Outline Planning Permission Secured for Up to 200 Homes
Leading councillors in Northumberland have confirmed that plans for the former Hexham Middle School site will deliver much-needed affordable housing in the town. Outline planning permission has been secured for up to 200 homes, with most of the school buildings set to be demolished. The council-led scheme will provide a higher proportion of affordable and social housing than typically allocated by developers.
Fellside Building to Be Retained as Cultural Space
The Grade II-listed Fellside Building, a former grammar school, will be retained as part of the redevelopment and transformed into a "bespoke cultural space." At a meeting of Northumberland County Council's cabinet on Tuesday, members agreed to push forward with the procurement process to find a developer partner for the scheme.
Council Leader Highlights Urgent Local Need
Speaking at the meeting, cabinet member for finance Councillor Nick Oliver said the project would meet an urgent local need. He stated: "This is a hugely important scheme for the west of Northumberland. It has taken a while because we wanted to come up with a really good scheme that meets local needs. This will be a mixed housing development with a very high level of social housing, which is one of the things that the local community identified a need for."
Commitment to Young Families and Community
Councillor Oliver added: "We're committed to providing more affordable and social housing in Hexham. It's really important that young families can get a step up, find a house and create a family environment. This report is about setting out the procurement process for finding a partner to develop the site. The old Fellside building will meet our aspiration to create a community arts centre with a third party partner. This is a really exciting scheme and further investment in Hexham. It is just another demonstration of our commitment to Hexham and the west of Northumberland."
School Site Redundant Since 2021
The school, owned by the county council, has been redundant since the middle school relocated to a new site alongside the new high school in 2021. Cabinet member for housing Councillor Colin Horncastle explained the decision to pursue a council-led scheme rather than selling the site on the open market. He said: "It would have been very easy to sell the site on the open market and get a huge capital receipt, but we wanted to listen to the community who said there's a massive demand for affordable housing. The benefit of doing it this way is we can get a high percentage of affordable homes on this site than if we had gone down the route of selling it."
Procurement Process Approved Unanimously
The cabinet unanimously agreed to launch the procurement process to select a developer partner for the scheme. The development aims to address local housing needs while preserving a historic building for community use.
