Council eyes up BT building for student accommodation
With the relocation of the South Tyneside College underway, the council is considering the former offices in South Shields for conversion into a 125-bed student block.
An application for the riverfront building in the town centre is expected in the next few weeks.
Previously, the now-demolished central library had been identified as a possible location for the student accommodation.
This will remain in council ownership as a development opportunity.
Castle is currently at the helm of the relocation of the College and South Shields Marine School from its Westoe site into the town centre.
The Hebburn-based firm is preparing the site for construction of the 150,000 sq ft campus and the refurbishment of a grade two-listed building on Barrington Street, which will house the offices.
The North East Combined Authority will contribute £18m in funding for the campus project, in addition to £20m of government regeneration funding awarded to South Tyneside Council to revitalise South Shields town centre and riverside, and £21.9m to Tyne Coast College from the Department for Education’s FE Capital Transformation Fund.
Work will start later this year and hopefully be ready in time for September 2027.
Cllr Tracey Dixon, leader of South Tyneside Council, said: “One Harton Quay is a real landmark on the riverside and it would be fantastic to bring it back into use.
“Part of our regeneration ambition has focused on strengthening the connection between the town centre and the riverside.
“Generating footfall between the main campus and the student accommodation would do exactly that, complementing the investment that is going into the Mill Dam area. This building will also allow us to provide more accommodation units.
“We and our partners are going to create a modern campus and accommodation. Our young people are going to be educated and trained in state-of-the-art facilities, gaining the skills they need to access jobs in leading industries such as the green economy.”
