Q: Why has the site been left to deteriorate for so long?

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As long ago as 2000, the building was deteriorating due to a lack of maintenance - and it was becoming less and less suited to education use. Since then, several attempts have been made to bring the building back into use, but the cost of doing so is significant.

Furthermore, the size of the existing buildings, and therefore the size of the previously proposed redevelopment projects, resulted in the need for an extremely large financial commitment from investors. The previous proposals were based on residential apartments, and, unfortunately the scale of the project and the associated risks were such that no funders have been willing to invest.  So, despite several attempts over many years, it has proved impossible for residential led schemes to be implemented.

Without any investment or maintenance over the last 20 years, the building has unfortunately continued to deteriorate, as well as attracting vandals and other antisocial behaviour, which has resulted in it becoming completely derelict.

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Q: Why haven’t the previously approved planning permissions been implemented?

 

The difficulty for previous developers has been an inability to convince funders/investors that the risks of delivering the previous schemes would be worthwhile.

Unlike the speculative nature of the previously proposed apartment development, the current proposals are backed by an experienced and large student residential operator, which in turn, provides investors certainty and much less risk.

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Q: Hasn’t the City already got enough student accommodation?

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There is a need for good quality well-managed bespoke student accommodation in the City. The location of this building and its physical form/layout is well suited to modern student needs, whereas some of the older student accommodation in the City is already becoming outdated.

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Furthermore, it is widely recognised that students occupy many houses in the City, effectively removing them from the housing stock available for individuals, couples and families. Therefore, providing modern, bespoke, purpose-built accommodation is a good way of returning those buildings to the general housing stock.

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Q: How can the developers guarantee this won’t be yet another ‘false start’, and the buildings are left to deteriorate further?

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Unfortunately, it is not possible to guarantee that any scheme approved by the planning authority will be built. However, unlike previous proposals this scheme will have a well-established and significant operator in place to manage the proposed accommodation, and that in itself provides a much greater level of certainty (and less risk) for investors.

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Q: If this scheme is implemented, won’t having students in the area result in a different form of anti social behaviour (compared with the existing problems)?

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No. The property will be permanently managed/staffed, and all students will have to adhere to the standards required. It would be naïve to suggest that things will never go wrong, but given the very intensive management and care that is applied by the operator, any issues are quickly identified and resolved.

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Q: What sort of traffic will nearly 300 student occupants result in?

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Relatively little. Students are expected to walk or cycle around the City, and given the proximity of the site to the City Centre, there is little need for regular car use.

Suitable facilities will be provided on site for safe and secure bicycle storage.
 

Inevitably, there will be an increase in traffic, simply on the basis the building is currently empty/derelict, but this will largely be as a result of staff, maintenance vehicles (e.g. refuse collection) and when residents move in/out – all of which would be expected with any proposal that brings the building back into use. There is an expectation that this proposal will result in less traffic than an apartment scheme, but a full technical report will be provided as part of any future planning application.

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Q: How long will construction go on for?

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Once all approvals are in place, it is anticipated that construction will take circa 18 months to complete.

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Q: Will there be any job opportunities created by the implementation of this scheme?

 

Yes. Jobs will be created during the construction period, and further employment opportunities will be available when the scheme is completed.

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Q: How much disruption will the Construction cause?

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Construction at the site will inevitably result in some traffic and noise from building operations. However, whilst a contractor has yet to be appointed, working hours, delivery routes, cleaning of vehicles etc., will be managed and legally controlled via clauses in the building contract.

Furthermore, a permanent site manager will be based on site who can be contacted during the construction phase should there be specific concerns.

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Q: How do I make my views known?

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The Covid pandemic and current restrictions on gatherings make a public exhibition impossible. However, we are keen to hear your views and have tried making as much information available as possible on this website, as well as advertising in the local press.

You can contact us via email or post; Scodd Ltd, Albion Offices, PO Box 1, 25 Birmingham Road, West Bromwich, B70 6RR.

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We are very happy to answer your queries as best we can, whichever format you choose to use, and as part of our planning application we will prepare and submit a report summarising the various comments that have been made. 

 

There will also be a further opportunity to comment directly to the Planning Authority as part of the planning application process.

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