Student accommodation to be refurbished after sale

The Lawns in Cottingham are Grade II listed

Two former student accommodation blocks have been sold to a developer which plans to refurbish them and build 90 homes.

The University of Hull initially put The Lawns and Ferens Hall in Cottingham up for sale in 2021, saying there was a shift in demand towards "premium, high-quality, on-campus accommodation".

MCR Property Group said it planned to bring the buildings back into use with "a multi-million-pound refurbishment programme that would deliver modern, high-quality student accommodation ready for the next academic year".

East Riding of Yorkshire Council said a planning application had not yet been received.

Ferens Hall had housed students until it closed in 2019

The accommodation, which housed 970 students, closed in 2019.

In January 2023, the University dropped plans to sell the blocks to the government for use by asylum seekers.

The proposal attracted protests, and MP David Davis said the plan would put "unsustainable and unacceptable pressure" on the area.

Cottingham North ward councillor Phillip Redshaw said plans to house students on the site again were "good news", and would bring "vibrancy" and income to the area.

However, he said approval for more homes would take "a lot of persuading" as there had been "a lot of housing [built] in the village over the last 15 to 20 years".

He said some local people were concerned about introducing further housing into Cottingham, where "doctors and medical services are already under strain".

Nick Lake, fund director at MCR Property Group, said: "The Lawns and Ferens Hall are iconic sites with a proud history.

"Our vision is to restore them to their former role as centres for student living, while also introducing a high-quality residential scheme that will meet local housing needs."

Listen to highlights from Hull and East Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here.

Download the BBC News app from the App Store for iPhone and iPad or Google Play for Android devices