Plans for Barker & Stonehouse store shelved as Duke is turned down

23rd February | expansion | Land earmarked for a 60,000sq ft Barker & Stonehouse store must be used for employment or industrial use, a planning committee had ruled.

Northumberland Estates, which represents the business interests of the Duke of Northumberland, had planned for a £10m retail project in North Tyneside to be spearheaded by furniture independent Barker & Stonehouse, along with DIY chain Homebase.

The site would have been Barker & Stonehouse’s ninth store, following the opening of its eighth, in Nottingham, last year. The retailer, regarded as one of the best furniture independents in the country, has stores in Middlesbrough, Darlington, Knaresborough, Gateshead, Newcastle, Hull and Leeds. 

A North Tyneside Council planning committee ruled the site, located near the Metro station in North Tyneside, must be used for non-retail purposes.

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