May 8 2025

Increased cohesion will be brought to the haphazard streetscape of Ratcliffe Terrace, Newington, with plans for purpose-built student accommodation right next door to a rival 59-bed scheme.

56Three Architects have taken on an industrial brownfield site at numbers 33 to 41, building out the void with a tenement-scale insertion while absorbing the stonework of an existing two-storey property.

In a planning statement, the architects wrote: " The two-storey building at No. 43 Ratcliffe Terrace has heritage value that merits integration with the new site proposal. On its own the building is at odds with the surrounding tenemental scale and makes development of the site far more challenging.

"By removing the terracotta tiled roof, accommodation can be extended above whilst retaining the existing stone walls. These can form a feature to the site entrance and retain heritage value to the street. A slight reduction to the height of the stonework will be required and this will be carried out sympathetically to tie in with new stonework to the front facade."

The street-facing block will be joined by a larger parallel block to the year and connected by a third linking block, all framing a newly formed courtyard - formed from complementary buff stonework and brick. 

8 Comments

#1 Posted by ja on 8 May 2025 at 13:51 PM

why do these student accommodations have to be SO BORING? Is it part of the biref?

#2 Posted by alibi on 8 May 2025 at 14:54 PM

"A slight reduction to the height of the stonework will be required and this will be carried out sympathetically to tie in with new stonework to the front facade."

Give me peace.

#3 Posted by Rank on 8 May 2025 at 15:15 PM

The front facade with spandrel panelled, skinny vertical proportions is rank. Not shown here is the clumsy (and I am being polite) relationship with the very lovely arts and crafts 25 Ratcliffe T. This complete ignores its scale and form.
The 'absorption' of the little two storey is a joke right??
Two other student schemes further up Ratcliffe are actually very well considered..pity this doesn't follow their lead.
Think this architect did the equally rank Student house at the bottom of Mayfield Road so not surprised..

#4 Posted by Lovely on 9 May 2025 at 08:36 AM

Apparently, the rear elevation was inspired by a Toblerone.

#5 Posted by Kem on 10 May 2025 at 23:10 PM

Good god, if Frankenstein was an architect this would surely be his Monster!

#6 Posted by kerblam on 13 May 2025 at 09:29 AM

Why cut off the retained frontage mid 1st-floor?! Crap butchery just to baffle/annoy anyone passing by for decades to come. Cannibals would have more decorum. Marginally better rear elevation.

#7 Posted by kerblam on 13 May 2025 at 13:29 PM

Why cut off the retained frontage mid 1st-floor?! Crap butchery just to baffle/annoy anyone passing by for decades to come. Cannibals would have more decorum. Marginally better rear elevation.

#8 Posted by Mark on 13 May 2025 at 22:11 PM

That one-and-a-half storey fragment surely wins the 2025 Award for Tokenism. Surely they could have used it to define a band of masonry the full height of the facade?

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