-way journey usually taking 45 minutes.