Willmott Dixon completes £100m student village for University of Staffordshire
Offsite light gauge steel frame took the superstructure of the £100m Stoke-on-Trent scheme from start to finish in 32 weeks NATIONAL tier one contractor Willmott Dixon has completed the new Student Village at the University of Staffordshire, a 1000-bed development in Stoke-on-Trent whose superstructure was delivered in 32 weeks using an offsite light gauge steel frame system. The £100 million scheme has been delivered under a Design, Build, Finance, Operate (DBFO) model by a consortium of Willmott Dixon, HOCHTIEF PPP Solutions UK and Ireland, Plenary and Pinnacle Group, working with the university. Project and industry partners were given a preview of the completed village ahead of the first residents moving in for the new academic year. The modern methods of construction (MMC) strategy centred on a fully integrated light gauge steel frame (LGSF) solution, manufactured offsite and assembled on site across six residential buildings. As well as compressing the superstructure programme to 32 weeks, the approach held manufacturing tolerances to 5mm across the development. At the centre of the site is a £12 million student hub, designed to be net zero carbon in operation. Across four levels it provides individual and group study areas, social and welfare facilities, a landscaped garden lounge and a double-height events hall. A new pedestrian bridge and boardwalk will link the village to the university’s wider Leek Road site, where demolition will make way for accessible parkland targeting a 12% biodiversity net gain. The 1000-bed development also included the refurbishment of 300 rooms at The Swan Building, upgrading the living space and installing low-energy systems to improve the block’s energy performance. The work was programmed over the summer months so that the university retained its accommodation capacity and avoided any loss of room income. The DBFO model allows the university to spread the cost over a 50-year period while retaining flexibility during construction. Early engagement between the consortium and the university meant the scheme was delivered for the same £100 million agreed at the outset, with the entry cost and the exit cost matching. The project has also delivered wider social value for the local area, including 1,000 students engaged through education programmes, 500 weeks of careers support, community volunteering and charity initiatives and mental health awareness campaigns with Lighthouse Charity. Dan Doyle, delivery director at Willmott Dixon, said: “The ambition here was never simply to build more accommodation. It was to create an inclusive student community, with sustainable, future-ready buildings on a campus that attracts and retains students, and to support the university’s long-term plans for sustainability, wellbeing and growth. “Getting the superstructure up in 32 weeks came from taking the offsite decision early and holding to it, and that same early engagement is why the university has paid what it expected to pay. Pace and cost certainty together are what universities are asking of us.” Steve Rimell, chief financial officer at the University of Staffordshire, said: “We are delighted with the outcome of the Student Village project, and as CFO I am particularly pleased that it was delivered on time and on budget. The student hub is going to be extremely impactful for student amenities and wellbeing, and as a way of connecting the accommodation with our main campus. “Our students were involved from the start, helping to shape the design from the early stages, allowing us to create a new space for them that prioritises community, inclusion and wellbeing.” Ian Prescott, managing director (UK) at HOCHTIEF PPP Solutions, said: “The opening of the Student Village is the culmination of a fantastic partnership and a shared ambition to create an outstanding place for students to live. “Together, we’ve delivered a sustainable, modern development that will enhance the student experience for years to come while creating a lasting asset for the University and the wider Stoke-on-Trent community.” Dan Doyle continued: “This scheme is a strong example of what is possible when universities, developers and delivery partners come together with a shared vision and a collaborative approach.” The Student Village adds to Willmott Dixon’s higher and further education portfolio, which includes two major projects for Queen Mary University of London, the £48.8m School of Business and Management and the retrofit and extension of its Information Teaching Laboratory, the £19.3m first phase of Coleg Gwent’s Crosskeys Campus redevelopment in Newport, and Bridgend College’s net zero in operation town centre campus. The student village will welcome its first residents in time for the new student intake in September 2026. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Falling pupil numbers prompt call for wider approach to school place planning
