£274m plan for student blocks clinch approval

A MAJOR student accommodation hub in Newcastle will undergo a £274m rebuild.

- DANIEL HOLLAND Local Democracy Reporter

Unite Students and Newcastle University won planning permission yesterday for a redevelopment of the Castle Leazes site in Spital Tongues. The area’s old 1960s student flats have been demolished and will now be replaced by two huge new accommodation blocks that will house more than 2,000 students. The new rooms are expected to open in time for the 2028/29 academic year.

Newcastle City Council’s planning committee approved the plans despite serious concerns from neighbouring residents about an “overdevelopment” of the area. A spokesperson representing more than 70 Spital Tongues households told a civic centre hearing that locals feared the same “loss of community, anti-social behaviour, and strain on infrastructure” seen in other popular student housing areas like Jesmond.