Student flats plan for former Birmingham HSBC offices
The former Birmingham offices of an international bank could become “modern, purposeful student living”, after plans to convert part of the building into a hotel fell by the wayside.
An earlier scheme to convert the former HSBC office on Calthorpe Road, near Five Ways, into 266 student flats and a 123-room hotel was approved by Birmingham City Council in 2021.
But after no interest in the hotel portion of the site from major operators, applicant Mercia Real Estate has now submitted change-of-use plans which would see the entire site converted to student accommodation, including padel courts and leisure facilities, which they say will provide “modern purposeful student living, with a homely feel”.
The new scheme would deliver an extra 129 student flats as well as a communal area and amenity spaces at the building, which has sat empty since the bank moved to Centenary Square in 2018.
“The revised proposal in respect of the second block is driven by local demand for purpose built student accommodation that is readily accessible for the city’s higher education institutions and the lack of interest from a hotel operator to deliver the consented hotel use,” said a supporting statement submitted with the application.
“The application proposal is a viable alternative for the site, building upon and complementing a first phase of high-quality student accommodation.”
The former Shell Mex House on Calthorpe Road in Birmingham was designed by Birmingham architect John Madin. Credit: Glancy Nicholls Architects / Planning Portal
The building, formerly known as the Shell Mex Building, was built in 1962, designed by prominent modernist Birmingham architect John Madin as part of his 1957 masterplan for the Calthorpe Estate.
The use of luxury finishes such as marble and Portland stone on Shell Mex House was chosen as a symbol of the city’s commercial success, and was a typical feature of Madin’s designs.
Proposals for the building’s facade would seek to preserve the original ethos of Madin’s design by retaining the original black marble tiles, complemented by the addition of fins around the perimeter to introduce finer detailing.
However under the proposals the existing mosaic panels situated between the windows will be clad with metal panels, due to “weather-related deterioration”.
“The proposed development aims to remain faithful to Madin’s monochrome palette; however, to introduce subtle variation, the material finishes will incorporate slight tonal differences in a harmonious manner,” the statement adds.
Glancy Nicholls are architects for the scheme, while Lichfields are acting as planning consultants.
Documents relating to the application can be viewed on Birmingham City Council’s planning portal under reference 2025/05779/PA.
