Gone are the days when students would merely seek out a roof over their heads when deciding where to settle at a student accommodation during their studies. Today, students are looking for living space with shared facilities, flexibility, and comfort, new findings from the Class of 2020 think-tank reveals. Known as ‘Branded Living’, it would appear to be the future for student accommodation and offers much more than just a bed to sleep in. Students can now enjoy the use of shared facilities such as communal areas, bars and restaurants, gyms and outdoor or rooftop spaces.   On top of the obvious perks, ‘branded living’ is also a socially beneficial experience, as it creates opportunities for students to share ideas, study and retreat, in turn reducing loneliness and developing a sense of community. “Branded living incorporates the growing desire of a younger generation wishing to maintain an urban lifestyle with co-living platforms that offer an attractive alternative to otherwise outdated housing options” says Ryan Manton, Programme Director of the Class of 2020. In fact, within the hotel sector in the Netherlands, revenues from additional services regularly account for up to 50% of total revenues, according to ‘Savills, spotlight research’. We are now seeing this in the market for micro-homes aimed at students and Young Professionals too, with investors showing an increasing interest in the market for micro-housing and the branded living concept. This is also a global phenomenon, with over 400 brands now known to offer ‘branded living’ in the housing sector. This not only creates opportunities for students to live in shared, flexible, and comfortable facilities, but these investments also help to fund and develop much-needed housing options for both students and young professionals in cities with housing shortages. The introduction of the evolution of student accommodation is transforming urban living for students and young professionals during studies and beyond. The future of urbanised living is exciting, and something that requires continued focus and research.

Work is moving forward with a £2 million extension contract at Penistone Grammar School in Barnsley. Following the completion of phase one, which saw internal re-modelling completed at the institution to support 50 additional students, a contract has been awarded for the extension building.  “The investment the council has made in this project meets our Town Spirit ethos – Achieve it, and reinforces our commitment to provide the right quantity and the very best quality of school places to help every child achieve their potential. The additional places at Penistone Grammar will be a huge benefit to the borough and will add much-needed resource to a well-performing school,” said councillor Tim Cheetham, Cabinet Spokesperson for Regeneration and Culture. Triton Construction has signed on to deliver the building, which will include six new classrooms, two science labs, toilets, staff work spaces and new IT offices. It will be linked to the main school via a walkway.  This project forms part of the long-term plan to facilitate an additional intake of 50 new students per year, over five years. “We are pleased to be working with the team at Triton to deliver a fantastic new, state of the art facility for our students and staff. This represents a very exciting time for the school. The school is really going from strength to strength,” Paul Crook, Principal at Penistone Grammar added. “Triton have worked closely with the school to ensure there is minimal disruption to our students learning. In fact, the project will add value to the learning experiences of our young people, specifically those studying technology-based subjects who will engage with Triton for a first-hand experience.” AA Projects will work alongside Triton as Project Manager, Principal Designer and Quantity Surveyor on the project.  The Penistone Grammar School extension is expected to be completed in spring 2020. 

