Jarrow Library to be demolished after plans approved to prepare site for 'future redevelopment'

Earlier this year, South Tyneside Council submitted an application to its own planning department for the former Jarrow Library off Monkton Road.

The single-storey building has been closed for some time after library services moved to the revamped multi-service hub Jarrow Focus.

A planning application said the building has “fallen into a state of disrepair and is therefore surplus to the council’s requirements”.

Demolition plans for the site, the application added, are linked to the “future redevelopment of the site.”

South Tyneside Council has remained tight-lipped about future plans for the site and in a previous statement said “options are still being considered”.

After considering the application and assessing it against planning policies, the local authority’s planning department approved the demolition bid on September 15, 2022.

A decision report prepared by council planners said the method of demolition and proposed method of site restoration would be acceptable.

This includes the use of “sequential dismantling techniques”, hand tools, mechanical tools and other specialist equipment.

Following the demolition, the vacant plot will be landscaped and fenced off, with waste material also sorted for recycling, re-use and disposal.

A council decision report adds: “The proposed method of demolition would be appropriate given the scale of the building [and] the proposed method of site restoration would also be acceptable, leaving the site in a tidy condition.

“It is considered that given the nature and scale of the proposed demolition work that prior approval is required.

“However, it is considered that the proposed method of demolition and site restoration would be acceptable.”

The plan is the latest in a line of demolition applications from South Tyneside Council to pull down older buildings to open up new regeneration opportunities.

In South Shields town centre, this has included demolition plans for former office and retail buildings, including part the town’s iconic King Street, and plans to demolish a former jobcentre.

The former Central Library building in South Shields is also set to be demolished to pave the way for future housing development.

On the former Jarrow Library site, South Tyneside Council says there are no “definite plans” for the future of the land once it has been cleared.

In a statement released in August, 2022, a council spokesperson said: “The former Jarrow Library building is no longer needed by the council following the opening of Jarrow Focus in January, 2019.

“The building is also beyond economic repair. If the application for its demolition were to be approved, the site would be landscaped as an interim measure.

“There are no definite plans for the use of this site as options are still being considered.”

According to planning documents, demolition work is expected to start later this year and will take around two months.

For more information on the demolition plan which has been approved, visit South Tyneside Council’s online planning portal and search using the reference: ST/0694/22/DEM