Description: Tynemouth is a village located at the mouth of the Tyne between Cullercoasts and North Shields, it is a suburb of the Tyneside conurbation and yet manages to retain an atmosphere of character all of its own. Most of Tynemouth was designated a Conservation Area in 1971, in which there are currently 49 listed buildings.

Issue: In this Statement the aim was to capture Tynemouth’s unique character, to influence future planning decisions and to help manage – not prevent – the process of change.

Strategy: Information for the Character Statement was collected over six months in 1999. They were determined to reach as many people as possible. In all 200 people responded to their written questions and verbal comments made at the workshops bring the number who contributed to around 300. The draft document was well publicised and over 70 people provided useful feed-back.

Outcome: A plan that contains the voice and views of the community has now been produced to preserve Tynemouth’s unique character. The character statement not only highlights the significance of Tynemouth and its heritage, but also includes highly practical recommendations on how to preserve and enhance this. It has since been adopted by the council.