HLM Architects, a leading design and architecture company with studios in Glasgow, attended the celebrations held to mark the topping out ceremony for the James McCune Smith Learning Hub at the University of Glasgow. Attended by students, University representatives and the design and construction teams, the ceremony marked the significant milestone for the £90.6 million project, located on University Avenue. It is the first project which will be completed within the University of Glasgow’s £1 billion Campus Development programme.  HLM Architects were selected to create a stand-out design for the flagship 16640m2 development, providing over 2,500 students with state-of-the-art learning and teaching facilities.  HLM worked collaboratively with the University of Glasgow throughout all design stages to ensure that the University’s ambitious vision for the future education of its students is successfully brought to life. The thoughtful design has been inspired and driven by user-group consultation at every level, emphasising the student experience now and as it will develop in the future.  A particular focus has been the incorporation of technology and innovation, including a 500-seat lecture theatre, technology-enhanced seminar rooms of various sizes and multi-purpose advanced learning spaces; combining flexible and social areas with reflective study environments.  The location for the Hub, in the heart of the estate, overcomes the development constraints of the historic Gilmorehill campus, and is a clear statement of intent from the University to its staff and student community. The site will be pivotal in the connectivity across the expanding campus and creates a ‘gateway’ building, providing a sense of arrival for visitors to the University. The new building is named after abolitionist and medic James McCune Smith – the first African American to be awarded a medical degree, receiving an MD from the University of Glasgow in 1837. Patrick Clark, Project Lead Consultant at HLM Architects said, “It has been a privilege to lead the design process on the James McCune Smith Learning Hub at the University of Glasgow. We listened to the ambitions of the University and were truly inspired by the user-group consultations; the research we gathered on the student experience was critical to our meaningful design approach. Our aim has been to develop a environment that is open, enjoyable and accessible for all, striving towards a world-leading educational facility for a world-changing University.”  The University’s Principal and Vice-Chancellor, Professor Sir Anton Muscatelli, said, “It’s tremendously exciting to see the progress being made on the James McCune Smith Learning Hub, and I would like to congratulate all our construction partners, on their work to this point.  Once complete, this will be a fantastic new facility, enhancing our world-class learning and teaching credentials, and helping to inspire future generations of students and staff at the University of Glasgow.”

School and community leaders have come together to mark the official start of building works for the new purpose-built special education needs facilities at Highfield Ely Academy with a groundbreaking ceremony. The special school, which is part of The Active Learning Trust, is the first school in the county to provide specialist and dedicated support and facilities for SEN students aged 2 to 25. A dedicated wing for younger children in Early Years and Key Stage 1 will be created, and the former Early Years area will be refurbished to provide improved facilities for staff. This will bring the campus in line with the required standards. A new block will house a new hydrotherapy pool, sports hall and fitness suite, as well as independent teaching and social areas to meet the needs of young adults with Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulties. A new provision for Cambridgeshire, LINC 19-25 (Learning, Independence, Needs and Care), will offer accredited courses and specialist therapy services to meet the personal, daily and medical needs of up to ten young people from September 2020. Cambridgeshire County Council’s education capital team are leading the £6.7million build project on behalf of the school. Enabling works have already begun with R G Carter officially starting on 1st July, led by designs from Atkins. The facilities are expected to be completed during the summer term 2020, ready for the academy to start using by September 2020. Simon Bainbridge, Executive Headteacher at Highfield Ely Academy said: “Today is a monumental moment for us and we are thrilled that work has begun on our new facilities. It will provide our students with a fantastic array of new experiences to help support and stimulate them as well as build their independence. We look forward to watching the building progress, and to sharing the results with everyone.” Simon Bywater, Chairman of the Cambridgeshire County Council’s Children and Young People Committee said: “It is great to see work starting at Highfield School. The facilities for young adults aged 18-25 is a first for Cambridgeshire and enables support and care to be provided in a dedicated space designed for young adults with profound and multiple learning difficulties. The extension will also provide new classrooms for younger children, as well as brand new sports and therapy facilities for all the children and young adults at the school to enjoy.” Paul Hutchinson, Framework Director for R G Carter who are undertaking the building work added: “R G Carter is delighted to have been given the opportunity to collaborate with Cambridgeshire County Council and The Active Learning Trust on this much-needed development. “Our focus is on delivering this unique project and providing a quality teaching facility that will serve the local community for many years to come.” Mr Bainbridge was joined by representatives from Cambridgeshire County Council and constructors RG Carter to mark the occasion. The guests included: Simon Bywater, Chairman of Cambridgeshire County Council’s Children and Young People Committee Councillor Lis Every, Cambridgeshire County Councillor for Ely North Paul Hutchinson, Framework Director for R G Carter Ben Garside, Client Manager for R G Carter Will Robinson, Project Manager for R G Carter

