Graveyard damaged and Culture House site looted - full horrors of Sunderland disorder revealed at meeting

At an extraordinary meeting of Sunderland City Council this week, the events of August 2-3 were discussed, a night which saw demonstrators clash with police, a mosque targeted, and local businesses damaged.

Despite council staff, local residents, politicians and faith leaders uniting to clean up the city and promote peace in the following days, councillors this week were told some city residents were still fearful of being targeted.

As a result of the initial violence and reports of potential further local unrest, which never transpired, city businesses closed early and events were cancelled or postponed, including several shows at the Empire Theatre.

A growing number of people involved in the disorder in Sunderland have been appearing before the courts in recent weeks, along with individuals involved in similar violent clashes elsewhere in England.

Sunderland City Council’s Labour Group called an extraordinary meeting to discuss the potential causes of Sunderland’s riots, and to look at what could be done to prevent them happening again.

Councillors said the conditions for the violence were years in the making and the result of multiple factors, from social media misinformation, national newspaper headlines and the “careless language used by people in power”, to social deprivation, falling living standards and cuts to public services and youth provision over the last decade.

Those in attendance at Wednesday’s (August 14) extraordinary council meeting agreed to a number of actions, including looking at the lessons learned from the response to the disorder and helping the city to “come back stronger”.

Other pledges included supporting the council’s leadership to lobby the Government for more resources for schemes around community cohesion and tackling extremism, as well as “collaborative working” to create “an impactful cohesion strategy” and improving messaging around Sunderland’s City of Sanctuary status and what the term means.

More than 20 councillors gave speeches during the debate at City Hall, with comments ranging from the number of young people involved in the disorder, to equality and diversity and the importance of education and anti-racist unity.

It was said that the events of August 2, 2024, were propagated by those outside Sunderland and that young people were more susceptible to being radicalised by far-right groups.

‘Seeing the city burn will forever haunt me’

Councillor Phil Tye, chair of Sunderland’s Labour Group, shared his experience of being caught up in the riots while volunteering in the city centre on August 2 and said he and others were moved to City Hall for safety reasons.

The Labour councillor described watching “violence and intimidation” directed at police and innocent members of the public, and said he saw cars being stopped by demonstrators, inspected and targeted if occupants “were not white”.

Cllr Tye, who is also chair of the Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Authority, thanked brave fire crews for responding to deliberate fires the same night, including at the Citizens Advice Bureau and an overturned car.

“The memories of that night and seeing the city burn will live with me for the rest of my life,” he added.

Graveyard damaged and Culture House compound looted

Councillors were told about damage to other city sites on August 2 including people reportedly breaking into the Culture House building site compound and stealing materials to “use as ammunition against the police”, as well as graveyards at Sunderland Minster being damaged.

The events of August 3, described as a “copycat attack” involving young people, also saw several city businesses vandalised, including Hays Travel.

During the extraordinary council meeting this week, some councillors said there were links between political discourse on Wearside and community cohesion.

Reference was made to a previous bid by Sunderland’s Conservatives to hold a referendum on the council’s ‘City of Sanctuary’ status, an issue which sparked a row at a council budget meeting earlier this year.

When this week’s extraordinary council meeting drew to a close after three hours, councillors were united in backing the motion with a commitment from all political parties towards its pledges.

‘Not patriots’

Councillor Michael Mordey, leader of Sunderland City Council, told the meeting he “wasn’t in the country” when the disorder happened and praised deputy council leader councillor Kelly Chequer for her “outstanding leadership” in his absence.

The Labour council leader praised the community response from Sunderland residents, including clean-up efforts on August 3, and the “constructive” cross-party working on the council motion with opposition Liberal Democrats.

The council leader also slammed those involved in the city centre disorder, describing the events as an “organised riot incited by thugs whose sole purpose was to spread racial hatred and cause criminal damage”.

Cllr Mordey continued: “They are not patriots, or people who love their country and their city, but misinformed, misguided cowards who one by one, as diligent police investigations continue, are being met with the full force of the law”.

The council leader paid tribute to all those involved in the response from residents, communities and businesses, council staff, the Sunderland BID team, local and regional politicians, Northumbria Police and other emergency services and NHS staff.

In a message to residents and communities targeted and most affected by the events of August 2-3, Cllr Mordey apologised for the fear caused by a “tiny minority of absolute thugs and hooligans”.

“It’s an outrage and we will not tolerate it in our city,” he told the meeting.

“I am extremely grateful for your willingness to work with the council and partners on a renewed cohesion strategy and on making diversity and inclusion a fundamental pillar of our society”.

Cllr Mordey added the city council would continue to hold discussions with government ministers and advisers on the support needed to continue making Sunderland a “fantastic, diverse city to live, work, learn and play in and somewhere that all residents and communities are proud to belong to.”

Councillor Kelly Chequer, launching the original motion, credited the cross-party support and contributions to the motion from the council’s opposition Liberal Democrat Group.

The deputy leader, who is also cabinet member for health wellbeing and safer communities, added it was important for the council to listen to the concerns of all communities and that there was no justification for resorting to violence.

Cllr Chequer said the “criminal violence and unrest” had been “outweighed by good work and community spirit” and that Sunderland would “come back from these events better, stronger and closer together.”

She continued: “The vast majority of residents are very proud of our city and are deeply shocked at what has happened.

