RESIDENTS are calling on the council to take a citywide approach to stem the “frenzied” spread of student accommodation.

Pressure for Durham County Council to adopt a long-term strategic approach has been building for some time, with planning permission approved for 2,000 new student beds and another 2,000 in the pipeline.

With Durham University expected to expand by only 500 students by 2020, residents fear Durham will be saddled with unsightly, inflexible accommodation for decades to come.

The situation has been further complicated by the collapse of the County Durham Plan (CDP), which last week led a council planning committee to postpone a vote on a new £15m student digs scheme for Kepier Court, off Gilesgate.

It is feared without a strong student housing policy in place, the city will be vulnerable to inappropriate development.

The City of Durham Trust conservation group is calling on the council to determine student accommodation applications collectively, a plea supported by Bill Williamson, leader of a residents’ campaign against the Kepier Court project.

Dr Douglas Pocock, from the Trust, called on the Secretary of State to issue a collective “call in”, while Professor Williamson said Durham was suffering a “feeding frenzy” and “social cleansing”.

“This investment bubble is both damaging to the life of cities and probably unsustainable.

“Durham is under attack from property developers. At the moment, the authorities that manage the city either cannot or are not willing to think about these problems holistically,” he added.

However, Stuart Timmiss, the council’s head of planning and assets, said each application must be assessed on its own merits in line with the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) and the 2004 City of Durham Local Plan.

Council chiefs expect to receive advice on the future of the CDP from its lawyers and Planning Minister Penny Mordaunt and hold talks with the Planning Inspectorate shortly.

Mr Timmiss said he wanted the CDP delivered “as soon as practicably possible”.

Meanwhile, the consortium behind a £31m scheme to turn the former County Hospital, North Road, into 364 student beds has appointed Victoria Hall to manage the development, should it be granted planning permission.

Last week, a council committee approved plans to extend student houses in multiple occupation (HMOs) at 4 and 16 Wynyard Grove, Gilesgate, by one bedroom, from six to seven.

However, Belmont councillor Bill Moir said there was only one permanent resident remaining in the “student enclave” and he was “almost speechless” at the proposal.

“Let the message go out to landlords that no part of Durham is forgotten,” he said.

Patrick Conway, also a Belmont councillor, said the committee lacked the grounds to refuse the proposal, but he also hoped a “message would go out” to landlords.