Sama Investment Group has been granted planning permission to build a 498-bed purpose-built student accommodation and an 85-bed care home on a long-abandoned brownfield site just east of Sheffield city centre. Located on Maltravers Road, the site is near Sheffield Hallam University and within a short walking distance of a Supertram stop that connects the city.
Sama’s two schemes for the hilltop site – aptly named ‘Parkhill Views’ – is set across a 1.7-hectare plot. The first is a high quality 11-floor student block comprising of 354 studio rooms and 144 cluster flats. Set further back and separated off from the student accommodation will be a three-storey care home, with each development having its own dedicated access.
“This large, barren plot on Maltravers Road has long been an eyesore for locals. It’s tremendous that Sheffield City Council have backed our plans to transform the site with attractive schemes for a new care home and purpose-built student accommodation. By housing some of Sheffield’s 60,000 student population in large purpose-built facilities like Parkhill Views, we will help free up rental property in the city for other residents, which in turn will ease the housing crisis”, said Bilal Ahmed, the co-founder and chairman of Sama Investment Group.
Axis Architecture have worked with Sama to create a village-like environment for residents of the purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA). Alongside the 354 studio rooms are twenty-four 6-bed (144 in total) en-suite cluster flats. Sama’s generous-sized rooms far exceed the 13 sq. m that national guidelines require: the smallest bedroom measures 16.2 sq. m, while an average-sized room is 29.9 sq. m.
Parkhill Views PBSA comes with multiple onsite facilities for students, including an indoor sports area and gym, a cinema, a laundrette, and 193 sq. m of cycle storage. Communal areas comprise of two gaming lounges, two dining areas, a 65 sq. m roof terrace, an 867sq. m first floor landscaped courtyard, and 274 sq. m terrace on the sixth floor. The 1,315 sq. m of brown roofs, spread over two floors, will increase the biodiversity of the site. The raised plot also provides great views of the city of Sheffield.
Sama’s second scheme on the Maltravers Road brownfield site is a three-storey care home, which has been designed by ADG Architects. The plot is set back from the road, with the 85-bedroomed property surrounded by its own peaceful, landscaped gardens.
The Parkhill Views care home plans contain a café, a hair salon, and a family room. There is 123 sq. m. of lounge space on the ground floor, as well as 258 sq. m. of lounge space spread across the other two floors.