Brashy,
You need to be fishing fairly close in, 30 yards or so, possibly less or more depending on the beach. Bass hunt/feed in the surf, they tend to school at sizes up to about 5 lb or so, then they become loners, so, if you catch a smallish one there may be more about! Good fresh bait especially peeler crab will catch them if they are there, but they also have a liking for smelly old lugworm and even calf\'s liver.
It is well worth investing in a light beach caster / bass rod something in the 2 to 4 oz casting range. I have a Daiwa Vulcan which was about £50 and a Ron Thompson which was steal at £10. Because your not going for distance, even a heavyish carp/pike rod would do and they will double up for flatties. When I fish, I tend to fish two rods one at distance and one in the surf.
They do like warm water outfalls from nuclear powers stations, so if you don\'t mind your ears glowing in the dark and can get near an outfall it worth spinning/plugging for them.
Around the Tyne area I would expect the big beach at Southshields to throw out the odd bass, They appear at the North Gare on the Tees and Sandsend (Whitby). I have caught them at Runswick Bay and Fraisthorpe Sands (Bridlington).