St Mary’s College, Fenham

On behalf of Newcastle Propco Ltd, Lichfields has provided planning and heritage advice to secure listed building consent for the repair and refurbishment of St Mary’s College in Fenham, Newcastle to meet current market expectations for student accommodation.

St Mary’s College (Grade II* Listed) dates from the 14th century with further development gradually taking place throughout the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries, with the site being utilised as a private residence, and subsequently an educational facility owned and operated by the Society of the Sacred Heart. In the 1990s the building was converted into student accommodation by a private developer. In 2017 the building was sold and quickly fell into disrepair and was extensively damaged by vandalism.

In 2022, the building was acquired by Newcastle Propco Ltd who sought to return the building back to active use. The building required extensive repairs and refurbishment to make good the parts of the building that were previously damaged and update the property to meet current standards, enhance environmental performance and, most importantly, bring the historic building back into long term beneficial use.

Lichfields were able to draw on our local knowledge and experience to develop a strong Heritage case as part of the Listed Building Consent application promoting the significant heritage benefits of restoring and modernising the Grade II* Listed buildings. Our relationship with Newcastle City Council allowed us to engage in pro-active discussions to aid design development and identify the key elements of the building which were to be preserved and restored.

Lichfields led Planning Project Management on the project and prepared and submitted the Listed Building Consent Application, including the Statement of Significance to aid design development and Heritage Impact Assessment for the proposed works. Listed Building Consent for the repairs and refurbishment was granted in July 2024.