Work is due to start this month on the demolition of The Drill Hall in Prudhoe which has stood vacant for a number of years creating an eyesore and a safety hazard. 
 

Once checked that the utilities have been disconnected, the demolition contractor will start on site on July 3 with the work expected to take around eight weeks. 
 

The former Territorial Army drill hall on Prudhoe's Swalwell Close has been subject to a long-running dispute after concerns were first raised in 2019 over the safety of the building. 
 

Work by the site owner Mr Miller, to knock down the building and replace it with housing stopped unexpectedly, leaving the site unsecure with debris blowing around. 
 

Following concerns raised by local residents, the county council secured the site to prevent unauthorised entry and ensure the safety of the building while its future was being determined. 
 

Officers from the council’s Public Protection’s Building Control service, kept a check on the condition of the building due to concerns about its safety.  After one such an inspection, it was necessary to utilise emergency powers under s78 of the Building Act 1984 to take immediate action with regard to unsafe and dangerous sections of the building. Then it was necessary to make an application to court in accordance with section 77 of the Building Act 1984. This application was successful and the Council obtained an Order against the owner Mr Miller, who was required to execute works to obviate the danger from the building.  
 

Mr Miller failed to do this work in the given timeframe and so the responsibility has fallen to Northumberland County Council to carry out the work and make the building safe.  On completion of demolition, a 1.8m fence will be put around the site to tie in with the existing fence. 
 

Northumberland County Council Cabinet member with the portfolio for looking after our Communities Cllr Gordon Stewart said: 

“This has been a protracted and complicated legal case and I thank residents for their patience and the county council’s public protection team for their determination to ensure that Mr Miller was held to account for the condition of the building. 
 

“Local residents living closest to the site will be notified by letter over the coming week that the work is going to happen, and the time frame involved.” 
 

The Drill Hall will be demolished, and the site made secure by the county council but that is as far as the county council’s legal powers permit.