Plans have been lodged to erect a sauna on King Edward’s Bay in Tynemouth.

North Tyneside Council has received an application for a permanent timber sauna on the coastal slopes leading to King Edward’s Bay, submitted by local self-care company Steam and Salt, which is looking for a settled site.

According to the application, the cabin is being built off-site, by a specialist sauna designer.

The plans have also proved popular with locals, amassing 78 supportive comments on the local authority’s online planning portal.

The sauna, if approved, will sit in the Tynemouth Village Conservation Area. According to North Tyneside Council, such areas are regulated with special restrictions with developments required to have “the utmost regard for the character of the surrounding environment”.

In addition, the use of the prospective sauna for disabled, elderly, or pregnant customers would be individually risk-assessed by the operator.

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However, the Northumberland and Newcastle Society, a heritage and culture organisation, has recommended that the proposal be subjected to a three-year trial to monitor its use, given its location within the Conservation area.

Environmental monitoring agency Natural England has also been consulted and has found that the sauna, as proposed, “will not have a significant impact” on the local ecology.