New London student accommodation reaches major development milestone

• Unite Students celebrates ‘topping out’ of its Hawthorne House property in Stratford with construction contractor, RG Group
• The £185m development will combine purpose-built student accommodation and sixth form academy, London Academy of Excellence
• Opening in time for the start of the 2026/27 academic year, Hawthorne House will provide 366 beds for University Arts London

A major milestone has been reached in the construction of Unite Students new £185 million Hawthorne House property in London.

The UK’s largest student accommodation provider has celebrated ‘topping out’ at a rooftop ceremony hosted by its construction contractor, RG Group.

The 36-storey building has now reached its full height with the frame of the main building completed.

Hawthorne House is being constructed in Farthingale Walk, Stratford, and is replacing former office block Jubilee House.

The 719-bed property will offer a variety of room types and include high-quality study and amenity spaces, such as a digital gym, club room and external roof terraces.

A multi-year agreement with University Arts London will provide 366 beds for its students.

The building will also be home to a sixth-form academy, with eight floors leased to the London Academy of Excellence.

The capital is home to more than 300,000 students and Unite Students is committing to help meeting the high demand for modern, affordable student accommodation.

Unite Students’ Hawthorne House in Stratford, London

A ‘fabric first’ approach that maximises the performance of the building’s materials to improve energy efficiency has been used in the design of Hawthorne House, such as enhancing air tightness and solar gain.

The development’s embodied carbon saving is 9,770 tCO2e (tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent) over 60 years, which exceeds the RIBA (Royal Institute of British Architects) 2030 Climate Challenge baseline. These are voluntary performance targets for operational energy use, water use and embodied carbon.

Tom Brewerton, group development director at Unite Students, said: “This is an exciting milestone – we can now see the building beginning to take shape.

“Hawthorne House is a unique property that will support the supply of much-needed student accommodation in London and provide a first-class learning environment for the London Academy of Excellence.

“In providing a home for more than 700 students, we’re also helping to free up privately rented homes in the city for families, reducing housing shortage pressures.”

Denis Ganachaud, Associate Director at RG Group at RG Group, said: “The topping out ceremony is an opportunity to celebrate an important milestone in the construction of this new property with all our partners. We’re proud to be involved in delivering this major, new scheme for Unite Students and look forward to completing the project over the coming months.”

ENDS

Notes to Editors

For further information, please contact Unite Students press office on 0117 4506300 or email: press.office@unitestudents.com

About Unite Students

Unite Students is the UK’s largest owner, manager, and developer of purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA).

With more than 150 properties in 23 leading university towns and cities, Unite Students is home to around 70,000 students, living predominantly in en-suite study bedrooms with rents covering bills, insurance, and 24-hour security.

Driven by a common purpose: to provide a ‘Home for Success’ to live, work and invest, Unite Students is committed to raising standards in the student accommodation sector with the support of over 60 university partners.

Founded in 1991 in Bristol, the Unite Group is an award-winning Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT), listed on the London Stock Exchange. For more information, visit Unite Group’s corporate website www.unitegroup.com or the Unite Students’ site www.unitestudents.com.