A plan for a new hotel in the heart of Reading town centre has been approved.
Developer Arun Serviced Apartments will convert the building on Friar Street — currently home to the Friars Convenience Store, with the first and second floors used for storage — into 14 ensuite apartment‑hotel rooms. The company will add a five‑storey rear extension to create the extra space.
The hireable rooms will operate similarly to Airbnb, offering home‑like amenities such as a small kitchen area that are not typical in hotels.
The building was previously a pub called The Traveller's Friend, which closed in the 1990s and has been a shop since. Reading Borough Council’s principal planning officer Matt Burns said of the building:
“The existing building at the site is a non-designated heritage asset with the significance of the building primarily relating to its characterful front elevation and roof plane and former use as a pub.
“The proposals would retain the existing façade and front roof plane, which is welcomed, albeit whilst also proposing significant extensions to the building.
“The proposed extensions whilst considered to be sympathetically designed and suitably subservient additions, do ultimately detract from the significance of the non-designated heritage asset as a result of their scale, contemporary appearance and how the building is viewed from Friar Street, albeit the harm identified is at a low level given the principal features of the building’s significance are to be retained as part of the development.
“The public benefits of the proposals identified include provision of an appropriate town centre apart-hotel use and retention of a class E shop unit and active frontage within a designated primary frontage, within a sustainable location,as well as creation of a small number of associated jobs at both construction and end user phase.”
Mr Burns also said the scheme would deliver a biodiversity net gain by adding green roofs and planting on a first-floor deck amenity area and rear balconies.
The council approved the project on 28 January. Arun Serviced Apartments signed a section 106 legal agreement with the council on 19 January setting out developer contributions.
Documents are available on the planning portal under reference PL/23/1266.
James Aldridge, Local Democracy Reporter
Bracknell Communities Unite for a Better Future
