THE LATEST purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) from Cassidy Group Ltd has moved closer to completion with its official topping out ceremony.
Funded by Zorin Finance, the 419-studio apartments Beckton House in Beeston, adjacent to the University of Nottingham, will be operated by Fresh and will open its doors for the September 2026/27 academic year.
Once completed, the centrally located development will provide studio accommodation for students of Nottingham’s two universities – both of which are linked to the building by the city’s main tram line which conveniently stops at the main entrance.
The five-storey block is currently under construction with contractor Winvic, with the early completion of the building’s structural frame which has been marked with a traditional topping out ceremony last week.
Patric Cassidy, director at Cassidy Group Ltd said: “Topping out is a significant milestone for any project, and to have reached this stage ahead of programme is testament to the work of Winvic and our trusted team of consultants.”
“The decision to go with 100% of studios was due to local market demand and the shortage of quality accommodation in this area. The design and specification of what will be an EPC ‘A’ rated energy efficient building speaks for itself and with excellent transport links, this represents a new chapter in student accommodation within the area.”
Vinod Vijaya, lending director at Zorin Finance said: “The key driver for financing these developments is to understand who you are lending to, and with Cassidy Group we see a highly organised, fully motivated team that does in depth analysis before taking a scheme on. It’s incredibly helpful when you see a team that performs in that synchronised way – it shows us as a lender that a developer is clearly driven and believes in what they want to deliver.”
Patric Cassidy said: “Having been in the development sector for more than 40 years, we’ve built a tried and tested approach to taking schemes forward and with a portfolio of 3,000 student beds and 1,000 apartments across England, we’ve got a build programme for the next two-to-three years that is really exciting and hope to work closely with Vinod and his team at Zorin again.
“Having employed Knight Frank to source senior debt funding and selected Zorin from a large number of offers, we are very impressed with their experience in this sector and their speed and professional approach compared to other lenders.”
Beckton House is one of several student accommodation schemes being worked on by Cassidy Group across England, and one of their first ventures into the developer/owner and operator world.
Cassidy said: “We’re keen to find more investment partners to work with and would like to acquire more sites for both PBSA and build-to-rent schemes. We are also actively looking for large-scale single-family housing sites as we see a real opportunity in this growing sector.
We’d like to work with landowners to use our 40-year pedigree to deliver further large-scale residential schemes which in turn, will help relieve some of the pressure of the ever-growing housing crisis.”
For more information on Beckton House, visit becktonhouse.co.uk
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