Manchester City Council has granted a resolution to approve a full planning permission to McLaren Property, for the £70m redevelopment and restoration of St Gabriel’s Chapel and Lodge into new high-quality student accommodation.

The restoration of the St Gabriel’s Chapel and Lodge, and associated buildings will deliver 319-bed spaces, along with shared amenity space and new characterful courtyards and gardens for the use of residents. 

Located at Oxford Place, adjacent to Oxford Road and south of the city centre, the two-acre site is close to the University of Manchester and Manchester Metropolitan University campuses and include the renovation of St Gabriel’s Chapel and Lodge and Woodthorpe Hall, with the addition of two new buildings of four-and-five storeys, providing the purpose-built student accommodation. 

David Atherton, Development Director, McLaren Property said: “I am thrilled that we have received the green light from councillors to restore this site to its former glory. It has the hallmarks of an award-winning development that puts the restoration of heritage assets at the heart of the proposals. We are pleased to continue our long-term investment in Manchester City Centre and to help deliver the next generation of high-quality accommodation.”

The 319-bed spaces are a mix of cluster bedrooms (5-8 bed clusters with a communal kitchen and living space) and studio rooms, along with amenity and ancillary spaces. The refurbished St Gabriel’s Lodge and Woodthorpe Hall will house the studios while the Chapel will be refurbished to provide shared amenity space for residents with the cluster bedrooms accommodated in the new purpose-built student accommodation buildings.