Decision follows judicial review which resulted in original consent being quashed over heritage concerns
Grafton Architects’ plans for a new library at Christ’s College, Cambridge have been approved for the second time following a row with local campaigners.
Cambridge council’s planning committee backed a recommendation for approval from planning officers at a meeting last week despite continued concerns around the scheme’s massing and impact on nearby heritage assets.
The Stirling Prize winners’ proposals would see a 1970s library demolished and replaced with a new building, which is intended to last for 200 years and which rises to four storeys over Christ’s Lane, a public street lined with shops.
The proposed scheme, which the college says will make its library facilities more centralised and accessible, was initially approved in November 2025 but was subsequently the subject of a judicial review brought by Christ’s Lane Action Group (CLAG).
In its claim, CLAG argued that councillors were not properly informed of the harm identified by heritage bodies, that the harms that were identified were not properly balanced against benefits, that the provision of a library did not constitute a benefit because such a facility already existed, and that less harmful alternative schemes were not properly considered.
The college submitted an identical application in June, arguing that the reversal of last year’s approval was due to the planning process rather than the scheme itself.
However, CLAG continued to oppose the scheme on the grounds of its design, which they said would create a “canyoning effect” on Christ’s Lane, with members of the group clashing with the college in a meeting convened by the council in July.
But in their assessment on the merits of the scheme ahead of last week’s planning committee hearing, Cambridge council planning officers concluded that the public benefits of the scheme “clearly and convincingly” outweigh the harm it would cause to heritage assets.
While officers admitted the scheme would cause a “low level” of harm to the grade I-listed Bodley Library, they argued this would be offset by the developments sustainability credentials, public realm enhancements, accessibility improvements and the creation of temporary construction jobs.
Proposed environmental benefits include the use of sustainable construction methods, water conservation methods, renewable energy sources and flood risk mitigation measures, while the public realm improvements include a public bench, officers said.
The report added that alternative proposals for the college to provide new library facilities which CLAG claimed would cause less heritage harm do not carry “any notable weight” in their appraisal of the scheme.
Grafton Architects is lead architect with the project team including Caroe on conservation, Fox Fernley Landscape Office on landscape, Ridge as project manager, Turley on planning, David Bonnett Associates on accessibility and Smith & Wallwork Engineers on structures and civils.
No comments yet