Café plans near Sunderland's Penshaw Monument resubmitted

New proposals for a café near Sunderland’s iconic Penshaw Monument have been lodged with the city council's planning department. The application pertains to land close to the Penshaw Hill House and Cottage complex, situated at the base of Penshaw Hill, off the A183 Chester Road, within the Green Belt. The site, previously used as a horse menage, is adjacent to the two residences.

Earlier this year, plans were put forward for a detached building offering "pizza food and beverage offer for visitors to Penshaw Monument" for visitors to Penshaw Monument, complete with an "eating/servery area" and a "display area for National Trust publications and information". The proposed development was listed as a "pizza café", featuring indoor seating, an outdoor terrace, toilets, and on-site parking. However, the proposal was withdrawn by the applicant in June 2024, following public opposition, objections from the National Trust, and several council departments including ecology and highways officers.



The National Trust, which owns Penshaw Monument, expressed concerns that the plans would negatively impact the Grade I-listed site, citing "landscape and visual, ecological and parking and traffic concerns". Approximately 16 public objections were also raised, highlighting issues ranging from heritage impacts on Penshaw Monument and increased litter and congestion, to the suitability of a ‘pizza venue’ in the area, parking pressures, and potential harm to local wildlife. Previous council planning documents reveal that the applicant had been ‘served notice’ that their pizza café application would likely be recommended for refusal by Sunderland City Council.

Green Property Developments Ltd, the same applicant, has once again submitted plans to local authority planners for the same site, this time proposing to convert a ‘horse menage’ into a café. A revised design, access and heritage statement submitted to council officials describes the development as a "detached unit which will provide a café facility for visitors to Penshaw Monument only". The new design, access and heritage statement is similar to a supporting statement submitted earlier this year with the previous planning application, however, all references to "pizza" have been removed in the new statement .

The applicants note that the building would include an "internal eating/servery area with an external food servery and toilet facilities for monument visitors", and that externally accessible toilets would be "available 24/7 to service monument visitors". It was noted that the "building has been designed to be low profile and unobtrusive to sit at the base of Penshaw Hill", with a roof design "effectively camouflaging the building when viewed from the monument above". Those behind the scheme also maintained the proposal would “neither increase nor decrease the number of visitors to the monument” and stressed it would create employment opportunities, with 12 full-time and 8 part-time positions.

On highways matters, applicants said “vehicular parking will be provided both immediately adjacent to the building and on the opposite side of the access road, all within the ownership of the applicant”. Parking provision would include two disabled bays and two EV charging points, and applicants maintain the proposals would “provide more formalised safe car parking arrangements”. The design, access and heritage statement adds: “The development would result in minimal impact upon the openness of the Green Belt.

“Due to the natural topography of the site and in particular Penshaw Hill to the north west, the proposal would not result in significant harm to the Grade I-listed asset. “The adjacent residential properties would not be adversely affected by the proposal, the development would not increase overlooking or decrease privacy in relation to residential amenity. The proposal would provide significant employment opportunities and would provide a high quality service.

” Sunderland City Council’s planning portal website indicates the revised planning application was submitted back in July, 2024, but was ‘validated’ and appeared publicly this month (December, 2024). A decision on the planning application is expected to be made once a period of council consultation has concluded. Sunderland City Council’s planning portal website lists a decision deadline of February 12, 2025.

For more information on the planning application or to track its progress, visit the council’s planning portal and search reference: 24/01404/FUL Join our Sunderland WhatsApp community for all the latest news Sunderland news sent direct to your phone. To join you need to have WhatsApp on your device. All you need to do is choose which community you want to join, click on the link and press 'join community' .

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