'Secret panels' and 'moving walls' - plans unveiled for Hartlepool escape rooms

Proposals have been submitted to Hartlepool Borough Council planning department to convert the vacant offices at 8 and 9 Church Street and bring the buildings into use.

Submitted by Alexander Matthews, from Get Out Escape Rooms, plans state the development would create two full-time and two part-time jobs.

Proposals outline how the change of use application would allow a “themed escape rooms” to open at the site, in which pre-booked teams of two to six people are given a series of puzzles and challenges to escape.

There would also be a secondary use at the site of a “toddler focused” soft play area serving food and drinks on the ground floor level.

A heritage, design and access statement, submitted on behalf of the applicant, outlines how the proposals would benefit the Church Street Conservation Area.

It said: “These escape rooms will greatly add to the mix of businesses Hartlepool Borough Council are looking to encourage.”

The escape rooms will include, among other things, “secret panels, moving walls and props of a high quality theatrical standard by a leading national provider”, according to proposals.

Documents note how, although 8 and 9 Church Street were once separate buildings, they have been made into one single unit by providing access through the party walls at every level.

A decision is expected to be made on the proposals by the council planning department by the end of January.