Plans for Peterborough's landmark Guild House to be converted into 138-apartments approved

Peterborough’s Guild House will be converted into a major new housing scheme.

The building on Oundle Road, which formerly belonged to Anglia Ruskin University, will be incorporated into a development of 138 new apartments after final planning approval was granted on Tuesday (September 3).

The final vote on the city’s Planning and Environmental Protection Committee was unanimous to approve the application.

The university has now sold the building to be converted into 90 apartments by MJS/Lynchwood Developments Ltd.

A further 40 new apartments will also be provided by four new build apartment blocks. Two blocks would consist of nine two bedroom apartments- split across three floors, one of 12 one and two bedroom apartments across three floors and a block to 18 one and two bedroom across three floors.

Speaking at the meeting, representatives for the applicant stated: “The new build blocks have been reduced in footprint and moved away from neighbours and the view of the Cathedral from Oundle Road has been preserved.

The development will help the council to meet its housing supply and will achieve the long term preservation and beneficial reuse of the currently vacant Guild House, a locally listed building.

“At the moment, it is a tired building in a car park. It will get a significant overhaul. The ugly ramps will be removed, it will get a greener setting, the windows will be replaced, the cladding will be thoroughly cleaned. When we finish, it will look like a new building not an old one.”

Councillors had raised concerns about the fact that there is no affordable housing provision in the scheme, which developers suggested was due to the need for the scheme to be viable in the face of high costs to convert the building.

The development will provide a total of 162 parking spaces; one for each unit as well as 24 visitor spaces, a recognised shortfall but the officers that the scheme had been designed to encourage sustainable transport and a much larger than required number of cycle spaces would be provided (212).

Fletton and Woodston ward councillor and Cabinet Member for Regeneration Nick Thulbourn spoke against the application at the meeting, making reference to a number of concerns, particularly relating to traffic.

Cllr Thulbourn said: “The development will have a significant impact on the area. It is an area of Victorian buildings with no predominant off-street parking.

“Oundle Road and the side streets are past full. The place is beginning to close down. Businesses are looking to move out the area, and some already have, because of access issues. We’ve been waiting for 30 years for Oundle Road to be upgraded and it’s never been done.

"I am actively looking at moving out of the area because we can’t run our business there; we can’t get access, it’s just clogged.

"The infrastructure in the area is broken. We need to invest in Oundle Road. If the parking numbers stay the same, Wharf Road and Jubilee Street will shut down.”

Members ultimately decided to go with the recommendation of officers and approved the development.

Among those to vote for the development, Cllr Christian Hogg said: “I’m not happy about any development that comes forward with no affordable housing provision but I understand our hands are tied and I’m sure officers have looked very closely at the argument that they can’t provide this.

“It would be nice to see the building given some life again and more provision of housing is something we are in desperate need of in Peterborough. It is a great use of that sight.”

Cllr Wayne Fitzgerald added “Cllr Thulbourn, I don’t recognise your description of the area in many of the points you raise. I did not hear any policy or planning issues which would prevent us from approving this. I go down that road everyday and have no problem parking at the barbers or the cycle shop. Granted it is busy but its because there is business there and I have never had a problem there.”

Guild House was built in 1962 for Mitchell Construction. It became the home of ARU’s Faculty of Health and Social Care, which had been at the former Peterborough General Hospital, in 2011 with the help of a £500,000 grant from Peterborough City Council.

It has also been used as offices by British Sugar.

The faculty has since moved to the campus of Peterborough’s new £30 million university off Bishop’s Road, on the Embankment.