Bridging NewcastleGateshead
Bridging NewcastleGateshead is the only housing market renewal pathfinder in the North East of England and contains around 77,000 properties.
The housing market in the NewcastleGateshead area is characterised by population loss, which stood at almost 10 per cent between 1991 and 2001. Although the situation is improving and house prices are rising, the gap between intervention areas and the North East average is increasing.
A high level of vacancies continues to be a problem. Around seven per cent of properties are vacant and nearly five per cent of these have been empty for more than six months. High turnover is also an issue, with more than a quarter of properties turning over each year.
Neighbourhood interventions
Interventions in NewcastleGateshead neighbourhoods include:
- Discovery Quarter, Newcastle: housing is a key part of the masterplan for this area, which also includes plans for Science Central – a new shared space for university and business activities. New family housing will link the prosperous city centre to the West End of
- Newcastle, helping to meet the aspirations of people taking up jobs in the expanding education and creative sectors.
- Walker Riverside, Newcastle: improving existing homes, demolishing housing stock and building new homes.
- Byker Ouseburn, Newcastle: redeveloping and improving homes through the Byker Design Competition, including Ralph Erskine's Byker Wall. With a strong cultural heritage and creative clusters, this area has the potential to become an artists' quarter.
- Bensham and Saltwell, Gateshead: a range of interventions will help to establish this culturally diverse area as the cosmopolitan core of Gateshead.
- Felling, Gateshead: with a large site about to be developed and improvements to surrounding homes, the transformation of this area will generate between 5,000 and 7,000 jobs.
Contact details
Michelle Playford
Bridging NewcastleGateshead
Tel: 0191 277 2666
Email: michelle.playford@bridgingng.org.uk
Last updated: 3 June 2009