Sunderland residents invited to have say on 'Sunniside Social' revamp - new shop fronts and facades planned

Sunderland City Council has submitted applications to its own planning department for the Sunniside Leisure buildings, a site recently re-branded as 'Sunniside Social'.

The leisure complex has faced issues in recent years with the collapse of the Empire Cinemas chain, which left Sunderland without a multiplex cinema for months, as well as several restaurant units sitting vacant.

However, Sunderland City Council recently bought the building and secured a new cinema operator Omniplex, as well as agreeing a multi-million-pound plan to revive the Sunniside leisure complex.

Previous council cabinet documents stated around £2 million would be used for the “refurbishment and fit-out of the cinema” and “adjoining vacant retail units in order to attract new tenants to support the regeneration of the area."

Work is under way to secure occupiers for empty units and Sunderland City Council this month (June, 2025) announced the former Frankie & Benny’s unit would be taken over and operated as a restaurant by Indian street food chain My Delhi.

The council also announced plans had been submitted to make major changes to the appearance of the buildings, including the former Frankie & Benny's unit, and CGI images were revealed of how the Sunniside Social complex could look.

Plans submitted to council officials are now available to view via Sunderland City Council's planning portal website, and residents can view documents and make comments as part of a consultation exercise.

One planning application is seeking permission for the "installation of new external facades and shop frontages" at 114-118 High Street West and 1-3 Lambton Street.

An application for listed building consent has also been submitted for 114-118 High Street West, which includes the listed 'Register Buildings' at the same address.

Proposed works include "internal alteration and renovation works to existing units", as well as the "removal of existing shop frontages to the ground floor" and "new replacement traditional timber shop frontages".

New "external cladding to the facades and shop frontages to the connecting facades that are included within the listed building's curtilage" is also planned.

A design and access statement submitted with the plans notes the "shop front refurbishment works" aim to "revitalise the high street [and] attract new investment to the area, while also contributing to the preservation of the Grade II-listed facade of the Register Buildings".

The design and access statement adds: "The facade proposals for the scheme echoes the features of the listed Register Buildings. Facade motifs, fluted columns and later timber shop fronts have all inspired the proposals.

"The features have been repeated across the building facade at various scales creating interesting elements that reflect and are rooted to the surrounding context and history.

"The colour palette for the buildings have been carefully selected with three neutral tones, complimenting, while dividing up the external facade, framing the listed facade and distinguishing and celebrating the different buildings, old and new.

"The aim was to not detract from the historical facade but to frame it, adding enough interest at the ground floor and to the rest of the facade to engage with the users, encouraging them to look up and appreciate the harmony between the old and the new.

"The metal cladding gives reference to the historical links to the shipbuilding of Sunderland, linking the affluence of High St West with the ship building of High St East and the Port of Sunderland."

A heritage statement submitted to council officials states the Register Buildings date back to 1856 and were "originally the Offices for Registrar and Poor Law Guardians" before being "converted into a collection of leisure/retail units", with the adjoining cinema complex being a "late 20th Century addition".

The report adds that "only one unit is occupied (Nando's) with the remaining three units currently empty".

Remaining units include the large corner unit which was previously a buffet restaurant, a unit previously occupied by a pizza restaurant and the former Frankie & Benny’s unit, which sits on the corner with Lambton Street.

The heritage statement noted the "heritage value" of the Register Buildings "lies predominantly within architectural and historical interest, with its prominent display of Gothic architecture in the urban core".

Those behind the improvement plans added the design of new shop fronts have been "inspired and attempt to replicate the details found in the recording of the building over the years".

This includes "combining features from the original design of the offices along with the historic shop frontages of the late 18th to the 19th Century".

The heritage statement adds: "The existing asset has the potential to be significantly improved and valued through the works, reinstating the traditional shop to the ground floor, along with improvements to materials to modern interventions that frame the original Gothic facade.

"The proposal aims to contribute to the historical significance of the building, celebrating the contrast between old and new, while echoing the rooted connections to the history and surrounding context, ensuring the preservation for future generations."

Decisions on the planning applications will be made later this year following council consultation exercises.

Plans and associated documents can be viewed by visiting Sunderland City Council's planning portal website and searching reference 25/01201/LB3 and 25/01202/LP3.