Lovell gets approval at Northgate Hospital
The developer will build 141 homes on the 17-acre site in Morpeth, with construction to start at the beginning of 2025.
Made up of two parcels of land, the northern site will comprise 53 four- and five-bed houses. The southern site will consist of 88 properties, with 25 of those being one- to four-bed affordable homes.
Lovell will demolish all the hospital buildings on the northern site, but retain a water tower that has been identified as a non-designated heritage asset.
The housebuilder will spend £50,00 repairing the tower, which will then be passed onto a management company to maintain the structure.
The southern parcel of land will have a children’s play area in the centre and a pond.
As part of the planning approval, Lovell will provide more than £1m in funding for local services, including £113,000 towards healthcare, £974,000 for education, and £240,000 towards bus services between the hospital and Morpeth town centre.
Phil Jones, head of land and partnerships for the North East region of Lovell, said: “Our plans for the site at Northgate Hospital will regenerate two redundant brownfield parcels of land to deliver much-needed new housing to meet the requirements of the area.
“We have worked closely with the NHS Trust on this project, which has been a unique opportunity to collaborate with a large not-for-profit public organisation.
“Our investment in these surplus land parcels will facilitate improved and enhanced services at the revamped Northgate Hospital.”