Developers expected to fund new school places across all nine English regions despite pupil numbers falling by 722,000 by 2030 Councils in England should assess demand for school places across local school networks rather than considering each housing development in isolation, according to new analysis by national planning and development consultancy Lichfields. Department for Education forecasts show that nursery and primary pupil numbers are expected to fall by 473,000 by 2030, alongside a reduction of 249,000 secondary pupils. The analysis found that places funded through Housing Developer Contributions are forecast to increase across all nine English regions over the same period. In the North East, for example, pupil numbers are projected to fall by 2.9% while developer-funded places rise by 300%. It recommends that councils consider existing capacity, access to schools and longer-term population changes before deciding whether new provision is required. This should take account of children who move locally but remain at their current school, as they would not create demand for an additional place. Mainstream schools could also introduce SEND units where appropriate, while developer contributions could fund improved walking and cycling routes, crossings or bus services. New schools would still be needed where local provision could not accommodate the number of pupils expected. The findings come as councils plan for further housing growth under the government’s target to deliver 1.5m homes by 2029. Large developments are often planned on the edges of towns and villages, where nearby schools might have spare capacity but are too far away or cannot be reached safely on foot. Councils estimate the number of school-age children a development is expected to generate. Where existing schools cannot accommodate them or are not accessible, developers can be required to contribute towards new provision. Assessing demand across the wider area would help councils provide schools for new communities while making better use of places already available. Housing growth could also support established schools in areas where pupil numbers are falling. Robert Curtis-Haigh, Planner at Lichfields and co-author of the analysis, said: “Our analysis highlights a growing contradiction when planning for housing and education. “The current system places significant emphasis on the pupil yield of individual developments, meaning new school places are often still being planned even as pupil numbers decline and existing schools face falling rolls. “The solution isn’t to stop building new schools or new homes, but to take a more strategic view of how the education system will function over the coming decades. “New schools will still be essential in some locations, particularly where major growth is planned. However, in many cases there may be opportunities to improve accessibility and make better use of existing school capacity, while also recognising that housing growth actually supports those schools that are facing declining pupil numbers.” Read the full analysis here: https://lichfields.uk/blog/2026/august/24/catchment-22-the-education-planning-paradox-nobody-is-talking-about Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Sector and regional bright spots remain reveals latest RLB report
Sector and regional bright spots remain despite a softer national demand outlook beginning to feed through to tender prices reveals the latest Construction Market Intelligence Q3 2026 report from leading construction and property management consultant, Rider Levett Bucknall (RLB UK). While RLB is observing sectorial differences in output, there is a backdrop of persistent global and domestic uncertainties influencing sentiment and forward expectations. This has led to RLB’s weighted average Tender Price Index forecast uplift for 2026 shifting from 3.98% in Q2 to 3.54% for Q3. While the supply chain may be absorbing some of the input cost increases, analysis by RLB experts found that it is not at any cost, with contractors acutely aware of the risk profiles of the work that they are taking on. Demand and opportunity are primed Construction output stabilised in Q2 to 0.3%, driven by repair and maintenance and infrastructure spending. Sector recovery remains mixed with advanced tech and data centres continuing at pace and capital to deploy in sectors such as residential but pivoted away from development. Longer term pipelines in many regions including Wales, the North West and Yorkshire remain strong with many developments primed pending improved viability. Supply Chain adapting and absorbing While the Middle East conflict continues to affect input costs, the supply chain has adapted with many absorbing costs and early engagement recommended. Paul Beeston, RLB’s Head of Service Industry and Service Insight comments, “While global challenges are more broadly leading to secondary impacts on pipelines, sectors and regions each have bright spots carrying construction momentum. In many sectors cost absorption into 2027 will be a feature of the market and pipelines are primed for activity when viability allows. Tender price levels indicate it is a good time to engage the market, but clients should be cognisant that it is risk profile and client governance that are key determinants of both pricing levels and appetite to bid.” Click here to read RLB’s full Construction Market Intelligence Q3 report. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Pluto Finance Hits £1bn Lending Milestone as BTR Investment Expands
