Age Concern Tyneside South (ACTS)'s South Shields offices are the focus of an imaginative heritage project which is introducing people over the age of 50 to the digital world.

The house dates back to the 1830s when the land belonged to former prime minister Charles Earl Grey and the Rev John Saville Ogle. Formerly known as 1 Wellington Terrace, it has since been occupied by the influential Forsyth shipbuilding family, a nursery, a construction business and an NHS drug and alcohol service. 

Andrea McLaughlin, Heritage Project Manager, said: “It’s given people a sense of pride to find out about the characters who lived here and made them think about their own ancestors.”

ACTS launched in 2016 after the transfer of services and staff from Age UK South Tyneside. Staff brought more than 30 years’ experience delivering services to older people in the borough, which has an ageing population facing issues around health and social isolation. 

The story of what is now 29 Beach Road has become a hook making people aware of the expanding community hub and the wider services it offers.