“We’ve seen from the resident clean-ups, the fantastic prayer walk, messages of support, and dozens of other community-spirited actions how many people from all walks of life and faiths continue to show how we have a warm and welcoming city.

“We are united with community and faith leaders, along with our partners across the city, the North East Mayor and Northumbria police and crime commissioner, in our message that Sunderland is a city that stands together and that hate, crime and violence have no place here”.

Councillor Paul Edgeworth, leader of the Wearside Liberal Democrats, welcomed cross-party working and said it was important that the motion referenced the “racist” and “Islamophobic” elements of the events of August 2-3.

Cllr Edgeworth praised the community response to the disorder and noted councillors must support efforts to “build a city for the next generation where diversity and unity is celebrated”, adding that “the violent minority do not represent the people and the spirit of Sunderland”.

Cllr Edgeworth added: “As a Liberal, I absolutely stand up for the right for peaceful protest and the right to free speech.

“We need to be clear that this doesn’t extend to hate and intimidation, or to violence or thuggery on our streets fuelled by a minority of people who were never intent on lawful or legitimate protest”.

Lib Dem councillor Steve Donkin stressed the importance of the voluntary sector, and urged city leaders to “listen to the people from the BAME (Black, Asian and minority ethnic) community and voluntary sector, [to] take your lead from them and let them drive”.

Councillor Antony Mullen, leader of the Sunderland Conservatives, said there were two types of people involved in the disorder on Wearside, the “ideologically fascist” who “co-ordinated these riots across the country and who travelled to be here” and those who “foolishly followed the mob”.

The Conservative councillor said both these groups had “set back entirely legitimate debates on immigration and asylum that our country and voters are entitled to have” and that change had to happen through democratic and diplomatic processes, “not through violence and thuggery”.

Cllr Mullen told the meeting it was the job of national and local government to “provide a route back into civic society” for those who “followed the mob” and that there should be efforts to “distinguish between genuine concern and far-right activity” and to “give voice to the disenfranchised through democracy”.

Cllr Mullen continued: “Our challenge is to speak for these people [with different views] more convincingly than those who instigated these riots, and if we don’t, no lessons will have been learned”.

All members of Sunderland City Council’s Labour cabinet gave speeches condemning the violence and thanking council staff, partners and communities for helping Sunderland to recover.

Councillor Lindsey Leonard, cabinet member for environment, transport and net zero, said council teams worked through the night to clean up the city centre following Friday evening’s events and thanked residents, business owners and councillors for their support on Saturday morning.

Cllr Leonard said: “Once again, Sunderland proved that no matter what is landed on our city, we always pick ourselves up, dust ourselves down, and get on with it, and we’re all the stronger and more united for it”.

Councillor Kevin Johnston, cabinet member for housing regeneration and business, said the council was working with Sunderland BID to reassure city centre businesses, understand their concerns and the impacts of the violence on them, and offer them support.

He also emphasised that Sunderland city centre was “very much open for, and ready to do business, as a vibrant, modern, exciting and welcoming place where businesses want to locate and invest”.

Councillor Michael Butler, cabinet member for children’s services, child poverty and skills, said it was a “real real shame” to see children involved in the disorder and being “groomed into doing such acts”.

Cllr Butler said the council had secured funding so a youth consortium would be out every night in Sunderland city centre in coming weeks to continue “important engagement”.

Councillor Ehthesham Haque, Deputy Mayor of Sunderland, described himself as “the only Muslim councillor in the city” and welcomed cross-party support for the motion.

Cllr Haque said: “When I go back to my community people do ask me what do your colleagues and the other councillors think.

“I can tell them with my head held high that every single councillor condemned what happened on that Friday and the Saturday afterwards.

“That will go a long way towards repairing community relations”.

The meeting ended with a minute’s silence as a “mark of respect” to the three young girls who were killed in Southport on July 29, 2024, the tragic event which sparked scenes of disorder across the country.

Councillor Allison Chisnall, Mayor of Sunderland, closing the meeting, thanked councillors and communities for their support in recent weeks.

She added: “Let’s make this a motion that will stand, make sure we stick by our word and make sure these communities come together and be there, shoulder to shoulder, and support every single person”.

The extraordinary meeting was broadcast live and is still available to view via Sunderland City Council’s YouTube channel.

Unanimously backing the motion, Sunderland councillors agreed to:

• Reflect on and learn from the response to the events of the weekend along with our partners.
• Build our relationships and collaborative working with the city’s Interfaith Forum, along with city, regional and national partners including the Government, to deliver an impactful cohesion strategy.
• Continue to understand and respond to the impacts on all of our communities in Sunderland, providing whatever support we can to ensure the city comes back stronger from these events, and is quickly restored to the welcoming, diverse and vibrant place we all know it to be.
• Request that the leader, deputy leader and chief executive continue their dialogue with Central Government in relation to requests for increased funding to enable to council to put in place initiatives that promote community cohesion and resilience across our city, including grants for local organisations that work on integration, anti-extremism, and community-building projects such as anti-extremism training for young people, aiming to educate and inform them about the dangers of extremism and hate, and to foster a culture of understanding and unity across all communities.
• Continue to provide proactive support, advice and guidance to people whose property was attacked in the disorder; and request financial support from the Government for those businesses affected.
• Improve information on the true meaning of what being a City of Sanctuary means, to help promote social cohesion and a better understanding of the term among city residents.
• Write to the Home Office urging them to appoint an independent government advisor on Islamophobia as soon as possible.