Proposals for an innovative emergency services ‘Tri-Station’ are set to go before South Tyneside councillors for decision next week. In recent months, plans have been progressing for the new joint base in Hebburn which will provide a home for blue light services working across the region.
This includes Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service (TWFRS) as well as operational teams from North East Ambulance Service and Northumbria Police. The proposed base, which is planned on land between Marine Drive and Campbell Park Road, in the Monkton ward, would offer a range of sustainable features, including roof-mounted solar panels.
It is envisioned that the hub would replace the current Hebburn Community Fire Station, off Victoria Road West, which was built in 1965. The project is being led by TWFRS as the applicant, with the fire and rescue service previously hosting a number of public engagement events.
Following council consultation, the proposals will be put to the vote at a meeting of South Tyneside Council’s Planning Committee next week. The Tri-Station scheme proposes an ‘L-shaped’ building with staff accommodation and appliance bays for emergency vehicles, as well as associated car parking, fencing, landscaping, CCTV and footpath alterations.
A freestanding training building is also proposed incorporating a two-bay garage and training tower As part of the proposals, the southern area of the site would be “retained and enhanced as open space” to boost biodiversity on site.
During council-led public consultation on the Tri-Station proposals, the local authority received six letters of objection and two letters of support Concerns from objectors included increased noise and light pollution, congestion and highway safety issues, negative impacts on wildlife and the suitability of the location.
One comment argued that the Tri-Station would be “unsuitable in the heart of a residential area” Elsewhere, scheme supporters included Monkton ward councillors Joan Keegan and Margaret Meling and former Monkton ward councillor Jim Sewell.
According to a planning report, the supporters said the plans would provide a “state-of-the-art” facility for emergency services offering several benefits. This includes “facilitating information sharing between the services and the provision within the building of space for community and educational meetings with the emergency services”.
After considering representations, South Tyneside Council planners deemed the scheme acceptable and have recommended it for approval. A committee report prepared for councillors adds: “Current emergency services facilities in the locality are dated and locationally do not reflect the growth of Hebburn in recent years to the south of the older areas of the town closest to the River Tyne.
“The proposed Tri-Station would provide state-of-the-art facilities for all three emergency services in a central location within Hebburn which is accessible to the community it would be serving.” Planning documents state that 15 different sites were considered throughout the Hebburn and Jarrow area for the new Tri-Station, with each being individually assessed before a final location was decided.
Chief fire officer for TWFRS Chris Lowther, speaking in January 2022, said the final Tri-Station project was “one of the most exciting collaborative blue light community developments that [the fire and rescue service] has led in well over a decade”. According to documents prepared for the Fire Authority earlier in 2022, the gross estimated cost for the estate development works is expected to be around £7.7 million.
The final decision on the Tri-Station plan rests with members of South Tyneside Council’s Planning Committee who will next meet on Monday, July 18. The meeting is scheduled to take place at 10am at South Shields Town Hall and will be open to the public.
Agenda papers for the meeting can be found on South Tyneside Council’s website.
