Media & PR

Jenny Dalzell – Student Support Manager at Unite Students – shares some insights from our recent Winter Wellbeing campaign against loneliness.

Unite Students is proud to share that we are sponsors of National Student Pride for 2022. As part of LGBT History Month, founder Tom Guy and colleague Celine share their experiences of being LGBTQ+ students at university 14 years apart, what has changed since then, and why National Student Pride was founded.

Accommodation Matters is back for 2022 with a new season! In this first instalment, we share the highlights of our Living Black at University launch event and discussion panel.

Third-year Journalism student David shares, in his own words, how his university experience has been influenced by his race.

Universities UK (UUK) has announced new work in partnership with Unite Students, GuildHE and Independent HE, to set out a common approach to reduce harms from drug use and better tackle supply.

With the second term in full swing, we spoke to some of our Resident Ambassador Champions to find out more about some of the events that Resident Ambassadors have run so far this academic year, and what they’ve got planned for the year ahead.

Today, Unite Students has published ‘Living Black at University’, major new research looking into Black students’ experience in UK student accommodation, commissioned by Unite Students and carried out by Halpin Partnership. Here’s an overview of what you need to know about the report, and where you can find out more.

A new report ‘Living Black at University’ examines the experiences of Black students living in student accommodation in the UK.

Unite Students has acquired a new development site in the heart of Nottingham City Centre. The site has planning consent for a 270-bed development. It will be the first development Unite Students has built in Nottingham city centre.

Designed to support sustainability within our buildings, business and the wider communities in which we operate, Positive Impact provides an opportunity to work closely with our university partners on community initiatives.

Kerry Watson, Student Support Manager, shares some insight into loneliness and how we’re aiming to tackle it over January and February.

Unite Students, the UK's leading owner, manager and developer of student accommodation, today announces an update on current trading alongside quarterly property valuations for the Unite UK Student Accommodation Fund ('USAF') and the London Student Accommodation Joint Venture ('LSAV') as at 31 December 2021.

New appointment: Shauna Campbell has joined Unite Students from IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group plc) as Commercial Director.

We caught up with Leeds-based Residence Life Warden Jan Spalek about his experience of living alongside students at Clarence Dock Village, his insights into creating community through student events, and the clamour for in-person events following the disruption of Covid-19.

The latest episode of Accommodation Matters is now live, and this month, we’re sharing a very special episode: a takeover by the Unite Foundation, in which the panel discusses the university experiences of estranged and care-experienced students.

Unite Students, the UK’s largest provider of student accommodation, has released a new document outlining its pathway to net zero by 2030, including targets for carbon reduction now formally validated by the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi)

We look back over some of Unite Students' most-read articles of 2021 and what they say about Higher Education's priorities across the year.

Jenny Shaw, our Higher Education External Engagement Director, attended and spoke at this year’s Property Week Student Accommodation Conference. Here are her key takeaways from the event – as well as three insights we shared.

2021 marks Unite Students’ 30th anniversary. From humble beginnings in Bristol to the UK’s largest provider of purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA), based in 25 cities across England, Scotland and Wales, it’s been quite a journey. We've put together a list of 30 milestones we’re most proud of over the last three decades, and spoken to three former residents to find out what it was like to live with us and what they’ve gone on to do since graduating.

Ahead of the launch of our net-zero carbon pathway, James Tiernan - Head of Energy and Environment at Unite Students - shared some of our plans for decarbonising hot water at CUBO’s Winter Conference 2021.

In our feature series A Day in the Life Of…, we introduce some of our people on the front lines at Unite Students, working to make students’ accommodation experience the best it can be. Chaquile Damoah, a London-based Service and Sales Advisor, tells us more about his role, as well as some stories from his time on reception.

Our latest episode of Accommodation Matters is now live. This month, we’re taking a deep dive into the role of parents within Higher Education, how this has changed over time, and what this means for students, universities and accommodation providers.

15-19 November is Transgender Awareness Week. Garnet Fox, Service and Safety Advisor in Liverpool, shares their experience of being a trans employee at Unite Students, the current risks they face, and the very real consequences that discrimination can bring.

We caught up with Sam Kingsley - our Equality, Diversity & Inclusion (EDI) and Wellbeing Manager - to find out about her work at Unite so far.

We’ve launched a pilot of ‘Look after your mate’ workshops for students, to guide them on what to do if a friend is struggling. Jenny Dalzell, Student Support Manager, shares more about this initiative, including what it involves, why we’re doing it, and how we’re doing it.

Paul Watson has joined Unite Students from IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group plc)

Find out what the Unite Foundation's scholarship students have to say about their experience of university during the pandemic, what improvements they’d like to see, and what it’s been like living in Unite Students’ buildings.

Unite Students has contributed to The Manjit Wolstenholme Fund established in her honour to support children and young people in disadvantaged areas of Bradford, West Yorkshire

Unite Students launched its student ambassador scheme in 2016. This year, we’ve overhauled and rebranded it as the resident ambassador scheme; Intrapreneur Pin Yiong shares what the new-look initiative looks like.

In our feature series A Day in the Life Of…, we introduce some of our people on the front lines at Unite Students, working to make students’ accommodation experience the best it can be. This time, our interviewee is Jenny Dalzell, the Student Support Manager for Sheffield, Leeds and Birmingham, who has been with us for two and a half years.

Accommodation Matters, our accommodation-focused podcast for the Higher Education sector, is back for a third series. This time, we’re looking back at the 2021 admissions cycle and what it’s meant for students, universities and accommodation providers – as well as what it might mean for the future.

Ensuring students get the support they need is a priority for us at Unite Students. Student Support Manager Jenny Dalzell explains what Mental Health First Aid is, how it’s embedded into our support service, and how we’ve seen it work in practice.

Unite Students recently shared the stark findings of its research on Empty Nest Syndrome. But what is Empty Nest Syndrome, and why is it important for Higher Education to take notice?

Unite Students has today shared the findings of its research into Empty Nest Syndrome: the heightened sense of extreme grief that parents and carers may feel when their children leave home for the first time, which may be felt more strongly following an intense time spent with one another during the pandemic.

Our new independent research shows empty nest syndrome is hitting hard.

Social opportunities are a key part of students’ university experience and, when held in their accommodation, offer the opportunity to foster a sense of community within their building.

During 2021's welcome week, we spoke to our teams in Leeds – where we operate 11 properties – to find out how they’re going above and beyond to keep students safe as they adapt to living independently and making the most of their student experience.

With the return to campus well underway for the new academic year, and a majority of Covid-19 restrictions having been lifted across England, Scotland and Wales, Unite Students has adapted its approach to Covid for the year ahead.

Jenny Shaw considers the key messages from the Universities UK National Conference 2021, and what these might mean for student accommodation heading into the new academic year and beyond.