A new community sixth form campus is due to arrive in Leivester city centre, as a site is being redeveloped. The project will see former call centre facilities for telecoms giant BT in New Albion House on Dunkirk Street and the adjacent Wellesley House on Wellington Street transformed into two new buildings.  Delivering the work is ISG, which will redevelop the building so that it houses 33 classrooms, 11 laboratories and a learning resource centre, as well as ICT suites, social areas, and private study spaces.  ISG will install new, high-performance mechanical and electrical services and comprehensively reconfigure the layout within the buildings to create a contemporary and inspiring learning environment that is set to open its door to students in September 2020. The work is being completed thought the firm’s latest framework project with the Department for Education (DfE) and Lionheart Academies Trust. “Delivering an entirely new sixth form college in the heart of Leicester city centre is a project that will derive a long-term legacy for the local community and wider city region. It’s clear to see the positive social value generated by projects of this nature, and this brings a real passion and singularity of purpose from our extended team to deliver an outstanding result for the Trust,” said Wayne Flannery, ISG’s regional director for the Midlands. “The DfE framework procurement route has enabled all project stakeholders to come together and collaborate at an early stage, identifying key challenges and developing smart solutions to drive efficiencies throughout the programme. By working closely with the Trust, we have all been inspired by its vision for a new standard in post-16 teaching facilities and there is great anticipation as we move forward with the meticulous planning stages ahead of our start on site later this year,” Wayne added. The new Beauchamp City Sixth Form campus is designed by Associated Architects, and will focus on the study of STEM subjects.  Work will begin on the project in November 2019 with a full internal strip out of both existing buildings.

A key milestone has been reached by Vinci on the construction of the new King’s School in Macclesfield, which was celebrated at an event to mark completion of steelwork erection. “I am very pleased that it blends into the surrounding landscape nicely and it will be a fantastic addition to Macclesfield’s facilities,” said Councillor Adam Schofield, Mayor of Macclesfield. On track for completion in May 2020, the project, which comprises 1350 tonnes of steel, is currently halfway through construction. The project will boast an impressive six lane, 25-metre swimming pool, central library, café, art studios, rugby pitches, all-weather hockey pitches and a 400-metre athletics track. Head Master, Dr Simon Hyde attended the ceremony along with Councillor Adam Schofield, Mayor of Macclesfield, The County’s Lord Lieutenant David Briggs and some of the current pupils were also witness to the special occasion. “We are delighted with progress and we will be proudly handing over what is going to be a magnificent site, on time. It is a really exciting project for us to work on and it has been a pleasure today to welcome a group of pupils, parents and Governors to show them the progress on their new school,” said VINCI Construction UK’s Project Manager Martin Horton. “The completion of the steel frame is a major milestone and we will now bring in a range of different trades to complete the concrete flooring, underfloor heating, brickwork, blockwork and drainage, before we start the landscaping,” he added.

Nottingham is due to see the arrival of a new £5 million student accommodation scheme, which is ahead of completion later this year. Located at Derby Road, The Nest will comprise of 57 new flats and a ground floor commercial space.  Tang Developments is leading the scheme, with support from GraceMachin and design plans from Nottingham-based architects Cleveley King. A dilapidated building was demolished and replaced with a contemporary structure as part of the project, with multi-disciplinary engineering consultancy Dice forming an integral part of the team. Wayne Oakes, director at Dice, said: “The Nest is a bespoke, student accommodation which has been designed with international students in mind – incorporating the latest in studio design, great communal facilities and all in an amazing location, close to the city centre.” He continued: “One of the key design challenges associated with this development related to the client’s wish for the building to incorporate both a masonry and timber frame superstructure which, for a five-storey building, presented numerous design complications associated with disproportionate collapse. “In addition to this the project delivery team also faced interesting challenges during the early stages of the project due to experiencing poor ground conditions, which impacted upon the piled foundation solution and the contiguous piled retaining structure which was installed to support the public highway of Wollaton Street at the rear of the site. “We’ve worked closely with the developers and architects to create a building which has minimal impact on the environment and which complements the existing buildings in the vicinity – overcoming these challenges and delivering an impressive new structure on Derby Road. “There are a lot of Nottingham teams involved in the construction of The Nest – from us on the engineering side and BEC on the mechanical and electrical engineering side, to the contractors, J A Ball, delivering the work itself – which is, of course, fantastic for the local economy and the city’s construction industry. “There really is a hive of activity going on along Derby Road and across Canning Circus, with new sites progressing everyday – promoting the city’s commercial and residential offering. We’re confident that The Nest will be another welcome addition to the development of this area of the city.” The Nest will welcome its first batch of students in January 2020. 

