Cumberland gives green light to £12m Carlisle Premier Inn
A 104-bed, five-storey hotel will be constructed on a vacant site at West Walls on Victoria Viaduct following the council’s approval of Whitbread’s plans.
Cumberland Council’s decision paves the way for a £12m investment to deliver Carlisle’s fifth Premier Inn – and Whitbread’s twelfth in Cumbria – and opens the door for a hotel to once again occupy the site.
A hotel has stood on the West Walls site in some form since 1881, when the Grand Central Hotel was built on the plot, later becoming the Central Plaza Hotel.
Jill Anderson, acquisitions manager at Whitbread, said: “As a team we feel very passionate about this development.
“Bringing the site back into use as a hotel will encourage people to stay in the city centre, supporting other existing businesses as our customers eat and drink out, and will create permanent, flexible, year-round hospitality jobs with a leading FTSE100 company – creating long-term value the city.”
Whitbread was selected by Cumberland Council as preferred bidder for the West Walls site less than a year ago.
Since May 2025, the process of creating a scheme that stacks up on a tricky site has presented challenges, Anderson added.
The five-storey hotel, which will feature ‘Standard’ and ‘Premier Plus’ bedrooms, needed to take account of numerous design constraints including topography changes, height restrictions and the listed City wall which forms a boundary along part of the site.
“Redeveloping constrained locations such as West Walls is not easy and we have overcome many hurdles to design a viable hotel development.
“Cumberland Council have very much been on the journey with us, and I would like to thank them for their commitment to our plans as well as the many people who have helped us to secure this planning permission.”
Whitbread is hoping to commence construction in 2026 and is targeting completion before the end of 2028.
Turley advised on planning and Allison Pike Partnership led on design.
RGP Consulting Engineers, Thornley and Lumb Partnership, Arbtech, and E3P all worked on the application.
To view the scheme, use the planning reference number 25/0661 on Cumberland Council’s planning portal.
Ugly and generic – very poor.
By Heritage Action
I like how the colour palette looks like next door, but the overall effect is heavy, lumpy and a bit poor. I do however like the SIGNAGE :/
By Hmmm
This is atrocious. And Carlisle was doing well will recent projects.
Cumberland badly needs a design code like the Lakes NPA already has and neighbouring Westmorland & Furness is developing.
By Rye
With this design we’re harking back to the 90s especially the ugly little glass tower or turret whatever you want to name it. Very poor design.
By John
Another monstrosity of architecture put into carlisle,
By Anonymous
A new Premier Inn for Carlisle is very welcome but this proposal is incredibly poor and low quality. Carlisle has some lovely buildings and proposals for sites like this should be much much better.
By Keiran O'Rourke
What a ugly building
By Anonymous
Quite boring really, when something in keeping with the vernacular would have been exciting!
By Anonymous