24 November 2015, The Cambridge P&D Team have secured an excellent and carefully negotiated planning permission for the Gonville Hotel, a 4* City Centre hotel that fronts onto one of the City’s iconic open spaces – Parker’s Piece. The consented scheme is for a new bedroom wing providing an additional 31 bedrooms as well as a subterranean spa and gymnasium / fitness suite. A new extension onto the main hotel will also provide a new and extended dining offer. Situated within the Central Conservation Area, and on a mature site incorporating a considerable number of trees and other vegetation, the development includes and is integrated with a notable local building, Gresham House. Belonging to the hotel, this building will be converted into 10 hotel bedrooms, and a rear three storey extension will deliver the additional 21 bedrooms.

A previous application on the site sought to deliver 43 additional bedrooms in a contemporary architectural style, but would have necessitated the loss of Gresham House, which is an attractive Victorian Villa, and albeit not listed, making a positive contribution to the Conservation Area. Cambridge City Council was not willing to support a scheme involving the loss of this local landmark, and so a new scheme was drawn up, adopting a more traditional look and feel.

The Gonville Hotel has been undergoing a considerable refurbishment programme for some time, and has had all of its existing 82 bedrooms upgraded, whilst a new lounge, meeting rooms and bar area have been provided. The hotel seeks to be a hotel of choice for business and tourists alike and the proposed scheme will add to its kerb appeal whilst delivering much needed extra rooms. There is an accepted shortfall in 4* + hotel rooms in Cambridge and this development will assist in creating new supply.

David Chaplin, Managing Director of Gonville Hotels Ltd said:

“The Gresham House development will allow The Gonville Hotel to continue to grow the breadth and depth of service to customers. The brand new spa and fitness centre demonstrates this commitment to our customers and the Cambridge hospitality industry. We’re proud to be working with an experienced planning and development team with a national reputation for success and we look forward to working together to take this project from planning office to completion.”

Colin Brown, Partner and Head of the P&D Team in the East of England said “It has been a great pleasure to act for Gonville Hotels Ltd on this exciting new project for Cambridge. The City is undergoing unprecedented growth, and alongside that, it is crucial that the City keeps pace with the need for high quality serviced accommodation to meet demand. This will be a quality new development in the City, and will place the Gonville Hotel into the firm category of hotels that you really aspire to stay in.”

The scheme Architects were Annand & Mustoe, of Cambridge.