COACH tours of Teesside's former steelworks have been postponed again.

Tours of the Teesworks side are being put on to give people a chance to see the former SSI steelworks site before it is redeveloped.

They were due to take place in March, after being rescheduled from October because of coronavirus restrictions.

Thousands of people have signed up to visit the site, which is undergoing a £393million, 12-month demolition and remediation programme that will create 775 jobs as the site is made ready for investors. Those affected will be contacted shortly.

Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen said: “Unfortunately the current situation with the coronavirus pandemic has meant that we have once again taken the decision to delay the start of these coach tours. We didn’t want to be in this position, as I know that lots of people from across Teesside, Darlington and Hartlepool has been looking forward to coming on-site, but public health and wellbeing must remain a priority at this time."

“We had hoped to go forward with them next month and while we’ve been making great strides in getting people vaccinated and slowing the rate of transmission, we still need to follow the guidance and make sure we don’t do anything to jeopardise all the good work that’s been done so far.

“The good news is that today the Prime Minister has given us the most clear indication yet of how and when rules will be relaxed and, coupled with the vaccine rollout, there is light at the end of the tunnel.

“We look forward to welcoming people on to the site to see the massive change it is undergoing as soon as we can. In the meantime, we’re also working on some exciting alternatives to the tour to give as many people as possible the chance to learn more about what we’re doing at Teesworks so watch this space.”