Planning sought for Sands scheme in Scarborough

A detailed planning application has been submitted by North Yorkshire-based Benchmark Leisure to turn Scarborough’s North Bay in the UK into a £120m destination called The Sands.

The mixed-use scheme will include a 5,000sq m (54,000sq ft) covered waterpark with flumes, rides and an 8-lane pool; a 147-bedroom hotel; a health and fitness club; bars; shops and restaurants as well as 100 private seafront apartments, 38 holiday homes and new beachside facilities including a management centre, lifeguard station and beach huts.

A further planning application is currently being developed by Benchmark to include a spa, dry leisure facilities and another 200 holiday properties.

Work on phase one of the scheme, the private apartments, is expected to take up to 15 months, with the whole development – which covers a total of 55 acres – complete within three to five years of receipt of final planning approval.