Landowner Given Final Ultimatum to Address Derelict Building
- teessidetoday
- Feb 15
- 3 min read
Updated: Feb 19
Landowner given final ultimatum with notice giving them just four months to either repair, or demolish the former vandal stricken care home, or face legal action !
15th Feb 2025
Hartlepool Borough Council has issued what they claim to be their 'final warning' to the owners of a former town nursing home, giving the landowners just four months to take action on the long-neglected site that has been repeatedly plagued by arson and vandalism, with HBC Exposed understanding that legal is set to follow if action is not taken by the landowner of the site. .
The council has reportedly begun proceedings against the owners of the former Admiral Court Nursing Home, which has been left in a severe state of disrepair following multiple break-ins and arson attacks. The once-functional care facility has now deteriorated to a dangerous condition, raising concerns among local residents that something now has to be done by the local council to address the matter.
The nursing home was originally shut down over a decade ago after the Care Quality Commission (CQC) condemned the quality of care provided at the premises. Its owner, Hartlepool businessman Matt Matharu, was sentenced to eight months in prison in February 2015 for what was described as his "reckless disregard" for health and safety. His actions led to the tragic death of an elderly resident at another one of his care homes in Seaton Carew.
Following its closure, limited construction work took place on the site in a bid to turn the site into flats, but progress came to a dramatic halt when the businesses behind the project was wound up by the High Court court as part of a large-scale criminal investigation revealing that the property was being used in a sophisticated Ponzi-style scheme, leading to the arrest of the businessmen involved, with Court records published at the time indicating that investors lost hundreds of thousands of pounds as a result.
In 2021, Hartlepool Borough Council, led by Headland Ward Councillor Shane Moore alongside then now former Conservative MP Jill Mortimer, intervened to secure the deteriorating building after reports of numerous vandalism and fires. At the time, the council announced plans to recover the costs of they incurred by securing the property by placing a charging order on the land, effectively forcing the absentee developers to take responsibility for the site or faced the site being sold to recover the councils costs, said to have been at the time around Ten Thousand Pounds.
However, with little progress made since, HBC Exposed understands that councillors have now once again taken action against the absent landowners, with the building becoming such an eyesore that its claimed discussions have gone on behind the scenes regarding a potential Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) by the council on the site to bring the long-running saga to an end once and for all.
Headland Labour Ward Councillor Matthew Dodds recently addressed the situation on social media, stating:
"Admiral Court Nursing Home has been a blight on the ward for far too long. Hartlepool Borough Council has now served notice to the owners, giving them just four months to either fully repair or demolish the building. We will keep residents updated, but hopefully, we will finally see the end of this eyesore."
With this ultimatum in place, the fate of Admiral Court Nursing Home now rests in the hands of its owners. Will they take action, or will the council now be finally be forced to step in?
Time is running out, and the people of Hartlepool are said to be eager to see a resolution to the decade long saga !
