Members of the Nottingham City Council planning committee resolved to grant planning permission for the Bendigo Building, a 692-bed student living development. Godwin Developments will redevelop the site – which is the former Royal Mail sorting office – into a purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) scheme. The decision was made subject to clarification of further design details.
The Bendigo Building scheme will see the currently disused property – which has been vacant for nearly 20 years – demolished and replaced with new PBSA, which will provide new high-quality, contemporary living spaces for students in the city.
The development – which is less than half a mile from Nottingham Trent University – will include a mix of modern studio apartments, four, five and six-bedroom clusters and accessible studio rooms.
There will also be a range of indoor amenities – including two receptions, a spacious residents lounge, a gym, study and games rooms. Outdoors will include a fully landscaped courtyard garden with outdoor seating, recreational and outdoor exercise equipment. Students will also benefit from six car parking and 312 cycle storage spaces.
The ground floor of the Bendigo Building will have two commercial units which will provide an additional amenity for residents and the neighbouring community. Once underway the Bendigo Building will create around 300 jobs during the construction phase – and 40 full-time positions when fully operational.
“We are delighted to have received the resolution to grant planning approval from Nottingham City Council for our proposals, which will transform this eye-sore of a building into a thriving student hub.
“With unmet demand of over 7,000 student beds in the city and the number of undergraduates rising as both universities continue their expansion plans, there is a clear requirement for more dedicated student spaces where young people can live, study, and socialise together. Our plans will not only cater to this demand but also support the Council’s ambitions to keep the city centre vibrant, house students better, and protect further traditional family housing from being converted for student occupation.”
“The Bendigo Building will also bring a substantial amount of investment, attracting £234m of economic activity to Nottingham and the region in the form of construction, employment and discretional spend. Other community benefits will include a large contribution towards open spaces as well as employment and training, improvement of public realm and safety.”
“We would like to thank Nottingham City Council’s planning team for their support of the scheme, as well as our partners – architects RG+P, planning consultants P&DG and engineering business HSP Consulting – for their work to-date.”
Matt Chandler, Development Director, Godwin Developments
The Bendigo Building is within easy walking distance of Nottingham city centre, Sneinton Market, Nottingham Trent University and the main food and entertainment quarter, with the University of Nottingham and Nottingham train station also readily accessible via public transport.
The scheme has been designed with sustainability in mind and contains features including air source heat pumps, photovoltaic (PV) roof panels and an energy efficient building fabric. It promotes greener ways of travel in and around the city, supporting cleaner air and reducing traffic congestion in the area.
“In recent years, Nottingham has cemented itself into a major higher education destination. The city attracts nearly 80% of its full-time students from the UK, making it resilient to fluctuations in international student demand.
“As vaccination rates across the country continue to rise and young people seek to return to face-to-face learning and socialising, the need for purpose-built student accommodation will continue to grow – and with it a strong interest from investors across the globe.“We are confident that the Bendigo Building with its prominent location and high amenities provision will be popular with young people and will deliver attractive long-term returns to investors seeking to capitalise on the strong local PBSA market.”
James Mulcare, Head of Residential Capital Markets, Godwin Developments
