A £9 million development of student flats in Bradford city centre will open in September, with hopes that it will help the city's regeneration.

Appleton Point, on Hamm Strasse has been under construction for over a year, and last week the scaffolding was removed and work is now underway on ensuring the building's 160 rooms are ready for the start of the new university year.

The development, near Forster Square train station, is already proving popular with landlords and new students, according to the management company running the building.

Appleton Point is named after Bradford-born physicist Edward Appleton, who won the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1947 for his contributions to the knowledge of the ionosphere. His research eventually led to the development of radar.

The development, on an empty plot of land, has been constructed by Mederco, a company that specialises in student flats, and the flats will be managed by Digs. It will be mainly for students at Bradford University and mature students at Bradford College.

It is hoped that an influx of 160 people into that part of the city, which includes several vacant shop units, could kickstart other developments and boost existing local businesses.

Gemma Hughes, a property administrator for Digs, said there was interest from both British and international students.

She added: "We are getting in touch with a few local businesses to see if they can offer discounts to the students here. Hopefully the development will help bridge the gap between the different parts of the city and help regenerate this area. There will be 160 new people spending their money in the area."

She said the company was also in touch with local businesses to purchase items like bedding for the flats.

Before the flats were built, the company had carried out a study into the city, and found there was a high demand in Bradford for city centre student accommodation.

Tariq Aziz, Marketing manager for Digs, said: "We compared applications for universities and the people who travelled in and determined there was a definite demand there."

Coun Susan Hinchliffe, portfolio holder on Bradford Council for employment, skills and culture, said: "The student population is a really important element of the city centre. Between the College and the University there are about 30,000 students enrolled and both institutions have ambitious plans for the future. New accommodation like this is therefore welcome in the city centre. It helps drive footfall and contributes to the regeneration of the city."

The flats include bathrooms and a kitchen area, and the building will also feature a communal IT area, gym, laundry room and "mini cinema" room with a 90 inch TV.