Manchester City Fighting High Risk Cases
The Building Safety Regulator has granted Gateway 2 approval for the first two (of seven) higher-risk buildings in the city of Manchester…at the University’s Fallowfield Campus.
Viridis Living will deliver the new student accommodation. It is a consortium, comprising Equitix, Graham and Derwent FM. In total, the group has submitted seven Higher-Risk Buildings (HRBs) consent requests to the Building Safety Regulator. The two approved buildings each comprise 14 storeys, with one providing 205 beds and the other 207 beds.
With Gateway 2 approval in place, structural works on the two buildings will start this immediately. The consortium expects to receive decisions from the Building Safety Regulator on the remaining five HRBs within the next two months.
15 weeks
From securing planning approval to achieving the first Building Safety Regulator approvals took just 15 weeks in an arena where decisions have been stalled.
The Fallowfield Campus redevelopment will deliver up to 3,300 modern student homes across the previous sites of Owens Park, Oak House and Woolton Hall, alongside amenity spaces and green infrastructure.
Passivhaus
The project, designed by architects, Sheppard Robson, will create five distinct neighbourhoods, each inspired by Manchester’s cultural, sporting and musical heritage. The scheme is targeting Passivhaus certification. Once achieved, it will become the largest certified Passivhaus project in Europe. It is also pursuing a BREEAM Excellent rating, with Modern Methods of Construction helping to enhance efficiency, reduce waste and accelerate delivery.
Milestone
Neil McFarlane, Graham Project Director for the Fallowfield Campus, said: “Securing Gateway 2 approval for the first two HRBs is a significant milestone for the Fallowfield Campus project and testament to the collaborative approach taken by the whole team. With structural works now able to commence on these two buildings and further approvals expected in the coming months, we are making strong progress towards delivering safe, high-quality and sustainable student accommodation for Manchester.”
Natalia Maximova, a partner at Sheppard Robson, said: “The Gateway 2 approval for the first two high-risk residential blocks is a testament to effective collaboration, which would not have been possible without early supply chain input and specialist expertise. The focus of the Gateway 2 review was technical compliance, requiring a high level of co-ordination and design quality throughout the proposal. Key design decisions, such as the adoption of a precast cross-wall system and the extended use of concrete, added inherent fire safety properties to the scheme and simplified façade co-ordination. This has been a learning process for all participants and required done to the project team.”
Picture: The University of Manchester’s Fallowfield Campus.
The Viridis Living consortium will develop and gain Building Safety Regulator approval, for seven blocks of student accommodation at Manchester University.
