Apartment plans approved for former charity offices in Ashbrooke area of Sunderland

Sunderland City Council’s planning department has approved an application to change the use of 6 – 7 The Cloisters, which sits off Mowbray Road in the Ashbrooke area.

It is understood that the properties were previously used as offices for charitable organisation ESPA, Education Services for People with Autism.

New proposals for the site, from applicant Tan Property Holdings Limited, aimed to convert the two properties into nine self-contained apartments.

A total of three one-bed flats, five two-bed flats and one three-bed flat were proposed, as well as external refurbishment works for some flats.

This included a new external door opening to private courtyards, an additional window opening, a new dedicated main entrance to one of the buildings and new skylights at roof level.

Proposals also included the removal of a large Sycamore tree at the front of the property and the provision of two replacement trees to “mitigate the loss”.

Elsewhere the boundary wall to the front of the property is expected to be rebuilt, along with new landscaping providing two private courtyard areas serving two of the flats and a wider outdoor communal area.

During council consultation on the plans, one objection was received from a neighbour raising concerns about “insufficient parking” and the number of flats already present in the area.

After considering the planning application and assessing it against planning policies, Sunderland City Council’s planning department approved it on August 10, 2023.

Council planners, in a decision report, said the proposal was a “windfall site in planning terms” and that “the development would make a minor contribution to housing supply in the city.”

It was noted that as the site is located near the city centre the “loss of the office premises would not be considered unacceptable”.

In addition, council planners said the proposal “would not compromise residential or visual amenity, the wider [Ashbrooke] conservation area, highway safety, ecology, trees or flooding”.

Developers are expected to enter into a Section 106 legal agreement to help reduce impacts on European designated nature sites.

The legal agreement, which is a typical part of the planning process, would secure funds to help the council “mitigate recreational impacts generated by the proposed development”.

The council decision report adds: “The council’s highway team set out that the proposed site is edge of city centre in an area where there is high accessibility to the site.

“It is considered that the site benefits from a good range of public transport links and given this the parking provided for the site is acceptable.”

A total of six parking bays are planned at the rear of the building along with provision for secure bicycle and refuse and recycling storage areas.

Under planning conditions the residential development must be brought forward within three years.

For more information on the planning application and council decision, visit Sunderland City Council’s planning portal website and search reference: 22/02594/FUL