A COMPANY tasked with building a homeless shelter for Oxford City Council will apply for planning permission today.

A2 Dominion will build and operate a new hostel in Rymers Lane in Cowley from 2019 if it is granted permission.

It is understood the building will be identical to one that has already got planning permission on the same site.

Last month a 39-room student development was given planning permission by Oxford City councillors at 2, Rymers Lane.

The land is owned by Oxford-based Cantay Estates Ltd but the development will be bought by A2 Dominion once it is fully built.

A2 Dominion said all dimensions for the car-free development will be the same as the previous application. It will have space for up to 37 residents.

The £1.125m project will be paid for by £1.3m set aside by the city council to manage homelessness.

Of that £1.3m, £200,000 will go towards the management of Simon House, in Paradise Street, after it is decommissioned in March 2018.

The council will pay for the company to manage 22 beds in the building.

Simon House currently has 52 beds for homeless people but the building will partly close because of Oxfordshire County Council cutbacks.