Easington Colliery listed school building to be demolished

Residents have said the site is a "magnet for vandals"

Plans to demolish an "eyesore" derelict school in County Durham have been approved by council planners, despite it being a listed building.

Easington Colliery Primary School was sold to developers in 1997, but bought back by the council after it remained empty and was vandalised.

Plans have now been approved for demolition and the creation of a "pocket park" at the Seaside Lane site.

A separate bid for listed building consent was also approved.

While noting the loss of the listed buildings, Historic England lodged no objections to Durham County Council's planning department ruling on the proposals, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

The Grade-II listed former Easington Infants School, in Seaside Lane, opened in 1915.

Due to a lack of interest from developers and the continued failure to find a viable use for the former school, the council revealed plans to demolish the buildings earlier this year and carried out a consultation.

Almost 91% of the 350 responses agreed that demolition was the best way of bringing the site back into use, and more than 60% describing the site as an eyesore.

A design and access statement linked outlined the "significant public benefits" from the demolition plan.

These included "the removal of a major eyesore and source of environmental, economic and social blight" and subsequent improvements from redeveloping the site as a pocket park.

The report said the factors were "sufficient to outweigh the harm resulting from the loss of these designated heritage assets."