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Our community

A positive impact on people and places across the UK.

We believe in supporting the communities where we operate

We operate as a responsible landlord bringing positive impact for both local residents and wider communities.

Spotlight on London

UK’s only special needs yoga centre

The Maha Devi Yoga Centre in our Stapleton House, Holloway Road, London, provides subsidised and free sessions for children with disabilities. The charity’s lease enables it to unlock emergency funding from the National Lottery, Sport England, and the London Community Response Fund so it could continue to operate during the pandemic.

Maha Devi yoga studio - Stapleton House, London

Spotlight on Birmingham

Volunteering and canal cleans

Unite Students volunteers at our Selly Oak, Birmingham property partnered with the Canals Trust and the University of Birmingham to create volunteering opportunities for employees and students who regularly work together to clean up the canal and surrounding area to provide a safer, cleaner and more engaging environment for local residents and students.

Still from our Birmingham Canal Clean video

Spotlight on Bristol

Supporting young people and the homeless

We provide a multi-agency youth homeless prevention hub run by Bristol Youth MAPs and other agencies, with fully renovated and fitted rooms. We also provide a city-centre office and funding for a mental health worker for Bristol’s Street Intervention Service, tackling the root causes of anti-social behaviour.

We're working closely with Streetwise, a charity in Bristol which supports the homeless and drug users, to provide and fit out an office and meeting space for Streetwise and funded an additional full time ‘street beat’ worker.

Money can be a major stressor for students

We have food and stock donation stations in every property

Since 2017 we have worked with the British Heart Foundation and our students and employees are encouraged to donate unwanted items instead of sending to landfill.

£930,000
raised

in donations to date.

2 million kg
saved

in CO2 gas emissions to date.

191,775 kgs
diverted

materials from landfill to date.

University Students

Economic value

By helping to meet the growing demand for student accommodation, we create jobs locally, both during construction and during the entire lifecycle of a property. Students spend with local businesses which gives local economies a boost. The range of facilities available for local people is also enhanced as a result of the spending power of a vibrant student population.

Staff and students

Social value

We work hard to have a positive impact on local people and communities across the UK. We have established ‘community spaces’ within our properties which are used by charities and non-for-profit organisations providing services locally for a peppercorn rent. A great example of this is our Maha Devi project, a yoga therapy charity for children and adults with special needs in our Stapleton House property in London.

Wind Farm

Environmental value

The amount of rubbish generated and left by students is a huge concern for residents particularly at checkout times. Through our partnership with the British Heart Foundation we minimise this through a donation programme for unwanted items. These are sold and the proceeds used for life-saving research, with more than £1million raised to date. We also encourage unwanted food to be donated to local foodbanks.

Unite Students employee

Resolving issues

We understand that some local residents may feel uneasy about students moving into their local area. We do all we can to alleviate any concerns from pre-planning stage through the whole lifecycle of a property. With 30 years of sector experience, we have a number of initiatives in place which prevent anti-social behaviour before it starts.

Unite Students employee and student

Meeting the needs of local communities

Local residents have easy access to our site teams and emergency contact centre if issues arises. For example, at Parade Green, Oxford following negative feedback from residents, we put an engagement plan in place which involved the appointment of a community champion.

Unite Students employee

The value we create

Our operational teams are active in their communities through our Company-wide volunteering programme.

We relaunched our Positive Impact programme in 2022, which includes awards for projects undertaken by employees aimed at delivering measurable benefits in their local communities. We also engage actively with local stakeholders for our development projects to ensure the design of our buildings, public spaces and community facilities meets their needs.

Having a positive impact on people and places across the UK

16/10/2020
Case studies
Superhero Foundation
Four employees join Jamie McDonald in coast-to-coast run across USA to help sick children
16/10/2020
Case studies
Edinburgh: Youth homelessness charity
Unite Students supports The Rock Trust, Scotland's youth-specific homelessness charity
18/09/2020
Case studies
Oxford: Parade Green – Community Champion
Unite Students appoints role to listen and feedback directly to community
03/09/2020
Case studies
Bristol: Street Intervention Service
Unite Students helps to reduce the number of people living rough in Bristol