Work on Durham Court

Contents

  1. Overview
  2. Building safety
  3. Talking with tenants
  4. Next steps

Overview

Durham Court is an 18 storey residential building. It was built in 1974 of non-traditional construction and intended to remain in use for between 40 to 50 years.

It is now the only high-rise building in Hebburn.

The building is designated for older residents (over 55), all of these are secure tenancies. There are 111 separate one and two bedroomed flats but not all of these are occupied.

Building safety

The building is fully compliant with health and safety regulations. However, it does need a large investment to stay compliant.

This includes soil stacks (£2.5 milion) and additional works (£9.5 million), such as:

  • roof replacement
  • rewiring
  • fire alarms
  • lighting

These works will cause disruption for tenants and would not guarantee the future sustainability of the building.

Talking with tenants

To make sure tenants are aware of possible changes, we have:

  • written to all tenants of Durham Court
  • held some in person events
  • attended the local Community Area Forum meeting in March, to talk about the future of the building

Next steps

Three options have been reviewed for the future of Durham Court:

  1. investing into the building has a cost of £12 million. This would lead to disruption and would not guarantee the future of the building
  2. the building could be sold to another housing provider, but it is not certain that any other providers would be interested in buying the building. We would also need to make significant payments, estimated at £6 million. A sale would require a vote from tenants, and rent would increase if progressed as they would not longer be Council tenants
  3. demolition has a lower cost of £2.1 million and is estimated to take up to three years. Tenants would be provided with alternative housing and eligible for home loss payments

There is a recommendation to demolish the building, and this is subject to a Cabinet decision in May 2025. We will advise tenants of the final decision after the Cabinet meeting.

We will have regular drop-in sessions at Durham Court throughout April 2025, every Wednesday from 1pm to 4pm.

If the building is demolished

If the decision is made to demolish, home visits would take place with each tenant to discuss:

  • the housing options available to you
  • any financial compensation which you may be entitled to
  • any further questions that you may have

Tenants will be helped throughout this process by our Council teams to make sure you have the information, advice and support you need.

If you have any questions or would like to speak to someone, please contact South Tyneside Council Housing Services by: