Changes set for Italian restaurant at The Oracle in Reading

The company in charge of Bella Italia has applied for a rebrand at its restaurant along the riverside.

Elsewhere, plans have been submitted to repurpose buildings once occupied by banks into housing.

You can view each application featured by typing its reference in brackets into the council's planning portal.

New look for Bella Italia (240820)

Designs for the rebrand at the Bella Italia restaurant at The Oracle Riverside in Reading. (Image: IVC Signs)

Bella Italia at The Oracle Riverside is set to get a fresh new look.

The Big Table Group, the operators of the Italian restaurant chain, has applied to replace the existing blue colour and white lettering of the branding to a dark green background with white lettering.

The rebrand involves replacing the existing box sign above the restaurant and its awnings.

The Big Table Group also operates Las Iguanas and Cafe Rouge.

Conversion of offices into flats in town centre (240876)

An empty unit in Queen Victoria Street, Reading town centre. (Image: James Aldridge, Local Democracy Reporting Service)

The owner of a building in the town centre has applied to convert offices that were used for financial services into flats.

The building, located at 28-30 Queen Victoria Street, used to serve as part of the HSBC bank before it downsized in 2021.

READ MORE: This is how many empty shops there aren in Reading (and what’s being done about it)

Now the first, second and third floors could be converted into three one-bedroom apartments,

Each would come with a double bedroom, shower toilet, cooking facilities and bicycle storage.

Flats plans for permanently closed bank (240858 and 240866)

The NatWest bank at 74 School Road, Tilehurst. (Image: Google Maps)

Flats could be added to the permanently closed NatWest bank building at 74 School Road, Tilehurst.

One plan (ref 240858) would see a single-bed flat with a kitchen, living area and a W/C created at the rear of the building.

The second application (ref 240866) involves the conversion of the first floor above the former bank into two one-bed flats with the same facilities.

A planning agent from The Keen Partnership wrote that the conversion projects had been submitted for prior approval, but an Article 4 Direction restricting permitted development has meant the project now requires full planning approval.

Conversion of house into flats in Whitley (240518)

A house in Northumberland Avenue, Whitley which is undergoing a conversion into flats. (Image: Bluebird Engineering)

The owner of a house in Northumberland Avenue, Whitley is seeking approval for its conversion into three flats.

Work has been completed to turn the four-bed house into a two to three-bedroom flat on the ground floor, and two one-bed flats on the first and second floors.

Now, the owner of the house has applied to increase the size of the existing side dormer and add a new dormer on the opposite side of the roof. 

The owner also wants to change an approved first-floor side extension roof from a hip roof to a flat roof on the first floor. 

These extensions would create more living space for future occupants of the upper floors.