Portsmouth student housing firm Collegiate asks permission to change another building in Earlsdon Street over to non-students

Collegiate, which is already applying for permission to use one-fifth of the rooms at Crown Place for other purposes, has now filed similar proposals for Earlsdon Street in Southsea.

Submitted to Portsmouth City Council, the planning application proposes the temporary change of use of all 35 of its rooms to be used as 'serviced apartments', rather than being strictly for students, for three years.

In a statement, the firm said it would prioritise student occupancy but added that demand from abroad had still not recovered following the pandemic, mirroring comments made about Crown Place.

‘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 says. ‘It is also far preferable to see the building in full use rather than sitting empty for the upcoming academic year.'

The company has partly blamed the University of Portsmouth for its struggles saying it had issued advice for international students to continue studying online rather than face-to-face.

The claim has been dismissed by the university which said that this was not true. The university also said it had never had any engagement from Collegiate around the company’s projects.

And now city landlords, who have long opposed the construction of large student accommodation blocks in the city, have urged the city council to refuse both applications, warning relaxing their use would exacerbate parking issues.

'The big problem is parking, these halls gained permission for students on the basis that students do not bring cars,' Portsmouth & District Private Landlords' Association chairman Martin Silman said. 'Short term guests generally do come by car which would create chaos in the town centre.

'We are not talking about pepper-potting a few flats around the city but potentially a flood of rooms in two locations which have absolutely no nearby parking provision.'

The council has set a deadline of September 20 for reaching a decision on the two applications.