Nottingham students could live in bomb-proof police and fire station as plans approved

Future students in Nottingham could soon get the chance to live in a bomb-proof former police and fire station after plans to transform the 1930s building were approved.

The old police headquarters and central fire station, fronting Shakespeare Street in the city centre, will be converted into student accommodation under the green-lit plan.

It will be complemented by a new, 18-storey tower block and a public food hall.

Initial plans were scrapped after the building was given Grade-II listed protected status in 2023 – a matter of days before they were expected to be approved by city councillors.

An appeal against the listing failed, sending the developers back to the drawing board.

New plans to retain the police headquarters and central fire station emerged in September this year, and they were unanimously approved at a planning meeting on Wednesday (December 17).

Councillor Sam Harris (Lab) said: “This is exactly what we need from purpose-built student accommodation. The location is fantastic. It is utilising a heritage site.

“One of the big things I will campaign on continually in this city – and it is becoming a trend among young people coming to the city – is the feel of the city and the fact there are not enough high-rise buildings.

“When you go to other core cities, Leeds, Manchester, Birmingham, they all feel like you’re looking up at a New York skyline strip. That is something Nottingham doesn’t yet have.”

Cllr Pavlos Kotsonis (Lab) also welcomed the scheme, adding: “I think the tower is well-designed, I think the Art-Deco elements fit in really well. It is a good addition. It is a slender tower as well so it doesn’t overburden.”

Green Party councillor Shuguftah Quddoos praised the planned use of bird and bat boxes, but questioned the rising vacancy rates in student blocks.

However planning director Paul Seddon said it is not currently forecast that student numbers will fall in the future, and said the vacancy rate was only increasing due to the delivery of accommodation to take pressure off family housing.

Councillors were further informed that reducing the monopoly of student accommodation would bring prices down and improve quality.

As well as the 1930s police HQ and fire station building, the wider site features several notable buildings, including the Grade II-listed Guildhall, the E.ON building facing Burton Street, a central courtyard block, and the Grade II-listed fire station house facing South Sherwood Street.

Developer Vita Group says the former police and fire station building will be “retained, restored and sensitively converted into high-quality student accommodation.”

The 18-storey tower will be built within the courtyard to complement the historic architecture, while a public food hall will feature in a podium at the base of the block.

The separate Grade II listed fire station house – which dates back even further to the 1880s – will be “sensitively restored and converted to provide access to the food hall and student amenity space”.

A 1920s extension to the rear of the Guildhall’s east wing will require demolition under the plans, but this section of the protected building “does not contribute to the special architectural or historic interest of the Guildhall”, plans say.

The development will deliver a total of 610 student bed spaces.

The original plans had drawn intense criticism from the Nottingham Civic Society, largely due to the proposed demolition of the historic building.

Historic England further suggested the height of the tower be reduced, but acknowledged its impact was “less than substantial”.

Ian Wells, vice-chair and treasurer of the Civic Society, said: “It was built at a time of great civic building in the 1930s.

“It is one of the high points of our culture, so it is good that it’s going to have a future after all.”