£400m evolution of Fallowfield student complex gets go-ahead
The University of Manchester’s proposals will result in a net increase of 900 student beds at its Owens Park Campus, with much of the existing stock flattened.
Manchester City Council granted approval for the project yesterday and attention now turns to who will deliver the project.
Talks with bidders for the £400m scheme are ongoing with a decision expected in August.
Dr Simon Merrywest, director for the Student Experience at the University of Manchester, said: “These plans were born out of a commitment to provide our new and returning students with modern, high-quality accommodation.
“This much needed update to one of our most popular student campuses is integral to ensuring we can continue to meet the needs of our student population by delivering well-connected, serviced, modern accommodation in a supportive and inclusive environment.”
Designed by, Sheppard Robson, the scheme would see the tower block, Oak House, Owens Park, and Woolton Hall demolished. Together, those buildings provide around 2,370 student beds.
These ageing buildings are to be replaced with 3,300 new student bedspaces – an increase of 300 units compared to a 2015 iteration of the scheme that did not materialise.
The plans were not universally popular and attracted 198 objections during the statutory consultation period.
Merrywest said a public consultation on the proposals held last summer was key to shaping the plans.
“We will continue to work with our Fallowfield neighbours and local neighbourhood managers so that both our students and the surrounding community can benefit as much as possible from the redevelopment project,” he said.
Turley advised on planning for the project.
Fantastic news, this accommodation is well needed (as any UoM alumni who has lived on Fallowfield campus will know).
By Dave
Obviously good in that Fallowfield really needs the reinvestment. But I can’t help but think that there should have been greater density.
By Tom
This AND Upper Brook St?!
Manchester absolutely rocking it
By You gotta roll with it!
Should be 3 times the size!
By MC
Are they crazy to demolite a beautiful high-rise of 1970s on Fallowfield Campus? Society should stop the crime!
By Aigars
I can’t believe these comments – I wonder if this is university PR at work. Yes, update and improve the campus but don’t demolish Woolton Hall, it’s a lovely building, don’t build 4 x 15 storey towers and don’t add another 950 rooms to an already student saturated area. This is a really well established residential suburb which used to be lovely, with a mix of shops and a healthy, happy mixed population but it reached the tipping point some time ago. This is no good for anyone – students included, the place has become increasingly transient, it is full of litter, anti social behaviour and criminals prey on the vulnerable, drug dealing is also prolific and there are rogue landlords all over the place. Gardens have been concreted over, trees cut down etc etc, it could make you cry. Capitalism rules in its worst form. This extra accommodation is aimed at 1st years and to cope with UoM’s insatiable greed, it will not free up family housing here, first years leave halls in their second year and most will be looking to stay in the area they have become accustomed to. I just can’t understand why people don’t ‘get’ this. I’m appalled by the university but I suppose it’s to be expected by big business but I am appalled and depressed by those who are supposed to serve the citizens of this city.
By Sarah K
Total overdevelopment. No thought for the actual minority of permanent residents. We all know returning students won’t be given bed spaces because UoM guarantee 1st years beds. So that means more students wanting to live in HMOs, more people being forced out of rentals because landlords can get more rent from students. Appalling decision by MCC.
By Rose
As a long-term resident of Fallowfield I can confirm that the consultation referred to by Merrywest was a sham – no genuine forum for residents to engage with the university, just a narrow window of opportunity for 1 day when most people were at work and an online platform which excluded older people/ those with less confidence around digital skills. I am furious that he says he has been working with Fallowfield neighbours – a blatant untruth as we’ve had no direct contact. The ‘benefit’ for us will be increased numbers of first years moving out of Owens Park into local family homes in a community that’s already unbalanced, with 55% student properties. Sleepless nights, anti-social behaviour, litter and vermin everywhere …. where’s the benefit to us???!!!
By Natalie
Take the financial risk at your peril. It’s time for change. We already have too many students in the university system, this problem is nationwide. Any good business owner knows that over expansion is suicidal.
By Mike
The University is now a corporate organization. Profit is the bottom line. It is surprising that there are no shareholders (but hold on, maybe something like Brxxtwxxd, seen elsewhere on the University campus). Demolishing Woolton would be a travesty. But those in power don’t know anything about real heritage except to try and spin it in purple. Sad that the tower will go; many + and – but another part of University heritage. Suspect the foreign student (particularly Chinese) bubble will burst in the next 10 years and then who is going to populate OP and the city center student blocks?
By Ians
Unfortunately students get blamed for the behaviour of local youths by older youths who don’t know the difference, the same happened when I studied at Salford many years ago, the local kids would cause trouble and the innocent students would get the blame.
By Gilly
Manchester City Council and the University of Manchester are perfect examples of how to not manage communities with high numbers of students. Unable to manage the rubbish and noise, hopeless at enforcing Article 4, and hopeless at ensuring all the wonderful economic benefits they tell residents that students bring actually reach the communities to help alleviate the problems that high numbers of students cause. FLooding particular communities with more students? Both institutions are out of their depth.
