Watkin Jones is pleased to announce the establishment of a Joint Venture with Housing Growth Partnership (‘HGP’), the Lloyds-backed equity investor, to develop a 397-bed purpose-built student accommodation (‘PBSA’) development in Stratford, East London. The scheme has a Gross Development Value of c. £120 million.
Located on a one-acre brownfield site on Grove Crescent, the development will also include circa 2,000m2 of commercial space. The scheme is conveniently located to cater for the circa 14,000 students studying at UCL East and UAL’s London College of Fashion campuses in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, as well as the nearby Birkbeck College and UEL University Square Stratford campus.
HGP is investing 75% of the equity requirement and Watkin Jones 25%. The Group will be responsible for the delivery of the scheme as well as ongoing management through Fresh, Watkin Jones’ accommodation management business.
Completion of the PBSA element targeted in time for the start of the 2026/27 academic year. The development will deliver essential student housing in response to the persistent national shortage of rental homes for students.
Aligned to Watkin Jones’ and HGP’s strong ESG credentials, aiming to achieve a 'BREEAM Excellent' rating. Additionally, it will provide new outdoor spaces and amenities, along with enhancements to the public realm including additional wildlife-friendly landscaping and greenery to enhance the local surroundings. The development promotes a car-free environment, advocating sustainable transportation options like biking or walking.
Watkin Jones and HGP will collaborate with local youth groups through various initiatives, including roof garden plantings, guided tours of the site, and educational programmes focused on sustainability and modern housing concepts.
George Dyer, Group Investment Director of Watkin Jones, commented: “We are delighted to partner with HGP on this joint venture, which will allow us to deliver secured returns in line with group targets whilst also offering the opportunity for outperformance from the recovery of the London PBSA market. The project will provide much needed supply into Stratford, a key student location within London, delivering high quality accommodation with strong ESG credentials.”
Colin Bennett, Investment Director at HGP, added: “Establishing our first joint venture with Watkin Jones, one of the UK’s leading PBSA providers, is another milestone for HGP. It also demonstrates the growing demand for our equity offering as a means to accelerate the delivery of much needed Living accommodation across the UK. The demographic and structural drivers underpinning the PBSA sector especially in London, a global leader in higher education provision, are highly supportive. Having surpassed our 10,000 homes target a year earlier than planned, we continue to diversify into new tenures and commit larger investments, whilst continuing to deliver meaningful social impact for both residents and wider communities.”
- Ends -
Media enquiries:
Burson Buchanan
Henry Harrison-Topham / Steph Whitmore
watkinjones@buchanan.uk.com
www.buchanancomms.co.uk
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7466 5000
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, student accommodation and affordable housing 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 48,000 student beds across 143 sites, making it a key player and leader in the UK purpose-built student accommodation market, and is increasingly expanding its operations into the build to rent sector. In addition, Fresh, the Group's specialist accommodation management business, manages over 16,940 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's competitive advantage lies in its experienced management team and capital-light 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. For additional information please visit www.watkinjonesplc.com
About Housing Growth Partnership
Housing Growth Partnership (‘HGP’) is an equity investor and part of Lloyds Banking Group. HGP invest patient capital with the purpose of delivering social impact through partnership with selected residential developers and housebuilders to increase the number of homes being delivered and help its partners grow. HGP does this through its unique investment approach, which shares both risk and reward with its partners.
Since 2016 HGP has supported over 7,500 new homes on over 100 sites.
HGP invest all over the UK into multiple housing tenures, including family housing, apartments, build to rent, retirement living, student accommodation and more, with the flexibility to support its partners through a variety of deal structures across the development lifecycle. To find out more, visit www.housinggrowth.com.
