Project Updates

Project Update - September 2022

Following the success of last year's first ever Hartlepool Restaurant Week we are pleased to announce that we will be running the event again this year during October 2022. Look out for details of participating restaurants in the local press and on social media.

If you run a restaurant or café and would like to take part in this year's event please email tourism@hartlepool.gov.uk

Update 26th July 2022

Following extensive testing by Manilla Cycling Club and British Cycling, the track is now open for other cycling clubs and groups to hire the facilities.

The track will be open to members of the public from the beginning of August and a full programme will be published at Summerhill Visitors Centre, on social media and at www.activehartlepool.co.uk/summerhill-cycle-track - the programme will change on a weekly basis following consultation, so please check in advance.

Update 18th May 2022

Work on the 750m cycling track has now been completed! The “free-form” tarmac track is fenced and floodlit and built on gently sloping terrain. It incorporates varying elevations and degrees of cornering difficulty. Two secure cycle storage containers have also been installed on site.

In addition, a dedicated balance bike and learn-to-ride area is being created on the grassed area to the side of the Summerhill Visitors Centre for younger people to learn new skills.

The track is now available for use by local cycling clubs. Testing of its accessibility will continue through June and it is expected to open for general use in July. An official opening is now expected to take place later in the summer, on a date to be confirmed.

A programme of activity for the track, including club sessions and “open” recreational cycling will be publicised online at www.gethartlepoolactive.co.uk/summerhill-cycle-track where people will be able to find out more about how to book and pricing.

The investigation into the accessibility of council services is continuing. If you got involved by completing a survey or coming along to one of the focus group workshops, thank you! We had a good response to the consultation with lots of excellent suggestions of how things can be improved. We were also pleased to hear some positive examples of where people had received good service and will be looking at how we can build on this "best practice" to ensure that good standards become the norm across the board.

Right now, we are in the process of pulling together the survey responses and writing up the feedback from the focus group workshops, however, there are already a number of key themes and actions becoming apparent. Over the next few weeks we will be working with Health Watch Hartlepool and the other local support groups we have made links with through this consultation to look at how we can start to implement some of these actions.

What happens next

The findings from the consultation and this further work with Health Watch will be used to produce a set of recommendations which we will present to the Council's Audit and Governance Committee in September. We will put a link to the Committee Papers containing this report here on the project page so you can read the report when it is published.

We will also develop an action plan that will prioritise the recommendations. The action plan will show how and when the recommendations will be implemented. We'll also share the action plan here on the project page and with the groups that took part in the consultation.

As actions in the action plan are achieved we will keep you updated on this page so you can follow progress every step of the way.

A consultation into the proposal to dispose of a portion of unused school field at the former Pupil Referral Unit site, adjacent to Golden Flatts Primary School was held in September/October 2021. Following submission of the consultation findings to the Secretary of State, we have finally received confirmation from the Department for Education that they have given us consent to dispose of the land. The land will now be used to develop a SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) Free School. This will improve the SEND provision in Hartlepool.

We asked for your views on the Vision for the future development of Wynyard Garden Village. Thank you to everyone who took part in the consultation and shared your views on the Draft Visioning Document.

We took what you told us and used it to develop the final version of the Visioning Document. This final document was presented to the Neighbourhood Services Committee on Thursday the 24th March and then to the Planning Committee on Wednesday 6th April.

You can see the reports and minutes of these meetings and the final version of the Visioning Document by visiting the Wynyard Garden Village project page.

A huge thank you to everyone who contributed to this consultation. We recognise how difficult it is to recount your experiences in a consultation and we're extremely grateful to those who did so.

We used what you told us to develop the principles and priorities for our new domestic abuse strategy. Most particularly, it was very clear that you wanted us to listen to people's real lived experiences and to use these to understand what type of support would be most beneficial to those who need it.

The Hartlepool Domestic Abuse Strategy 2022-2025: Building A System Based on Lived Experience was approved by the Safer Hartlepool Partnership on the 8th March 2022 and then by the Council's Finance and Policy Committee on the 14th March 2022. You can view the report, the strategy document and the minutes of the Finance and Policy Committee meeting here: https://www.hartlepool.gov.uk/meetings/meeting/4233/finance_and_policy_committee(External link)

What happens next?

We are currently developing a new service specification based on the priorities highlighted in the strategy and the commissioning process for domestic abuse support services will begin in April.

We are also waiting for the government to publish the statutory guidance that will tell us how we need to comply with the Domestic Abuse Act 2021.

We will add further updates as information becomes available.

We're delighted to be able to share this update revealing how Highlight, the town's new multi-million pound leisure facility on The Waterfront, will look. This computer generated image (CGI) shows the stylish design proposed for the building.

An application for planning permission has been submitted, and it is expected to go before the Council’s Planning Committee in the summer.

The mix of facilities within the new leisure centre will include:

• A 25m 8-lane main pool
• A 25m 4-lane learner pool with movable floor
• A leisure pool including race slide and water play features, spectator seating
• A 100-station gym
• Two inter-connected fitness studios
• An indoor cycling/”spinning” studio
• Active and soft play areas
• A party room
• A café
• An NHS consultation suite
• External ground and first-floor terraces.

Further updates will be shared as information becomes available.

Thank you to everyone who took part in the cycling consultation back in 2020. We used your feedback as part of the evidence for our funding bid from British Cycling in 2021. As a result of this successful bid we are now developing a cycling hub at Summerhill Country Park which will provide accessible, traffic-free community cycling facilities and opportunities. The project is aimed at young people, families, disabled people and women, to enable them to cycle more safely, more often. The project will also support people to further develop their cycling skills in track and BMX, in partnership with several local clubs when construction is complete.

Work has now started on the site and we hope to have the works finished by late spring/early summer 2022. When completed, the site will include:

• A 750-metre “free-form” tarmac, fenced and floodlit cycle track. Set on and across gently sloping terrain, incorporating varying elevations and degrees of cornering difficulty as shown within the track design, the track will be suitable and safe for riders of all ages and abilities.

• A dedicated balance bike and learn-to-ride area, for younger people keen to learn new skills which will be sighted on the grassed area to the side of the Visitors Centre.

• Spectator fencing, “warm up/cool down” area and improved corner banking, to enhance the BMX track.

• 2 Secure cycle storage containers

We will continue to provide further updates as the project progresses.

Thank you to those who took part in the consultation. The feedback on the proposal for the library relocation was positive.

You also told us that you were interested in activities and social groups which could take place in the building in addition to the main library service. As a result of what you told us; we are now planning a programme of events which will take place in the relocated space. The new space lends itself to use as for a range of activities so look out for details.

We will soon be relocating the books to the new building and details of the opening of the new library and the range of activities and services offered will be published as soon as they are confirmed.