Pluto Finance has reached £1 billion of cumulative lending through its flagship institutional lending vehicle, marking a significant milestone for the real estate finance specialist as it continues to support residential development across the UK and Europe. The milestone comes as Pluto provides development finance for a new Build to Rent scheme in the Midlands, further strengthening its exposure to the living sector at a time when institutional capital continues to play an important role in delivering new rental housing. Pluto Finance specialises in real estate private credit, providing development, bridging and investment finance across residential and commercial property. Since its formation in 2011, the business has deployed more than £4 billion across over 350 loans and has helped finance the delivery of more than 15,000 new homes. Its flagship lending strategy has increasingly focused on areas where housing supply remains constrained, providing capital to developers and supporting projects ranging from conventional residential development to purpose-built rental accommodation. The £1 billion milestone also reflects Pluto’s expansion beyond the UK. The lender now operates across markets including Ireland, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and Portugal, as it develops a broader European real estate finance platform. Institutional backing has played an important role in that growth. Universities Superannuation Scheme, one of the UK’s largest pension schemes, holds a substantial minority stake in Pluto, while the lender established a strategic partnership with Blackstone in 2025 focused on originating and executing larger mid-market real estate loans across Europe. For the BTR market, the latest Midlands financing demonstrates the continued role of alternative lenders in unlocking development at a time when construction costs, viability pressures and changing traditional bank lending appetite remain important considerations for developers. Sustainability is also increasingly embedded within Pluto’s lending strategy. Its Low Carbon Lending Programme provides incentives for developments achieving defined reductions in embodied and operational carbon, while much of its development lending has historically supported brownfield sites and urban regeneration. The latest BTR development loan therefore forms part of a much wider residential investment strategy, combining institutional capital with development finance to support the delivery of new homes. With its flagship vehicle now passing £1 billion of cumulative lending and its European operations expanding, Pluto Finance’s latest milestone highlights the growing importance of private credit to the UK’s BTR and wider residential development markets. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Building Performance Specialist Appoints Managing Director
Building performance and M&E engineering specialist Mesh has appointed Jen Wallace as Managing Director to lead the business in the next phase of its growth. Jen joined Mesh in 2019 as one of the company’s first employees, progressing from a junior renewable energy consultant to Team Lead, before being appointed Operations Director in 2022. Over the past seven years, she has played a pivotal role in developing the systems, processes and culture that underpin all of Mesh’s services in the construction sector. Her appointment comes as Mesh continues to broaden its work across the built environment, combining building physics analysis with building services design to help clients and developers to improve the energy efficiency of new housing, public and commercial buildings. In her new role as Managing Director, Jen now takes responsibility for leading operations, people and culture, sales and marketing, and the day-to-day running of the business. Commenting on this appointment, Jen said: “This is an incredibly exciting time to be working in building engineering and the opportunities for Mesh across the built environment are considerable. Developers need to respond to increasingly demanding legislative requirements around energy performance, carbon emissions and overheating caused by a changing climate. Building owners are facing similar challenges which require improving and decarbonising existing facilities to drive down energy costs, transition away from fossil fuels, and maintain occupier comfort. Digital technology and automation continue to advance apace. We are developing and applying multiple tools to automate the more repeatable data processes to enable our engineers to focus their expertise where it adds the most value to our customers. Mesh has evolved enormously since I joined the business. However, what has remained consistent is our focus on understanding what clients are trying to achieve and using data-led evidence to help them make better decisions. Our approach is to bring together building physics and M&E engineering rather than looking at individual issues in isolation. This means we can quantify the impact of different energy strategies and assess the implications on running costs and carbon emissions to achieve the right balance of what is practical and deliverable for every project. I am extremely proud of the people and culture we have built at Mesh. There is a genuinely shared commitment to improving the sustainability of buildings and the wider