Plans submitted to demolish former Bede Wing at South Tyneside District Hospital

South Tyneside Council’s planning department has received an application for the former Bede Wing on the hospital site.

A submitted planning application states the former mental health unit was “built in 1995  and decommissioned in 2015” and has since “fallen into disrepair”.

New plans are seeking permission to demolish the site next year, with demolition scheduled between January and March, 2025.

The planning application also references proposals for an ‘aseptic and radio pharmacy suite’ on the site of the former Bede Wing, a type of facility linked to the production and preparation of medicines.

But bosses at South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust have stressed that there is no “firm plan” for the future of the Bede Wing site post-demolition.

They added that demolition provides a “blank canvas to move forward”,  as well as opportunities to bid for national funding.

Peter Sutton, executive director of planning and business development at the NHS trust, said: “The Bede Wing has not been used for almost a decade now and is no longer fit for purpose.

“A key part of our estates strategy is to remove old buildings from our sites. These often cost us money, but do not help us as we care for our patients.

“Once this demolition is complete, it will give us a blank canvas to move forward. It also means if there is national funding that comes up, we will be ready to bid for it.

“We do not yet have a firm plan for the space it will create.  We are very clear, though, that we do want to keep building and investing on our site in South Tyneside.

“Once we have some firmer plans to share, we will let people know about these.”

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The demolition of buildings at hospital sites are often proposed to replace ageing health infrastructure and to open up opportunities for improved facilities.

At South Tyneside District Hospital, work previously took place to demolish The Leas building and a former staff accommodation block next door.

At Sunderland Royal Hospital, which falls under the same NHS health trust, plans were approved to demolish a hospital building formerly used for sexual health services to make way for more parking spaces.

A decision on the proposed Bede Wing demolition at South Tyneside District Hospital will be made once a period of council consultation has concluded.

For more information on the plan, visit South Tyneside Council’s planning portal website and search reference: ST/0631/24/DEM.