PLANS for a new humanities and education research centre at the University of York have been given the thumbs-up.

City of York Council's planning committee has approved the university's plans to bulldoze its language centre and build a new three or four-storey humanities block at its Heslington campus.

Councillors voted unanimously in favour of the proposed new building, which will provide space for a maximum of 500 people - with 160 full-time staff and postgraduates and lecture and seminar rooms for about 360 students.

But the block will not lead to an increase in the number of people on campus, because almost all of those staff and students are already based there in various locations, councillors were told.

Language centre staff are expected to be relocated in the nearby Vanburgh College.

Eleven trees, including a mature tulip tree and a sycamore, will have to be uprooted, but the university has pledged to replant them elsewhere. Councillor Ann Reid said: "This is an excellent, innovative design for the new language centre, but I think that what it will do is highlight the less than wonderful design on the buildings that are adjacent to it."

She said she hoped that at some stage the other buildings in the vicinity would also be redeveloped in a similar manner.

Coun Tracey Simpson-Laing said: "I'm quite pleased to see that some of our suggestions about reusing the existing footprint of the building have been taken into account."

The proposed building will be sited about 30 metres to the north of Central Hall, will have views of the lake and Spring Wood, and will be of a similar height to the neighbouring Vanburgh College buildings.

The history of art, languages, history and educational studies departments will all use the new building.

There will also be a bike storage facility on site.

The Press told last week how Ruth Kelly, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, had approved the University of York's £500 million Heslington East expansion. The scheme to build a second campus on 117 hectares of green belt land to the east of the city is set to bring in an extra 5,000 students.