Plans for Stanton House, off Christchurch Street, swap 33 one-bed flats for 29 council homes: fewer homes, more bedrooms. Comments are due by 20 October.
Plans have gone in to knock down Stanton House, the empty council flats on Christchurch Street and Napier Street, and build 29 new council homes. The site is in Market ward, a few minutes’ walk from the Grafton and New Square.
The application was submitted by Cambridge Investment Partnership, the city council’s joint venture with The Hill Group. It was validated on 23 September under reference 26/03635/FUL.
Fewer homes, but more bedrooms
The council’s announcement leads on the 29 new homes. The application form spells out what that means for the site as a whole. It lists 33 existing homes and 29 proposed, a net loss of four.
The existing homes were all one-bedroom sheltered flats. The council’s release also counts one two-bedroom house on the site, which would make the loss five.
The new homes are bigger. The architects’ accommodation schedule gives this mix:
- 12 one-bedroom homes for people with learning difficulties, two of them built for wheelchair users
- 9 one-bedroom homes
- 5 two-bedroom homes
- 3 three-bedroom homes
That is 40 bedrooms in all, against 33 in the old flats, or 35 if the house is included. The 17 homes outside the specialist block are for people on the council’s housing register.
Why the flats are coming down
The council says its Housing Scrutiny Committee approved moving residents out in 2024. That followed an independent report which found the flats were below modern space standards, had poor energy performance and suffered ongoing maintenance problems.
The report also found “significant fire safety concerns”. The council says these included too little fire protection inside the building. The application form describes the site as vacant, last used as sheltered housing.
What would be built
The scheme is three blocks of up to four storeys around a central courtyard, angled towards the neighbouring church. According to the council, the plans include:
- a courtyard with sensory play areas, planting and seating
- 55% more open space than the site has now
- a specialist block designed with Cambridgeshire County Council and Independent Living Services, with a staff office at the entrance
- homes built to the council’s “Cam Standard” for low energy use, thermal comfort and resilience to a changing climate
Car parking falls from seven spaces to two, according to the application form. The accommodation schedule shows 40 cycle spaces, including two for cargo bikes.
Councillor Gerri Bird, the council’s Cabinet Member for Housing, said the specialist homes would help “people with learning difficulties live more independently, with the support they need”.
What it means for you
- You can comment until 20 October. The site notice went up on 29 September and asks for comments within 21 days. The council will also advertise the application in the press on 7 October.
- Comment online on the Greater Cambridge planning portal, quoting 26/03635/FUL. All comments are published.
- A decision is due by 23 December, the determination deadline on the register.
- If you live nearby, the application includes a daylight and sunlight study of neighbouring homes and a noise assessment, both on the portal.
- If you are on the housing register, the 17 general-needs homes would be let through it. No completion date has been given.
Other planning news across the city is on our Cambridge planning news page.
Have your say