Tyne & Wear Planning & Building
Contacts Directory

Newcastle city centre has a dense network of Conservation Areas and listed buildings, particularly in the Grainger Town area. Pre-application advice is strongly recommended for city centre development. Newcastle has significant regeneration activity along the Quayside, Science Central, and Stephenson Quarter.

The Gateshead Quays development (Sage Gateshead, BALTIC, Hilton) has established the south bank of the Tyne as a major cultural and commercial quarter. Development proposals along the Tyne corridor are cross-boundary matters involving both Newcastle and Gateshead - early liaison with both authorities is recommended.

Sunderland's waterfront and city centre are undergoing major regeneration. The River Wear corridor has significant contamination from former shipbuilding and industrial uses - ground investigation is essential for any development on brownfield riverside sites.

South Shields seafront and Sandhaven Beach are within the South Tyneside boundary. Coastal development proposals require careful flood risk assessment. The Bede's World heritage area at Jarrow is a nationally significant archaeological site.

Tynemouth Castle and Priory is a scheduled monument and listed building in the care of English Heritage. Whitley Bay seafront has active regeneration with a Local Development Order in place for parts of the town centre. The Tyne Tunnel and Port of Tyne fall within North Tyneside.

Each of the five metropolitan borough councils operates its own building control team. You may also use a Registered Building Control Approver (RBCA) anywhere in Tyne & Wear.

Newcastle office. Tyne & Wear has a rich industrial and maritime heritage - the Grainger Town Conservation Area in Newcastle is one of England's finest examples of early Victorian town planning. The Quayside on both banks of the Tyne is highly significant. Tynemouth Castle and Priory (English Heritage), Jarrow (Venerable Bede's monastery), and Segedunum Roman Fort (Wallsend) are among the most important scheduled monuments in the region.

Holds the Historic Environment Record for the Tyne & Wear area. Essential for heritage impact assessments and archaeological evaluations. The Roman remains of Hadrian's Wall's eastern end run through Tyne & Wear - Segedunum (Wallsend) marks the Wall's terminus.

Flood Incident Line: 0345 988 1188 (24hr). Both the Tyne and Wear are tidal rivers - development in riverside locations requires a Flood Risk Assessment. Tyne & Wear's industrial legacy means widespread ground contamination across many brownfield sites, particularly former shipyards, chemical works, and colliery sites. A Phase 1 contaminated land assessment is standard for most brownfield development proposals.

Build-over agreements required within 3 metres of a public sewer. The dense urban sewer network in Tyne & Wear means sewer conflicts are common on brownfield sites - always check Northumbrian Water's sewer records at the earliest design stage.

Power cuts: 105. Development near the Tyne riverbanks should check for existing high-voltage cables - there are significant grid connections associated with the port and industrial areas.

Gas emergency: 0800 111 999. Use LSBUD or Dial Before You Dig to check pipe locations before any excavation. The Tyne & Wear area has a dense below-ground utility network - multi-utility searches are strongly recommended before breaking ground.

The Tyne Tunnels (Port of Tyne authority) and Tyne Bridge are key river crossings. Development near the A1(M) Birtley to Coal House improvement scheme should check National Highways for safeguarding zones.

Notify HSE of notifiable construction projects under CDM Regulations at least 2 weeks before work begins.