The latest approvals have cleared all 29 blocks within the 3,300-room student accommodation scheme for construction, including seven buildings classified as higher-risk under the Building Safety Act.
Gateway 2 approval has now been secured for all seven blocks reaching at least 18m or seven storeys, while approval has also been granted for the remaining 22 lower-rise buildings.
Graham Investment Projects strategic development director Neil McFarlane said: “Reaching Gateway 2 approval across the whole of Fallowfield Campus is a huge achievement for the entire project team.
“We submitted our first application to the Building Safety Regulator several months ahead of planning approval, and that early, proactive approach to design and fire safety has been central to getting here.”
Fallowfield Campus is being delivered through a 50-year partnership between the University of Manchester, Equitix, Graham and Rothesay.
The first 1,000 rooms are scheduled to open in 2028, with the remaining student accommodation due to be completed by 2030.
The development is also targeting recognition as the world’s largest single-phase Passivhaus-certified purpose-built student accommodation scheme, with operational energy use expected to be around 50% lower than that of a conventional new-build student development.
Modern methods of construction are playing a significant role in the delivery of the project.
Techrete is manufacturing around 4,150 precast façade panels at its factories in Balbriggan, Ireland, and North Lincolnshire.
The low-carbon concrete panels combine reconstructed stone and clay brick finishes, with the structural and insulation layers manufactured together as single sandwich units.
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