Plans for new tanning salon and hairdressers lodged at Hartlepool shopping parade

Proposals have been submitted to Hartlepool Borough Council to carry out work at the former Saxon pub site in Easington Road, which is now home to a local centre featuring a number of different businesses.

The application seeks to convert the vacant unit five, located on the first floor, into a tanning salon which would also provide hairdresser services “in due course”.

Plans from applicant Ingleby Barwick Land & Property Developments state the site, which currently has permission for a flat, has been vacant since work on the shopping parade was completed.

However, a tenant is said to be lined up ready to operate the business should the application be approved.

A statement from Prism Planning Ltd in support of the proposals said the development offers the opportunity to bring a “vacant unit into a beneficial use”.

It added: “The proposed change of use as a tanning salon will have a beneficial impact upon the character and appearance and long-term vitality and viability of the Saxon local centre.”

The development would provide two full-time and two part-time jobs, with the proposed opening hours 9am to 8pm Monday to Friday and 9am to 6pm on Saturday and Sunday.

Approval had previously been given to convert the site into a hairdressers in 2017, and into a licensed restaurant in 2018, however permission expired for both applications without work taking place.

The shopping parade is already home to a fish and chip shop, a convenience store and a dental practice.

A decision is expected by the end of August.