Former Sunderland school demolition plan approved

Sunningdale School closed in 2022 when staff and pupils moved to a new site

Plans to demolish a former special needs primary school in Sunderland have been approved by councillors.

Sunningdale School in Springwell has been empty since staff and pupils moved to a new £13m site at Doxford Park Way in 2022.

Sunderland City Council said the old school buildings should be torn down on the grounds of "economy and health and safety".

The council's planning department approved its demolition.

The authority said the school and associated caretaker's house on Shaftoe Road had "exceeded their useful economic lifespan" and were in a "poor state of repair, structurally deteriorating and posing a danger to the public".

According to planning documents, project bosses hope to start the demolition later this month and to complete works by the end of May, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

Once demolition work has been completed, the site will be "left clean and tidy with all debris removed", the council said.