New 598 Flats Set to Revitalise Reading

Plans to build nearly 600 flats at Station Hill in Reading have been given the go-ahead.

The consortium revealed detailed plans for 598 apartments last September. The project will demolish Xafinity House (formerly the Hogg Robinson building) to make way for two new apartment blocks. It will be car-free apart from four disabled spaces and include 75 affordable rent flats.

While the outline was approved in 2021, the detailed scheme was decided at a meeting of Reading Borough Council's planning applications committee and the 598 flats were unanimously approved yesterday (August 12).

Councillor David Stevens (Labour, Abbey) said: "I remember the old bus station and the Hogg Robinson building, and frankly it's not difficult to make an improvement on that.

"But what they have done, I think, is excellent. We've seen what the developers have already done at Station Hill and Ebb & Flow, and frankly, if they continue with that level of quality, the public space and realm is comparable to what they've done already, I think it will be an excellent addition to this area.

"It's somewhat of a backwater at the moment, there are a number of businesses, I think one pub on the corner, it's really essentially office or closed office space; I think this will really revitalise Greyfriars Road and Garrard Street, so I think this is excellent.

"It's a great and welcome addition."

Cllr James Moore (Liberal Democrats, Tilehurst) said: "When people arrive at Reading Station, when this is done and dusted, they will no longer see dilapidated buildings or a construction site, they will see new buildings.

"Ebb & Flow looks great."

Micky Leng (Labour, Whitley), lead councillor for planning, said: "This is a major regeneration of the area, and more importantly we have a developer committed to the town, who is willing to come forward and put their money where their mouth is and provide badly needed homes.

"There were a few grumbles on the amount of affordable housing.

"You probably wouldn't think it on social media, but the vast majority of homes are going to people from Reading, who've found places in Ebb & Flow.

On the new project, he said: "It's car-free, which I am not the greatest fan of, as everybody knows, but if it can work, it will work in the town centre.

"With some developers I've dealt with, they will tell you what you want to hear to get their application over the line.

"And quite frankly, if they told me it was raining I would open the curtains and check."

He also noted the developer agreed to a commemoration plinth for Glen Edwards, the crane operator who saved colleagues during the Station Hill fire in November 2023.

The area has two pubs, The Greyfriar and The Gateway (now The Railway Tavern). Councillors pointed to earlier Station Hill phases such as Ebb & Flow, which saw 598 flats and the Siren Craft bar on Friar Street.

You can view the application by typing reference PL/26/0415/REM into the council's planning portal.

James Aldridge, Local Democracy Reporter