Mill House will close in the spring of 2026, following the inauguration of the new Highlight active wellbeing complex on the former Jackson’s Landing site.

However, the new facility would not have sports halls for games like five-a-side football, basketball, and netball.

The findings determined that there will still be “sufficient space in the town, provided by the council, schools, and other partners” to satisfy the future demands of the population.

It said that Hartlepool will have 15 sports halls spread across 11 sites, with public access to facilities offered by a number of schools, as well as sports and youth centres in Brierton, Headland, Rossmere, Throston, and Belle Vue.

The study highlighted the need for the council “to work with education partners to develop community use agreements to protect and, where possible, increase access” to facilities.

It further indicated that the municipality must guarantee that ageing stock is refurbished in order to maintain availability.

Meanwhile, it is suggested that the council collaborate with local clubs “where there has been a significant recent growth in demand” to assist them in “developing their own venues”.

The new Highlight recreational centre will have three pools: a 25m 8-lane main pool, a 25m 4-lane learner pool, and a leisure pool.

The assessment concluded that the council “may need to consider additional water space in future years” to fulfil demand from population expansion after 2033 or if availability at current sites decreases.

Representatives from Max Associates stated that if this were the case, a “small community use pool” would be necessary.

The strategy was agreed during the most recent meeting of the council’s housing, growth, and communities committee.

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