Downing bags another £140m of student accommodation work

These contract awards are set to push the contractor’s annual turnover above £100m for the first time.

Downing Construction has been appointed to a contract worth more than £90m to construct a mixed-use student development at Miles Street in the Vauxhall area of London. The 36-storey building will have 841 student bedrooms and 40,000 sq ft of commercial space.

The contractor, owned by developer-investor Downing, has also won a £50m contract to construct the River Street student development in Manchester. Located between River Street and Garwood Street, next to the Mancunian Way, the site will house a vaulted building of 32, 10, and five storeys. The building will have 791 student bedrooms of various types.    

Downing Construction managing director Ian Orton said: “This current round of contract wins will take our workflow through into 2021 on secured contracts – putting the business in an extremely good position to continue to grow and explore high-profile projects across the UK.

“Our turnover for the 2018/2019 financial year is set to top the £100m mark for the first time. This marks a key milestone for Downing Construction and one we look forward to building on over the coming years.

“We’ve established a core team that has grown in recent years in anticipation of this expected growth, and we continue to actively recruit at all levels.”

Alongside its most recent wins, the business is on site delivering major schemes across the country, including a £37m mixed-use student accommodation development at Holbrook House in London, and Leeds Beckett University’s new £80m Creative Arts Building.

Downing Construction has also recently started on-site at Phase Two of the City Village development in Coventry, after winning a £38m contract to construct the 385-bedroom student accommodation development along with 100 residential rental units.

Got a story? Email news@theconstructionindex.co.uk