126 student flats rejected after 160+ objections

Councillors voted 5-3 against the plans for the St Joseph’s complex on Cotham Hill on Wednesday (2 September), with one abstention.

The decision came despite planning officers recommending that the application be approved, and after 162 objections were submitted by residents.

The area already has a large student population, with 43.5 per cent of the local population being full-time students. A council report also found 196 existing student bedspaces within 200 metres of the site.

Green councillor Guy Poultney, who represents Cotham, spoke against the plans, saying the area was “over-concentrated” with students and that the community had become “unbalanced”.

But planning officers told councillors that purpose-built student accommodation is assessed differently from houses in multiple occupation (HMOs), and said the development would not change the character of the area.

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Conservative councillor Richard Eddy supported the plans, arguing that managed student accommodation could help address problems associated with HMOs.

Lib Dem councillor Zoe Peat opposed the application, saying purpose-built student accommodation would not help the more than 20,000 households currently waiting for housing in Bristol.

The application will now return to the planning committee, where councillors will be given proposed reasons for refusing it that could withstand an appeal.

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