Victoria Hall in South Shields faces demolition after historic gem 'de-listed' following 'severe fire damage'

Victoria Hall, off Fowler Street, is around 125 years old and an iconic building in the town, having served as both a social hub and the home of several businesses over the years.

Back in May, 2021, the Grade II-listed treasure was gutted by fire and although fire chiefs were unable to determine if the blaze was ‘malicious’ and police said no crimes had been detected, fears were raised for the building’s future.

In recent years, it was thought that plans for an aparthotel with a hotel-style booking system would give Victoria Hall a new lease of life and preserve key heritage features.

However a new application submitted to South Tyneside Council has proposed demolishing the site after the building was officially ‘de-listed’.

Historic England confirmed the de-listing was approved by the Secretary of State at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, with the building losing its listed status in February, 2023.

Demolition plans have been submitted by company Nearby Estates Ltd and state the property’s “severe fire damage” has led to its de-listing.

The application for ‘prior approval’ aims to seek permission from South Tyneside’s local planning authority before demolition work begins.

According to planning documents submitted to council officials, the demolition works are planned to start in May, 2023, with an estimated completion date of June 30, 2023.

This would include a purpose-built scaffold with “debris netting” and the site surrounded by hoardings, with the demolition following a “top down” approach.

This includes “de-constructing the property by hand” by removing the remaining roof structure and the main structure being “loosened course by course and pushed inward to the footprint of the building”.

The scaffold would eventually be removed and a “360-degree excavator” would be used with debris segregated and removed from the site.

Although the application is for demolition, the application form hints at the future use and restoration of the site as a new build “contemporary block of flats”.

According to information related to its previous listing, Victoria Hall dates back to 1896 and has 20th century alterations.

The building has housed several businesses over the decades, including Italian restaurants Casa Rosa and La Rossa.

While empty, drugs farms were uncovered on the premises on several occasions following police raids, including an incident in 2019.

Historic England, the public body which looks after the country’s historic environment, said fire damage had left Victoria Hall “surviving largely as a shell”.

A Historic England spokesperson said: “Historic England received an application to consider Victoria Hall, in South Shields, for de-listing in October 2022.

“We carried out an assessment to consider whether the building retained the special interest for which it was originally listed, as Victoria Hall has suffered significant loss of original fabric since then.

“It was gutted by fire in May 2021 and has been partially demolished for safety reasons.

“Many of its special internal and external architectural features have been lost and the building now survives largely as a shell.

“Given the overall level of alteration, we recommended that Victoria Hall be de-listed.

“The Secretary of State at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport agreed with this recommendation and the building was de-listed in February 2023.”

For more information on the demolition application visit South Tyneside Council’s online planning portal and search reference: ST/0214/23/DEM