environment that we live and work in. I am looking forward to leading the next stage of the business.” Doug Johnson, Founding Director of Mesh: “The opportunities ahead are significant. Whether we are working with architects to create better-performing buildings, pushing the boundaries of sustainable design and engineering, or helping organisations develop practical strategies to decarbonise existing facilities, property managers, architects and developers increasingly need joined-up engineering advice backed by robust analysis to inform decision making. Jen has had a very positive impact on Mesh’s growth. She joined us at a very early stage having worked in the charitable and local authority sectors. She has helped to build much of the operational infrastructure that has enabled Mesh to develop its customer base and services – and maintain a high level of repeat business. Jen understands the commercial and operational realities and challenges our clients face. Her progression from energy consultant to Managing Director reflects her talent as a business leader in the built environment. I am delighted that she has accepted this role to lead Mesh through its next phase.” Mesh’s services have continued to broaden as Building Regulations have become more stringent and renewable energy technologies have advanced. Its work now ranges from energy strategies and overheating analysis, operational and embodied carbon assessments, compliance and planning support, through to M&E design, tender specifications and strategies for decarbonising existing buildings. Mesh also has a number of niche specialisms – working with architects and planning consultants on National Planning Policy Framework HO11 projects that demand innovation and excellence in sustainability and design; developing energy strategies for complex estates and building portfolios needing to reduce energy consumption and accelerate decarbonisation, and embodied carbon analysis such as for M5 planning policy for replacement buildings. A key priority under Jen’s leadership will be the continued development of digital systems and automation for repetitive tasks and data collection to allow Mesh’s engineers to maximise their time on strategic analysis, problem solving, and developing practical, evidence-based solutions for clients. For more information, see www.mesh-energy.com or email info@mesh-energy.com. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
£249m Refinancing Backs Next Chapter for Manchester’s Landmark Square Gardens
Downing has secured a £249.2 million refinancing package for two major residential towers at its £400 million Square Gardens development in Manchester, marking another significant milestone for one of the city’s largest new living schemes. The financing, provided by Bank of Ireland, covers Acer and The Fernley, the two completed co-living buildings within the wider Square Gardens development in Manchester’s First Street district. Together, the buildings provide a major concentration of new rental accommodation, with the 25-storey Acer and 45-storey Fernley forming the first two phases of the development. Both buildings are now operational, demonstrating the scale of demand for professionally managed, amenity-led rental accommodation in Manchester. Designed by Manchester-based SimpsonHaugh Architects, Square Gardens represents a substantial addition to the city’s evolving residential landscape. The wider £400 million development has been conceived as a new urban neighbourhood combining high-density living with extensive shared amenities, landscaped spaces and public realm. Residents have access to facilities including a gym and wellness centre, co-working and meeting areas, social lounges, private dining spaces and extensive landscaped gardens and terraces. Sustainability has also formed an important part of the development, with measures including air source heat pumps, while the scheme has targeted BREEAM Excellent and EPC A ratings. The refinancing represents an important financial milestone following the completion and occupation of the two buildings. Savills Capital Advisors advised Downing on the transaction. Bay Downing, joint chief executive of Downing, described the deal as a landmark transaction for the business, highlighting the strength of the company’s portfolio and growing opportunities across the living sector. The deal is also significant for the wider UK residential market. Large-scale co-living and Build to Rent developments are becoming an increasingly established component of regeneration in major regional cities, combining new housing supply with extensive shared facilities and professionally managed environments. Square Gardens has been created using Downing’s vertically integrated approach, with development, construction and ongoing management delivered by the business. This has enabled the company to take the scheme from construction through to operation within the wider group. With Acer and The Fernley now completed and backed by £249.2 million of refinancing, Square Gardens is moving firmly from major construction project to established residential destination, reinforcing Manchester’s position as one of the UK’s leading markets for large-scale rental and co-living development. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals