Almost 100,000 more student beds needed to meet London demand

Almost 100,000 more student beds are needed to meet demand in London, according to new research from Savills, the highest across all of the UK. 

Demand for purpose built student accommodation (PBSA) has risen in recent years as the capital battles low housing supply and property development, alongside the impact of inflation and interest rate hikes. 

The student to bed ratio is in London also one of the largest across Britain, sitting at 3.6. 

Jacqui Daly, director, residential research, Savills, said:: “A high student to bed ratio is a measure used to indicate a lack of supply in the student accommodation market. 

“The ratio in London is high at 3.6. Using the latest planning data, Savills estimate that the ratio will reduce to under 3 if all of the short-term supply pipeline is delivered in the capital. That’s sites [that are] under construction or with planning consent.”

She added: “This will increase the proportion of operational beds by 24 per cent  but is still someway off the number of beds needed to bring the ratio down to an average of 1.5 students per bed.”

Outside of London, both Glasgow and Edinburgh also face a shortage, with a need for 22,000 and 17,000 additional beds, respectively. 

Looking at the short-term pipeline, Bristol leads by some way with delivery set to increase PBSA in the city by 45 per cent  of existing operational supply. 

This will see the student to bed ratio reduce from 3.5 to 2.4.

Corranne Wheeler, research, Savills, said: “Ensuring cities have an adequate supply of suitable housing is key to balancing the needs of students and local communities.

“Many universities have recognised the need for more student housing to address the supply shortages and to mitigate against loss of housing in the private rented sector. 

She added: “The next and perhaps even bigger challenge for universities is to secure both new supply and new private sector investment to upgrade their existing residences to meet government energy efficiency targets.”