Next steps for homes at former Bog Row Girls' School site in Hetton

Plans to demolish a “historic” former school to make way for housing have taken a step closer to becoming a reality, following a decision by council development chiefs.

Sunderland City Council’s planning department has approved an application for the former Bog Row Girls’ School in the Hetton ward.

The building was constructed between 1893 and 1894, boasts traditional Victorian architecture and is classed as a non-designated heritage asset.

According to council planning documents, the site was most recently used as a council-operated day centre before being deemed “surplus to requirements”, and is now in private ownership.

An application submitted in 2022 sought outline planning permission to redevelop the site for housing, with the scheme’s appearance, scale, layout and landscaping reserved until a later date.

Applicants aimed to establish the principle of seven semi-detached ‘family homes’ on the land along with front gardens and associated car parking spaces.

A design and access statement submitted to council officials also confirmed the former school building would be demolished to pave the way for the residential development.

A planning statement submitted to council planning officials in 2022 said the costs of refurbishing the building were “not compatible with the marketability and type of housing need in the area”.

It was also noted that the building had “shown evidence of decay as shown by [a] structural report” and that it was not considered to be “economically viable for reuse”.

A community use statement from the applicant added a number of attempts had been made to convert the building into a “renewed functioning education facility”, but that the building had “significant cost and marketability risk for this to be made safe”.

After considering the outline planning application for housing and assessing it against planning policies, Sunderland City Council’s planning department approved it on April 18, 2024.

Council planners, in a decision report, noted the “building has been vacant for a number of years and its function as a community facility has long since ceased”.

It was noted that the principle of housing on the site was acceptable and that new homes would “assist in meeting the council’s housing requirement without demonstrably conflicting with, or undermining, the council’s wider and strategic aims in respect of housing numbers and delivery”.

On the school building, council planners said it was originally “constructed when Hetton-le-Hole was a successful mining town at the forefront of coal mining and engineering innovations”, but was now vacant.

It was noted that the building’s vacancy had led to “decay and degradation” and that “no viable option has been put forward to reinstate the former school house”.

Council officials asked the applicant to justify the loss of the non-designated heritage asset and to provide reasons why the former school building could not be converted.

The council decision report said a viability report was submitted and while further information and studies were requested, council planners said this would have been “cost prohibitive to the applicant and would most certainly make the proposal unviable”.

Although the council’s building conservation officer did not support the “complete demolition of the building”, it was acknowledged that the decision on the plans would be made as part of the “planning balance”.

A condition was also requested to provide an “archive record of the historic building” and to “ensure that any archaeological remains on the site can be preserved wherever possible and recorded”.

The council decision report added: “Taking all of the above into deliberation, the benefits of the proposed development of No.7 residential units would be considered acceptable and the benefits to the local community would outweigh the limited harm caused by the loss of the non-designated heritage assets”.

It was also noted that the plans would “bring back into use a vacant site and provide open market residential accommodation within the locality”.

Housing development on the former school site would still be subject to a reserved matters application setting out the final details of the proposals.

Council planners said clarification would be sought around demolition at this reserved matters stage, including “the extent of boundary enclosure, locations of site compounds, contractor parking, wheel washing and/or road cleaning operations”.

For more information on the outline housing plans and the recent council approval decision, visit Sunderland City Council’s planning portal website and search reference: 22/01722/OUT