Willmott Dixon has a significance presence in the North East, with a local office in Team Valley Trading Estate, Gateshead, and has delivered a number of flagship projects in the region, including the Redcar Beacon ‘vertical pier’ and Houghton-Le-Spring Primary Care & Leisure Centre in Sunderland, the UK’s first BREEAM outstanding health facility. It is currently building a £30m new headquarters for Northumbria Police close to Newcastle Central Station.

Following its appointment at Hebburn, work will start later this month to create a two-storey hub that provides residents with a host of community facilities, including a 6-lane swimming pool and fitness suite, library and IT area, customer service centre, meeting rooms for community groups, 70-station fitness suite, a learning suite linked to South Tyneside College and base for the local community police officer.

Councillor Iain Malcolm, Leader of South Tyneside Council, said: “Willmott Dixon have a first class reputation for their work and I have no doubt that they can deliver the high quality building we have in mind for Hebburn. We are determined to drive forward regeneration right across South Tyneside and I’m delighted that Hebburn residents can now look forward to construction starting on site within a matter of weeks. The Hub will make a huge difference to the town centre and make it far more likely to attract future investment from the private sector.”

Anthony Dillon, managing director for Wilmott Dixon in the North, said: “We are excited about the Hebburn Community Hub project and looking forward to giving Hebburn town centre the landmark hub it deserves. As a company we have a strong commitment to supporting the local economy and we will spend at least 30% of the budget in the local area as well as creating apprenticeships for local residents.”

Councillor Eddie McAtominey, Chair of Hebburn Regeneration Board, said: “This is fantastic news for Hebburn and it means people can expect to see activity on site within weeks. The Hub will offer easy access to a range of Council and other services in a modern, attractive building as well as giving the town centre a real shot in the arm. We have consulted widely and the design is based very much on what people told us they want, with a flexible building that can be easily adapted to meet changing local needs in the future.”

Councillor Michael Clare, Lead Member for Regeneration and Economy at South Tyneside Council, said: “The Council is making investments to drive forward regeneration right across the borough and this shows our commitment to improving Hebburn town centre. We have already made significant progress in the area, knocking down the unloved maisonette blocks, building new homes and superb school buildings.”