Later consent for same scheme now in hands of Angela Rayner
The High Court has quashed the approval of Grafton Architects’ plans for a new library at Christ’s College in Cambridge following Angela Rayner’s decision to put the scheme on ice.
Local campaigners Christ’s Lane Action Group (CLAG) launched a judicial review against Cambridge council’s initial decision to approve the controversial scheme in November 2025.
The court has now overturned the decision on four grounds, including that the council’s planning committee had been ”materially misled” about Historic England’s advice on the scheme.
The campaign group also argued that planning officers had provided “confusing and inconsistent advice” about the scheme’s impact on nearby heritage assets and that the committee committee had failed to consider an alternative scheme.
However, the planning permission had effectively been superceded by the council’s decision to approve an identical application for the scheme earlier this month.
Communties secretary Angela Rayner intervened in this second consent on 14 October, issuing a last-minute Article 31 holding direction to allow her to decide whether or not to call in the more recent application.
Grafton’s proposals would see a 1970s library demolished and replaced with a new four-storey ‘Library+’ building on Christ’s Lane, a public street lined with shops.
Grafton Architects is lead architect with the project team including Caroe on conservation, Fox Fernley Landscape Office on landscape, Ridge as project manager, Turley on planning, David Bonnett Associates on accessibility and Smith & Wallwork Engineers on structures and civils.
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