Portsmouth councillors urged to take 'tough stance' on student housing developers

Councillor Cal Corkery, who represents the Charles Dickens ward in which many student blocks have been built, has written to the committee urging it to either refuse permission for their use to house non-students or require the inclusion of affordable housing.

Last summer, Collegiate applied for the temporary change of use of 115 rooms at Crown Place – the second largest student block in the city.

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It warned of a lack of demand from university students and said vacancy rates were putting the business under financial pressure.

‘Whilst the facility could operate at a lower occupancy, clearly there are significant cost implications associated with this which could put the business’ long-term viability at risk,’ it said.

‘The very real impact of the pandemic is still being felt by the university sector and therefore is also being felt by student accommodation providers.’

But Cllr Corkery, who is standing for re-election in May as an independent having been expelled from the Labour Party, said he believed approving these applications would allow developers to bypass obligations around affordable housing.

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‘I am concerned that, if granted permission, this would amount to the developers having sidestepped affordable housing requirements which would have applied if they built the properties for non-student use in the first place,’ his letter said. ‘This would clearly be an unacceptable outcome and I think we as a local authority need to do more to stand up to developers and demand they meet their affordable housing obligations.

‘When they come before you, I am asking that you either refuse the applications on this basis, or alternatively grant permission on condition that the appropriate level of affordable housing is provided.’

He said these blocks ‘could be ideal’ for young people on low incomes or those at risk of homelessness should they no longer be needed for student housing.

The candidates for the Charles Dickens ward at next month’s election are:

• Yahiya Chowdhury (Lib Dems)
• Cal Corkery (independent)
• Raj Ghosh (Labour)
• Terry Henderson (Conservatives)
• Ian McCulloch (Green)