Hartlepool Council Backs Sale of 7.8-Acre Hart Site Despite Housing Plans Change...
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More Homes Planned as Hartlepool Council Progresses Sale of Nineacres Site
10th August 2026
Hartlepool Borough Council is preparing to move forward with the sale of a substantial parcel of land on the outskirts of the town, despite the proposed developer changing both the number of homes and the balance between private and affordable housing on the site.
The newly published officer decision record seen by the Teesside & Durham Post shows that approximately 7.8 acres of council-owned land on the western side of Hart Village on the outskirts of Hartlepool was originally earmarked for development back in autumn 2024.
A tender from an unnamed developer was then reportedly accepted back in early 2025, with the original proposals including affordable homes comprising a mixture of affordable rent and discounted market-value properties. The sale was subsequently approved by the council’s Economic Growth and Regeneration Committee in March 2025. However, its claimed that more than a year after those plans were approved, contracts for the land have still not been exchange, with the council document revealing that the developer has since submitted a new planning application for the site, under reference H/2025/0431.
Crucially, that application outlines plans for a slightly higher number of homes than what was originally proposed, while also changing the proposed mix between private market housing and affordable housing.
Despite the change, its claimed Hartlepool Borough Council now intends to proceed towards exchanging contracts on the basis of the financial offer contained within the successful tender for an undisclosed sum which is likely never to be disclosed to the public despite the sale technically being determined to be ‘public land’…
One important caveat of the sale means the plans for the site remain wholly dependent upon the developer securing satisfactory planning permission, something that’s claimed not to be guaranteed, with Hartlepool Borough Council saying that the application is unlikely to be determined before September 2026 due to ongoing planning caseloads.
Council Insisting The Original Price Still Represents Full Market Value...
In explaining why it intends to proceed despite the alterations to the development, Hartlepool Borough Council gave three principal reasons.
One of which was claims that the agreed sale price is still considered to represent the full market value of the land & value for money for the local tax payer. It also says the development would continue to reserve a substantial amount of land for amenity purposes in accordance with Local and Neighbourhood Plan policies. Finally, officers stressed that the sale remains wholly conditional upon planning consent, meaning the planning process would still have to consider the wider development proposal, including the eventual housing tenure mix.
The decision was made and authorised by Kieren Bostock, Director of Neighbourhoods and Regulatory Services, on the 4th August 2026.
