Unite Students picks contractor for 600-bed Bristol development

Marsh Mills, which has a total development cost of £75m, is being built alongside the University of Bristol’s new Temple Quarter campus, close to the city’s Temple Meads train station.

The development has planning permission for 596 beds and will open in time for the 2025/26 academic year. A lease agreement is in place with Bristol University for at least half of the rooms.

The building has been designed for low operational energy consumption through a ‘fabric first’ approach. Energy efficiency has been considered during the design and build phase through to the manufacturing of materials and their delivery to the site, as well as their installation and use throughout the operational lifecycle of the building. Air source heat pumps and solar panels will also be installed.

The development’s embodied carbon saving is calculated at the equivalent of 7,300 tonnes of CO₂ over the lifecycle of the building. The development also meets the RIBA Climate Challenge’s 2025 targets for embodied carbon in new residential buildings.

The development site is in the heart of the Bristol Temple Quarter enterprise zone and St Philip’s Marsh, one of the UK’s largest regeneration projects. The property will also include communal features including study spaces, a roof terrace, a gym and cycle storage.

Tom Brewerton, group development director at Unite Students, said: “Bristol is where it all began for Unite Students and this new property is in a vitally important scheme for students in the city. Marsh Mills will be built alongside the University of Bristol’s new Temple Quarter campus plus the city’s Temple Meads train station.

“This development is further evidence of Unite Students’ commitment to delivering new supply of high-quality student accommodation in cities where it is needed most. Marsh Mills will have a low-carbon impact on the environment and will be built and open in time for the start of 2025/6 academic year, adding to our portfolio in the city and contributing to the much-needed regeneration of the Temple Quarter and St Philip’s Marsh area of the city.”

RG Group has been awarded the build contract and construction work is now underway.

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