St Joseph’s: 98% say ‘No’ as planning consultation ends,councillors call for vote

By Andrew Waller,  16 June 2026  

​​More than 160 respondents lodged objections to plans for 132 student beds at the former St Joseph’s care home in Cotham Hill. With the public consultation now closed, only 3 people supported the proposal—meaning the ‘No’ vote was roughly 98%. 

Green councillors Serena Ralston and George Calascione, who represent Clifton Down, the ward in which St Joseph’s sits, have asked for the proposal to be referred to a planning committee. If the city’s planning officers recommend approval of the plans, this means the final say will rest with councillors. 

Developer Harringay Real Estate is seeking planning permission to turn St Joseph's (see photo above) into student accommodation, with 132 beds in a mixture of self-contained studio flats and "clusters" in which some facilities will be shared. An existing student development, Woodland Court, with 196 beds, stands just across the street. 

The full list of responses can be seen on Bristol City Council’s planning website, reference 26/11841/F. 

I counted 164 objections, allowing for 2 mislabelled as “Supports” and one person who withdrew an objection and filed to support instead. My count also includes 4 responses lodged after the 10 June deadline, though 2 of these may be duplicates. Some other submissions also seemed to be identical to each other, so may be either duplicates or copies of the same text submitted by different people. It’s unclear how they will be counted by officers (hence “roughly 98%” above). 

Objections highlight a number of grounds:

• Cotham Hill already has a very high student population, so the proposal would worsen an over-concentration, contrary to Bristol's planning policies.

• It would add to problems with night-time noise and waste on the streets.

• There’s no evidence it would reduce demand for HMOs, allowing them to be converted back to family homes as the developer claimed.

• The entrance to St Joseph's is on a blind bend; increasing the foot traffic at that point could be dangerous.

• Although the developers say the site would be virtually car-free, many people are sceptical that students will not bring cars to Bristol.

• Local businesses face a 'feast or famine' effect—making money when students are present but struggling during holiday periods when they're absent.

 In my own objection, which can be seen here, I discussed potential noise concerns in some detail. In particular, I questioned the results of the applicant's noise assessment and asked whether the site’s future managers will be adequately equipped to prevent party noise from either the building or its garden. 

​​​Harringay has its own site, with more information and photographs, at https://stjosephscothamhill.com/index.php.​​

Related articles: 

• My objection, highlighting noise concerns

• St Joseph’s ... meet Woodland Court—Why Harringay may face planning hurdles 

(Site maintenance note, 21 August 2026: This was formerly static text published on the home page on 16 June 2026 and now moved into blog post format for archiving purposes.)​