Nearly 2,000 flats not built years after approval

Work is yet to begin on about 1,800 apartments given the green light in Preston over the last five years.

Only one of the 13 medium-to-high-rise residential blocks approved by Preston City Council's planning committee since 2020 has people living in it.

A second appears close to completion, but construction is yet to start on the 11 others.

Analysis by the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) suggests only 10% of the 2,000 flats approved as part of major developments since the decade began have been completed.

Several ambitious schemes in the city centre are amongst those yet to get off the ground.

They include a distinctive 21-storey sloping tower block approved for a site on Church Row in May 2020. 

The building was to feature 80 apartments but, almost five years on, the derelict commercial units occupying the plot remain standing.

The PR1 development at the corner of Avenham Street and Syke Street, which was meant to be about 300 flats over four blocks of between seven and 16 storeys, is still yet to be built. 

There is no sign of work on an 11-storey tower planned for a site on Tithebarn Street, opposite the bus station, despite planning permission being granted in July 2022.

And the future of a 469-apartment plan for the former Dryden Mill site in the Stoneygate area remains uncertain after development specialists Belgravia walked away earlier this year. 

The sole finished development of the 13 looked at by the LDRS is The Exchange, a seven-to-16-storey scheme at the junction of Pole Street and Percy Street in the city centre.  

Its 200 apartments, which were granted permission in March 2021, were ready for occupation just over two years later after completion by The Heaton Group.

The City Studios scheme – a 128-dwelling development alongside the former Unicorn pub on North Street – has also been built, but no-one has moved in yet. 

As well as the three-to-five-storey newly-built block, part of the pub itself has also been converted to provide five flats.

Preston City Council drew up its "city living strategy" in the 2010s in an attempt to kickstart the housing-led regeneration of previously developed – so-called "brownfield" – sites in and around the city centre.

Nick Thompson, director of development consultancy Hive Land and Planning – which worked with the local authority on the strategy – said: "In 2024, there were two significant 'residential-led' planning approvals within Preston city centre.

"These are the Park Hotel plans by the Heaton Group and the Horrocks Mill development by Onward Homes.

"Collectively, these involve the development of over 700 new homes and have been planned with a strong emphasis on design.

"Successful delivery of the two projects would make a huge contribution to the ongoing regeneration of the city centre, alongside the major investments under way within the civic and retail quarters.

"Preston's city-living market has demonstrated its credentials with some good quality projects being delivered over recent years – and there is a feeling from the development sector that there is much more to come."

Preston City Council was also approached for comment

The city council has been approached for comment.

Listen to the best of BBC Radio Lancashire on Sounds and follow BBC Lancashire on Facebook, X and Instagram. You can also send story ideas to [email protected] and via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230.