Homeless hostel plan will 'no longer proceed'

There are hopes the Thorney Close Inn will reopen as a pub

A plan to demolish a pub and build a homeless hostel will "no longer proceed", according to council documents.

Papers for a meeting of Sunderland Council’s cabinet on Thursday revealed plans to convert the former Thorney Close Inn into apartments for people with complex needs will no longer go ahead.

The council said that, with a new owner secured for the site, the building was no longer being considered for conversion.

Paul Edgeworth, Liberal Democrat councillor for Thorney Close, said residents would be "breathing a sigh of relief".

Twenty-two one-bedroom flats were originally proposed on the site to cater for "vulnerable people", including those leaving care, hospital or sleeping rough for up to three months.

Locals had previously urged the council to scrap plans over fears people with convictions, including for sexual offences, might be housed in the complex.

Due to planning protections designed to safeguard community assets, when the building was offered for sale by the previous owner it had to be marketed as a pub for two years before the council could apply for planning permission to change it to housing.

It is understood that the site has now been sold to a new owner with a view to keeping it as a pub, the Liberal Democrats said.

Mr Edgeworth said: “This community asset has been at the heart of the estate for decades and local people were determined to see it kept as a pub or as another community use."

Other plans to provide accommodation have been highlighted in council documents, including delays to a scheme to convert Halfway House into seven bedrooms for people with complex needs.

Labour councillor Kevin Johnston said: "Supported accommodation remains a vital and under-supplied element of the city’s housing mix.

"We will continue to look at suitable options to ensure our most vulnerable residents are able to access good quality accommodation with support that meets their specific needs.”