Plymouth City Council's planning committee is set to consider a substantial redevelopment of the Civic Centre on Thursday, July 30, in a proposal that would repurpose the landmark Grade II listed tower into a mixed-use scheme combining housing, education and public amenities.
What the scheme would deliver
Officers are recommending approval for the application that would reconfigure the 14-storey structure to provide:
- 144 apartments across the upper floors, made up of one and two-bedroom units;
- a new campus for City College Plymouth occupying the lower levels and basement, described as a Blue-Green Skills Hub;
- public-facing spaces at ground level including a careers hub, dining and wellness facilities;
- restoration and landscaping of the surrounding external spaces and the water feature beneath the link between the Civic Centre and the Council House.
The college intends to use the refurbished floors to deliver practical training and study spaces, with technical workshops in the basement and classrooms and laboratories on the first floor.
Training capacity and funding
| Element | Proposed figure |
|---|---|
| Apartments | 144 |
| Student training capacity | Up to 2,000 students a year |
| Public funding secured | Almost £47.5 million |
The college says the hub would run around 60 courses spanning areas such as marine engineering, renewable energy and sustainable construction, aligning with the city's wider skills and green-economy priorities.
Conservation and access considerations
Design plans incorporate heritage and environmental safeguards. Measures proposed include rooftop safety barriers and provisions intended to protect peregrine falcons known to visit the building. There is also potential for a public restaurant at the top of the tower, though planning paperwork notes it would be required to open to the public for only a limited number of days each year.
“[The project] could be a 'game-changer' for Plymouth,”
Those words, used by the council member responsible for housing, regeneration and events, underline the ambitions behind the scheme to create new city-centre homes while anchoring vocational training in the heart of Plymouth.
City College Plymouth's chief executive also welcomed the plans, saying they would generate a lively educational hub within the building. The public funding package contributing to the proposal includes sums from the Future High Streets Fund, the Levelling Up Fund and Homes England Brownfield Infrastructure — sources listed in the application documents.
If the planning committee grants permission as recommended, the project would mark one of the most significant changes to the city's skyline and civic estate in recent years, combining residential development with skills training provision in a single historic structure.
