The contractor, which operates through the north of England and southern Scotland, has won the nod from the council development committee and is expected to start work soon on the former Kangol factory in Denton Holme.

Ian Wishart, business development manager for Border Construction, told councillors: “We believe we have addressed the reasons for deferral of the planning application.

“This development will result in capital investment of £16m in Carlisle. “It will ensure an unattractive brown-field site is brought back into productive use.

“It will meet the urgent and growing need of the University of Cumbria for high-quality accommodation and it will achieve very high environmental accreditations.”

It is the second major student housing scheme planned for the area. Liverpool-based developer Cranbrook Land is expected to start5 work on a £15m project in the spring.