Iconic Owens Park student tower set to be demolished in huge redevelopment

The iconic Owens Park Tower in Fallowfield is set to be demolished in a swathe of redevelopment.

The University of Manchester (UoM) has submitted a planning application to knock down the 18-storey block, built in the 1960s, along with other older halls of residence, Oak House and Woolton Hall.

In their place, student 3,300 bedrooms will be built, along with facilities for a ‘drinking establishment and hot food takeaway’ and staff accommodation.

If the work goes ahead as planned, it will be completed by 2030. This application is an outline planning bid — meaning the design, layout, scale, and landscaping can all be modified at a later date.

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“It reflects our ambitions to deliver modern, high quality living for our students on one of our most popular campuses for new and returning students,” Dr Simon Merrywest, Director for Student Experience at UoM, said of the bid.

“As the largest academic institution in the city, it is important that we deliver high-quality purpose-built rooms that can match the status and profile of the University reputation nationally and globally.”

It’s not the first time plans have been tabled to knock Owens Park Tower down, with a 2014 attempt to modernise the campus falling through towards the end of the 2010s.

In recent years, the campus has seen some redevelopment, with the new Unsworth Park halls built on land next to the Armitage Sports Centre. That development opened in 2019, and can host 1,100 students.

You can see and comment on the plans on Manchester City Council’s website here.