Student Roost opens the doors to its first Brighton accommodation

Student Roost has unveiled its first ever property in Brighton.

Hillfort House, which has rooms for 380 students, is ideally placed for universities in the city of Brighton & Hove. It’s situated on Moulsecoomb Way, a short walk from the University of Sussex’s Moulsecoomb campus and close to local transport links for students at the University of Brighton.

The stylish brick building opened last month, with the first students moving in on 16 July. It was developed by McLaren Property as part of a land assembly that replaced a waste transfer facility with high-quality student homes.

Hillfort House offers a range of hi-spec en-suite rooms in cluster flats, as well as private studios. In addition to a free-of-charge gym, the communal facilities include a comfortable and spacious student lounge, TV and gaming room and study space.

The property even has a hosting kitchen/diner, which can be booked by students for that perfect dinner party or celebration. In other Student Roost properties, these kitchens have been used for collaborations with local businesses to run free cooking classes for residents.

Students living at Hillfort House also won’t have to face rising energy or broadband prices this winter, because all bills are included in rent.

Hillfort House has also been built with high environmental standards considered from the start. The property has been independently rated as BREEAM Excellent. The building includes photovoltaic panels, cycle storage facilities, chalk grassland green roofs, and motion-controlled lighting sensors. It also has charging points for electric vehicles, although most residents are encouraged to use the convenient and efficient local transport networks, like the nearby Moulsecoomb train station.

Hillfort House marks Student Roost’s first property in Brighton, but the Birmingham-based company is the third largest student accommodation provider in the UK. It runs 58 properties across the UK, including Roosts in London, Southampton, Bournemouth, Poole and Bath. 23,000 students across the UK calling Student Roost their home during university.

Hillfort House is one of four brand new Student Roost properties to open in 2022/23. Ahead of this coming academic year, the company will also be opening new properties in Nottingham, York and its first co-living development in Bristol. It will also be adding a further 680 beds to The Oaks, which is in Coventry, near to the University of Warwick.

Nathan Goddard, CEO at Student Roost, said:

“We were delighted to welcome our first residents at Hillfort House last month. The building looks absolutely stunning, and we’ve already been getting some wonderful feedback from residents.

“Hillfort House has been designed with the students of Brighton in mind, with outstanding facilities and comfortable rooms and studios.

“While we’re an experienced and trusted provider, this is a new market for us. We’re grateful to our partners at McLaren Property and HG Construction who’ve helped us create the most amazing new home for 380 students.”

David Atherton, Development Director at McLaren Property, commented:

“We are delighted to successfully hand over this exciting new development to our partners at Student Roost.

“We thank the design teams involved, including the team at HG Construction who have helped deliver on the original vision of high-quality student homes, flexible employment space and a new, fit for purpose community facility for the people of Moulsecoomb. It’s fantastic to see this development come to fruition and play its part in contributing positively to the local economy.”