By Nina
No mention in this article that this will
Increase bed spaces from current numbers of just over 3000 to 5400. Let’s be realistic – only 1st years want to live in halls of residence so that’s an extra 2000 each year wanting to come and live in house shares. Watch out all areas of south Manchester because landlords will be putting students in houses and evicting long term tenants because it’s more profitable. Students can’t find accommodation in Fallowfield so they’ll be moving into Chorlton, Longsight, Withington, Didsbury etc.
By Anonymous
My blood pressure soared when I read ‘The Director of the Student Experience’s’ blurb. ‘continuing’ to work with our neighbours. I don’t know what he is talking about! The university has been responsible for the destruction of a perfectly nice area which had so much going for it. They have damaged ordinary people’s lives and the council have supported them in this. Why don’t journalists ask long term residents what they think about this? I’m guessing these people at the university will be up for CBEs and Social Responsibility awards. I think the real cost to communities of constant expansion of the ‘education’ sector needs to be aired. Also, this man mentions ‘consultation’ – what consultation! Most people here still don’t know what is going even going on.
By James
I am a permanent householder living in the epicentre of the Fallowfield student living area since the early 1980s.
I’ve witnessed first hand the ongoing success of Fallowfield as an attractive place for student living and seen much improvement in the locality over the decades. I have remained here whilst many of my friends and neighbours have not tolerated the changes and have left the area, selling their properties to landlords who have bought them for student letting.
I was part of the planning consultation for this redevelopment when I made it clear I was in favour regarding greater numbers of first year students in Fallowfield. I understand the impact of the decision to go ahead. There has been widespread publication and discussion regarding the project and I am bewildered by the comments here that most people in the area don’t know about what is being planned.
I am not a bot.
By Cam
Anyone who knows anything about Manchester knows that Fallowfield is – and has been for decades – a student area. Anyone who says anything different are kidding themselves. Maximising the land use efficiency of the existing campus makes total sense in this location.
By Anonymous
Loving all the Nimbys moaning about family housing being taken over by student HMO’s, and then moaning about student accommodation being built which would take a bit of the pressure off. Just can’t win with the boomer generation.
By David
Why can’t these students live in university accommodation in the city centre or is that accommodation only for rich international students from China?.
By David Jones
Love this comments about how greedy UoM is, and simultaneously the news is full of how the HE sector is under huge financial pressure.
The reality is there’s an area like Fallowfield in every major university city in the UK. My daughter is studying in Birmingham and lives in Selly Oak, and it might even have higher student density than Fallowfield.
By Rich X
It’s not unreasonable to think that several thousand more 1st years being placed in a community will lead to increased demand for HMOs in the same area from 2nd year onwards.
There really does need to be some thought on how the city copes with UoM’s relentless expansionism in particular.
Manchester does better than most places from its universities due to high graduate retention, but there is an impact of giving over tens of thousands of bed spaces to house students for nine months of the year on a city with very high demand for housing from permanent residents.
MCC has never seemed very interested in this even though it loses the Council Tax income from every student house – or never questions anything UoM want to do – and the vast majority of domestic students still want to be in shared houses after first year, so PBSA may accommodate rising numbers of freshers and international students, but makes no difference to demand for existing houses.
By Rotringer
This is a simple question of supply and demand. There isn’t enough PBSA which is why it is so expensive and why students have to find other places to live. If there were loads of empty PBSA blocks in Manchester the argument would be more legitimate…….but there aren’t.
By Think
No one’s mentioned the diabolical transport issues here in Fallowfield. There’s no tram; only a bus route into town. This development will see bed spaces increase from 3000 to 5400. 2400 increase from what it is currently at now, not the 950 that planning stated. The giant bus stop on Wilmslow Road that’s opposite Owens Park cannot cope with the volume of students going into town now (you’ll see many comments on student forums of the 30>40minute wait to get/get on a bus in the morning and missing lectures etc) Bussing this 2400 increase in students from that stop, will require an additional 30 x magic buses. Unbelievable lack of foresight and planning.
By Toby Warburton
Don’t get rid of squirrels man😩
By Anonymous
Resident in Fallowfield almost 25 years i found no difficulties in discussing and expressing my views on the student accommodation plans. A sense of community is not enhanced by hostility shown to anyone including young people, students or otherwise. Surely we should be acting as role models looking at ways to engage along side rather than engage in battles. Young people’s behaviour is not perfect but nor is mine. I learn more and respect most those people who have spoken with me about their different opinion rather than those who have complained bitterly about me behind their hands. I welcome the students and the student complex. Maybe as a community we should look at ways of improving the lot of those who live in HMOs not all of whom are doing so willingly.
By Nicki
I’ve lived in Fallowfield for most of my life and it’s a great place to live but has over the last 15 years become too intensified with students living in the community. It’s so unbalanced and that makes it unsustainable. Balance is necessary for a healthy and thriving neighbourhood. However nice the new accommodation is, the only way to make a difference is to have fewer first years accommodated in halls and more second and third years. But that won’t happen because students want to live in house shares off campus. Landlords know it, that’s why they’re converting every house into max occupancy student accommodation, with or without planning permission.
By Hannah