PLANS for 100 student rooms in West Oxford will be discussed by a planning inspector today.

The planning inspectorate has organised an informal hearing into the proposals from HXRUK3 Ltd for Innovation House, Mill Street.

The company wants to convert the former office building into rooms for students, but residents have opposed the plans, saying they didn’t want business accommodation in the area reduced.

Initial plans for the redevelopment of Innovation House were thrown out in March on the grounds that the scheme reduced the amount of business accommodation in the area.

The decision was welcomed by campaigners, who said the scheme, in combination with several other high-profile developments in the area, would leave them surrounded by student housing.

But in October, developer HXRUK3 reworked the design and appealed against the decision.

Commenting on the original application earlier this year, Susanna Pressel, county councillor for West Central Oxford, said it would be a burden on the street to house so many students.