Plans to demolish “unsustainable” council homes in South Shields have been given the green light.

South Tyneside Council’s planning department has approved an application for the demolition of blocks of flats and maisonettes in the town’s Horsley Hill ward.

The planning application, submitted by the local authority earlier this year, listed two sites earmarked for demolition, including 157-171 (odd) Cheviot Road and 161-183 (odd) Highfield Road.

South Tyneside Council, in a previous statement, stressed there were “no agreed plans in place to redevelop the [land] at present” but confirmed it was “suitable for new housing”.

The local authority also confirmed that work was underway to rehouse affected residents.

A council planning application said demolition covers “five blocks of residential mixed flats and maisonettes” which have been deemed “unsustainable in the longer term” and “no longer meet the needs of residents”.

The planning application added that demolition would “allow the site to be redeveloped with new residential accommodation to better meet the needs of current and future residents within the area”.

During a council consultation exercise on the plan, one public objection was received raising concerns about the “lack of detail on how the properties are considered unsustainable or how they no longer meet the needs of residents”.

The objector’s statement, included in a council report, added: “As I see it the demolition will remove much-needed housing stock to be replaced with an empty space with no immediate plans for further development”.

After considering the demolition application, South Tyneside Council’s planning department approved it on August 28, 2024.

A council decision report said the “proposed method of demolition and site restoration would be acceptable”.

The council decision report added: “In terms of future development of the site, the submitted forms state that the site will be redeveloped, but these details are not required to be submitted to support this application.

“This procedure does not allow for the consideration of the principle of demolition or the loss of the buildings, merely the methods of demolition and site restoration”.

Planning documents confirmed the buildings would be demolished using “sequential demolition techniques” including hand tools, power tools and a 360 demolition excavator machine, along with “dust, noise and vibration suppression methods”.

The planning application added the demolition works, subject to planning permission, could be completed by the end of the year.

A South Tyneside Council spokesperson, in a previous statement, said: “In 2022, cabinet members agreed that the five blocks of unsustainable maisonettes on Cheviot Road and Highfield Road in South Shields be demolished and work continues to rehouse the remaining residents.

 “Subject to the planning process, and once the rehousing process has been completed, the empty properties will be demolished and the site landscaped, fenced off and maintained for future redevelopment.

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 “While there are no agreed plans in place to redevelop the site at present, the site is suitable for new housing to meet the needs of current and future residents.

“Any plans submitted for the redevelopment would also be subject to the planning process.”

For more information on the plan or council decision, visit South Tyneside Council’s planning portal website and search reference: ST/0459/24/DEM