The Unite Group (trading as Unite Students) provides purpose built student accommodation (PBSA) across the United Kingdom. The company is listed on the

London Stock Exchange London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a stock exchange in the City of London, England, United Kingdom. , the total market value of all companies trading on LSE was £3.9 trillion. Its current premises are situated in Paternoster Square close to St Pau ...

as a constituent of the

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History

The Unite Group was founded by Nicholas Porter in

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, city, Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Glouces ...

, England, in 1991. Aged 21 and following research with the

University of the West of England The University of the West of England (also known as UWE Bristol) is a public research university, located in and around Bristol, England. The institution was know as the Bristol Polytechnic in 1970; it received university status in 1992 and ...

, he recognised a growing demand for student accommodation. After a period of expansion within Bristol, in 1998 Unite opened its first properties in London. It listed on the

Alternative Investment Market AIM (formerly the Alternative Investment Market) is a sub-market of the London Stock Exchange that was launched on 19 June 1995 as a replacement to the previous Unlisted Securities Market (USM) that had been in operation since 1980. It allows ...

the following year. In 2000 the business moved its share register to the London Stock Exchange, and opened properties in Manchester, Liverpool and Portsmouth. During the following decade, Unite created investment vehicles to secure growth in London, across England and into Scotland. Of these vehicles, The Unite UK Student Accommodation Fund (USAF) is Europe's largest fund focusing solely on direct-let student accommodation. In 2006, Porter announced he was stepping down as chief executive. He was succeeded at the end of the year by

chief financial officer The chief financial officer (CFO) is an officer of a company or organization that is assigned the primary responsibility for managing the company's finances, including financial planning, management of financial risks, record-keeping, and fina ...

Mark Allan. Former

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chief executive Phil White became non-executive chairman in May 2009, succeeding Geoffrey Maddrell, after ten years in the role. By 2011 the business had grown to 40,000 beds. It remains the UK's largest provider of student accommodation by capacity, but second to IQ Student Accommodation by value of its portfolio of property. In 2012 it founded charitable trust The Unite Foundation, which provides free accommodation and a cost-of-living allowance to students from "challenging circumstances". In April 2014 Unite renamed itself "Unite Students". Simultaneously, it launched its "Home for Success" corporate philosophy; which it describes as its "business purpose". The Home for Success announcement included a £40m reinvestment of profits into the business and 16 "signature commitments", all of which relate to an improved student experience. Unite Group converted to a real estate investment trust with effect from 1 January 2017. In November 2019, the Competition and Markets Authority approved the proposed acquisition by the company of its competitor, Liberty Living, for £1.4 billion. The transaction was completed in December 2019. On 1 June 2022, it was announced that it will be promoted from the FTSE 250, and became a constituent of the

effective on 20 June.

Operations

The company provides residential accommodation to around 74,000 students across 123 buildings across the UK, and is the largest and oldest PBSA provider in the country.

Notable properties

* Grand Central -

Liverpool Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...

Sky Plaza Sky Plaza (also known as The Plaza Tower) is a 34-storey, residential skyscraper, in Arena Quarter, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Description The building is the second phase of a development in Leeds city centre, consisting of 572 student a ...

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by popul ...

Liberty Park Liberty Park is a elevated public park at the World Trade Center in Manhattan, New York City, overlooking the National September 11 Memorial & Museum in Lower Manhattan. The park, which opened on June 29, 2016, is located above the World Trad ...

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...

References

External links

Official site
{{Authority control Real estate companies established in 1991 Companies based in Bristol Companies listed on the London Stock Exchange Student housing 1991 establishments in England Real estate investment trusts of the United Kingdom