Maynooth University opened Ireland’s National 5G Test Centre, a state-of-the-art facility called RadioSpace, especially designed for the research and testing of radio and wireless technologies needed for 5G and the future Internet of Things. RadioSpace, the 5G facility at Maynooth University will be open to large industry and SMEs and start-ups, and will provide a unique, large scale, interference-free facility for scientists and engineers from industry and universities, in Ireland and internationally. It will be one of the first of its kind in Europe. The facility consists of a specially constructed anechoic chamber that provides perfect isolation for radio signals; nothing can enter and nothing can leave. This, with the advanced test equipment and specialist engineers, allows for very sensitive measurements to be made, essential for the development of modern wireless devices. RadioSpace connects industry and academic researchers with the aim of addressing the full range of challenges in developing new technologies and products for the next generation of wireless devices. RadioSpace is designed to provide a full range of services to developers of 4G mobile networks, IoT enabled products and future 5G and mmWave devices. The €1.5 million facility, which has received €638,000 funding from Science Foundation Ireland (SFI), is part of CONNECT – the world-leading SFI Research Centre for Future Networks and Communications. This service is available to SMEs, and access can be facilitated via the Enterprise Ireland Innovation Voucher scheme. This ensures that both SMEs and larger organisations can avail of the technology and expertise of researchers in Maynooth University. Speaking at the opening of the 5G Test Centre, Minister John Halligan TD, Minister of State for Training, Skills, Innovation, Research and Development, said: “I am delighted to see first-hand the National 5G test centre at Maynooth University. This high tech facility is very impressive and will assist Irish industry in developing future smart technology. I welcome the funding by my Department through Science Foundation Ireland and look forward to hearing about future technology announcements by industry using this 5G centre. The development of smart technology is not slowing down and I’m delighted that Maynooth University is at the forefront of this research.” Commenting on the launch, Professor Philip Nolan, President of Maynooth University, said: “This is a very exciting step for Maynooth University and for the country. This facility will serve as the National 5G Test Centre for Ireland, providing a space for next-generation wireless technologies to be tested, refined and applied on an international scale. I’m pleased to say that RadioSpace will be available to all those who can make good use of it, from leading researchers and innovators to students just starting their careers, from the largest multinational to the smallest of start-ups. Until now Irish industry working in this space has needed look abroad to avail of similar facilities and I’m proud we are now in a position to provide this centre of excellence right here in Maynooth.” Professor Ronan Farrell, Dean of the Faculty of Science and Engineering and Director of RadioSpace, said companies also will have access to academic experts in the area of wireless communications. “This facility will provide industry in Ireland and across Europe, as well as academics, a rare and valuable capability to develop new technologies, and also to explore exciting questions in radio physics and engineering. We look forward to RadioSpace being a catalyst for increased collaboration between academia and industry, nationally and internationally.” Dr Ciarán Seoighe, Deputy Director General of Science Foundation Ireland, commented: “Science Foundation Ireland is delighted to support the opening of RadioSpace at Maynooth University. In Ireland we have a rich community of creative and talented experts developing cutting-edge technology that will help us prepare for an ever more data-rich digital future. SFI currently funds an array of research programmes using smart sensors and data dependent analytics that will be at the core of future jobs and addressing major societal and economic challenges. It’s crucial that we give our community the resources, infrastructure and testbeds to continue to explore, research and create. I’m confident that the new National 5G Test Centre will benefit Ireland’s research and innovation greatly.”