COVENTRY MESSAGE BOARD

Eden Square opened in 2020 but was nearly a third empty last year



A student accommodation in Coventry was nearly a third empty last year. It comes as a report suggests there are more student flats in the city than demand for them.

Plans to part change the use of Eden Square on Stoney Stanton Road were lodged with the council this month. The 322-bed scheme was completed four years ago, opening September 2020, a planning statement said.

But it has never been fully rented out - "not yet established full levels of occupancy," - the report by Avison Young revealed. This was partly because of the impact of the pandemic early on, it said.

But it is "also due to a large supply of student accommodation in the City that is capable of meeting a much greater demand than has been experienced in recent years," the statement added. The scheme was only 69% full in the 2022/23 academic year, meaning almost a third of it was empty.

This is unlikely to improve in future years, the report added. The plans are now to allow 24 of the block's studios to be rented out so non-students can also live there, known as a flexible use.

Part of the scheme was allowed to be rented out to non-students temporarily for the first year that the building opened, it said. This was because of the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic which made student numbers uncertain.

The latest plans also come as the city faces challenges in the student accommodation sector, the statement revealed. The problems stem from "unfavourable supply and demand dynamics," which are predicted to continue in the coming years.

The aim of the change is to boost how full the scheme is and avoid the housing being empty, it added. The plans are yet to be decided by Coventry city council and can be viewed under reference PL/2024/0000639/FULM.

Coventry student block to become HMO despite concerns



Part of a student accommodation block in Coventry will become a HMO despite concerns being raised. Plans were submitted to change the use of a town houses, known as Block D, in the Eden Square Student Living development from purpose built student accommodation (PBSA)

The management company asked the city council for permission for its flexible use as PBSA and Home of Multiple Occupation (HMO). In the planning statement it explained that occupancy levels had never reached 100 per cent since it opened in 2020.

To help improve this, Privilege, which runs the site, wanted to change of use of Block D. There are a total of 18 units within the three town houses in Block D.

"To provide additional flexibility, so that it is able to respond to this and improve occupancy levels of Eden Square," the application stated.

The Coventry Society raising an objection to the proposal citing a number of concerns. This includes inadequate car parking, existing parking in the area and said that it would be 'unsatisfactory accommodation' arrangements as students and families should not be mixed.

In a city council planning officer report, it states: "A concern has been raised regarding mixing of students and non-students. However, block D is physically separate from the other blocks, and whilst communal facilities will be shared (such as laundry etc) it is considered that the management of the site will negate any negative harms which may or may not potentially arise.

"The management plan makes it clear that individual townhouses would not be occupied by a mix of students and non-students."

In regards to the car parking concern, the report states there is no car parking for Block D because Eden Square is a car free development. "Secure cycle storage is available within the Eden Square development for use by occupiers of Block D," the report states.

"Moreover, and more importantly, the site is in a highly sustainable location, which is accessible by a wide variety of non-car modes."

It concludes that the change of use proposal has been approved.