Supporting London’s knowledge economy with enough high-quality student housing will be crucial to its success as an innovation capital of global significance.
London seeks to emulate the example of Boston, where universities, urban research, private enterprise, and government policy have built a thriving innovation ecosystem. However, London has a shortage of purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA), which is a barrier to its objectives. In central London, student housing schemes receive a variable welcome. Student housing isn’t perceived to address urgent local social needs beyond housing the rowdy young
London’s shortage of PBSA drives thousands of students to look for accommodation in the private rental market. By providing more PBSA, demand for term-time accommodation can be met while reducing pressure on the private market. Additionally, student housing schemes can increase the supply of affordable homes. KPF is working on developments where this is achieved through off-site payments to specific projects and developments where the affordable accommodation is delivered on site.
Innovation needs social interaction. KPF is completing a student accommodation development at Chapter London Bridge, with developer Greystar, where multiple issues are tackled effectively. The development targets students from several central London universities who want to enjoy being social, maximising the “idea mixing” effect of the scheme. The amenity provision includes shared social and study space and a terrace at the top of the tower. Students from other Chapter Living schemes can also use these amenity spaces if they’re in the area—adding to the mix. A locally run coffee shop will be open to everyone, embedding the development in the neighbourhood, and the building has its own cycle club to encourage active travel.
What’s holding back the delivery of PBSA? Making viabilities work is difficult, factoring the cost of time into the equation made a significant difference at Chapter London Bridge. Bringing the cycle facilities above ground—instead of locating them in the basement—saved money and six months of construction. Mace, the contractor, proposed their High-Rise Solutions methodology. A hybrid approach to construction that combines offsite assembly with traditional onsite methods, this allowed fully enclosed floorplates to be installed at an average rate of one floor per week, saving many months on the programme.
KPF’s façade uses an arrangement of three-dimensional bays to create a fascinating visual texture across the whole building—just as we hope the individual students will come together to create a complex, interesting community. The facade is built on the module of an individual student room, with glazed panels to maximise views and light, protected by a perforated metal screen that shields against the sun and modifies wind over the openable vents. Each panel is made from a simple kit of parts that are rotated, reflected, and arranged parametrically in an abstract field.
Student schemes are intrinsically hopeful for the future, can be stretched in their ambition, and can be the engine for providing much needed social housing.
John Bushell, Principal, KPF – September, 2025
