Annual Parking Report 2022 to 2023

The Borough of Stockton-on-Tees is a Unitary Authority with a population of approximately 196,000. Within the Borough there are 6 town centres; Stockton, Billingham, Thornaby, Yarm, Norton and Ingleby Barwick. 

Stockton town centre is located on the north bank of the River Tees. At the heart of the High Street, known to be one of the widest in the UK, is the historic Town Hall, which dates from 1735. The High Street also incorporates an outdoor market every Wednesday and Saturday that has been in existence since the 1300s. Stockton is historically known for being the first area to operate a passenger railway in 1825 to Darlington, that is something we take great pride in and look forward to celebrating the bicentenary in 2025. We have a feature within the town centre which shows our passion for our history known as the Automaton. View how the Automation works.

The Automaton attracts visitors every day to the High Street to watch the operation that is the daily reminder of the railway heritage with sound effects that can be heard throughout the Town Centre.  

Here at Stockton-on-Tees we pride ourselves with our events and continue to deliver an action-packed calendar of events across the Borough throughout the year.

View our video which demonstrates the type of events we hold.

Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council has ambitious plans for inward investment and inclusive growth that has seen the opening of the Hampton by Hilton Hotel followed by the restoration of the historic Globe Theatre that reopened its doors following a multi-million pound investment to return the theatre to its former art deco glory. The theatre hosts music, theatre and comedy attracting visitors from further afield than the Tees Valley.  

Further development is planned for Stockton town centre with the relocation of shops and businesses to vacant shop units in the Wellington Square retail area to enable the demolition of the Castlegate shopping centre and multi storey car park that has started in earnest. Planning consent has been granted for both the Community Diagnostic Centre and Waterfront park and events space bringing new footfall and opportunities for the town centre to thrive. Further regeneration of the area is in the pipeline that will continue to see new development in the town centre supporting the existing leisure and retail offers. 

Billingham town centre, located in the north of the Borough provides the town with national retail chains, and is home to one of the biggest leisure centres in the North East, The Forum, that provides facilities for swimming, ice skating, gymnasium, indoor activities as well as a popular theatre. The Council would like to extend the regeneration aspirations to this town centre and has submitted bids to the Department for Levelling Up and Housing and Communities that have been unsuccessful so far.   

Thornaby town centre is dominated by the pavilion shopping centre, providing an extensive range of national and local retailers, restaurants and leisure centres. Similar to The Forum in Billingham, the Pavilion offers leisure activities, such as sports hall, gym and squash courts that can be used with the same membership, ACTIV8. Thornaby has also received Towns Fund from the Government that will see some additional operations in the future, notably an aspiration for a new swimming pool and some demolition work on derelict buildings has commenced to facilitate this. 

Yarm town centre is located in the south of the Borough and is one of the more affluent areas. Yarm High Street is bordered by the River Tees with many Georgian style buildings fronting onto the cobbled parking area providing a mix of shops and restaurants. Yarm is an attraction for people across the North East due to its vibrant and local businesses and numerous coffee shops, bars and restaurants.