Massive blueprint for South Tyneside's future with new homes, businesses and shops under spotlight again

The document aims to provide a framework for where new homes, businesses, shops and leisure amenities will be built in the borough up until 2040.

It also aims to ensure the right infrastructure, such as roads, health facilities and schools, is in place to support growth.

Despite the local plan twice being rejected by councillors, the Minister of State for Housing and Planning issued an intervention notice directing the council to submit the plan for independent examination in public.

The sessions are to help the inspector determine if the plan is ‘sound’.

A second stage of public hearings began 10am on Tuesday, January 13, at the Holiday Inn Newcastle South in Boldon, with several members of the public and councillors in attendance.

Inspector David Spencer, appointed by the Secretary of State to conduct the hearings, opened the latest round of proceedings by stressing he will be arriving at his “own professional independent recommendations, which will be set out in a report to the borough council”.

He said: “I alone will be responsible for the contents of the report, including any recommended main modifications, those are the changes which I feel will be necessary for plan soundness.

“These hearings are intended to be structured respectful discussions, I want to hear from the council and others, even where people undoubtedly disagree with one another.

“What I really want to get from these hearings is, from those who particularly feel the plan is not sound, why that is the case, and what needs to be changed.

“It is also for the council to explain to me why they think they’ve prepared a sound plan and why the policy should be considered justified, effective, consistent with national policy and positively prepared. “

He added: “If I come away from this week and next week feeling that there is a sound plan subject to modifications… I’m very keen that we move forward at pace to move the examination forward to its conclusion including modifications.”

Topics discussed as part of the opening second stage hearing included housing allocations in the main urban area.

The hearings will continue for the rest of this week and will also take place next week on Tuesday and Wednesday (January 20 and 21), with the Thursday listed as a “reserve” day if further matters arise and scheduled sessions overrun.

Topics to be covered include policies on climate change, water, health, sustainable residential development, sufficient supply of homes, infrastructure and transport, the historic environment and economic development.

A first stage of hearings were completed over a two week period in July 2025 at the same site, which was then named the Clarion Hotel.

Issues which were discussed included housing needs and requirements, the amount of development being planned for, spatial strategy and Green Belt issues.

Dedicated hearing sessions were also held to discuss different sites featured in the plan including land in Fellgate, Whitburn, Cleadon, East Boldon, Town End Farm, Hebburn and Wardley Colliery.

Numerous speakers from a variety of community groups and organisations, along with council officers, all attended and voiced their views as part of the process.

Following the hearings, the usual procedure is the inspector will let the council know if any changes need to be made to the plan, known as ‘main modifications’, and these are then consulted on by the council.

The inspector then produces a final report which is sent to the council and will be published on its website.

This is followed by the council deciding whether it wants to formally adopt the plan as its local planning policy, and if it does, it can only adopt the plan with the changes recommended by the inspector.

The hearings are open to the public to attend as observers and are also live streamed on the council’s YouTube channel.

For more information on the hearings and links to live streams residents can visit https://www.southtyneside.gov.uk/article/24174/Local-Plan-examination.