Watkin Jones, the UK's leading developer and manager of residential for rent homes, is pleased to announce that it has acquired a one-acre site in Stratford, East London on an unconditional basis.
Watkin Jones are preparing plans for a new development comprising 394 student homes as well as commercial space at street level. 2020 Capital has worked closely with Watkin Jones to bring forward the site from a planning perspective.
The brownfield site on Grove Crescent is a former builders’ merchants and is perfectly positioned to provide new housing capacity to meet the needs of students attending higher education institutions in Stratford.
The site is well placed to provide accommodation for students studying on the future UCL East and UAL’s London College of Fashion campuses in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park which is already home to Loughborough University London and Staffordshire University London. The new scheme will also be located within walking distance of Birkbeck College and UEL’s new University Square Stratford campus.
In-line with Watkin Jones’ commitment to sustainability the proposed development will be designed to minimise its environmental impact, meeting BREEAM Excellent.
"Stratford is a great location for students and its success since the Olympics is a fantastic example of what can be done when political will meets institutional capital. As the area builds its reputation as a centre for higher education, we want to make sure there are enough homes to meet growing student demand and keep pressure from local housing stock."
Alex Pease Chief Investment Officer of Watkin Jones
This is Watkin Jones second recent development in Stratford, following the completion of the 511 student home Eleanor Rosa House for the University of London in 2019.
Maze Real Estate acted for Watkin Jones on the purchase.
For further information:
| Watkin Jones plc | |
| Alex Pease, Chief Investment Officer | Tel: +44 (0) 20 3617 4453 |
Media enquiries:
| Watkin Jones plc | ||
| James McLarin, Head of External Communications | Tel: +44 (0) 330 912 4138 | |
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NOTES TO EDITORS
Watkin Jones is the UK's leading developer and manager of residential for rent, with a focus on the Build to Rent and student accommodation sectors. The Group has strong relationships with institutional investors, and a reputation for successful, on-time-delivery of high-quality developments. Since 1999, Watkin Jones has delivered 45,000 student beds across 135 sites, making it a key player and leader in the UK purpose-built student accommodation market. In addition, the Fresh Property Group, the Group's specialist accommodation management company, manages over 22,000 student beds and Build to Rent apartments on behalf of its institutional clients. Watkin Jones has also been responsible for over 80 residential developments, ranging from starter homes to executive housing and apartments. The Group is increasingly expanding its operations into the Build to Rent sector.
The Group's competitive advantage lies in its experienced management team and business model, which enables it to offer an end-to-end solution for investors, delivered entirely in-house with minimal reliance on third parties, across the entire life cycle of an asset.
Watkin Jones was admitted to trading on AIM in March 2016 with the ticker WJG.L.