Birmingham student residence secures funding from Singaporean construction group

Developer Alumno Group’s £24M project to develop purpose-built managed student accommodation on Dogpool Lane in Birmingham is to receive funding in a partnership with Woh Hup Holdings, one of Singapore’s largest construction businesses.

The student scheme will be a 24-hour managed residence designed to accommodate the growing number of students attending local universities and a dental hospital, taking pressure off private housing in the area. It will comprise a mix of cluster beds and single occupancy studio rooms for 167 residents, together with a reception and communal areas.

The scheme will also provide an improved retail space for the existing Post Office and newsagent based on the site, which will be relocated close by during construction.

In line with Alumno’s philosophy of adding value to the local community adjacent to its developments and working with local artists, there will also be an enhanced public area in front of the building, which will include landscaping, seating and cycle stands.

This space will feature public art, including a poetry garden created through an initiative led by Birmingham Poet Laureate Casey Bailey in partnership with the Ikon Gallery, Writing West Midlands and pupils of the neighbouring Selly Park Girls School.

Commenting on financing the project, Phil Johnson at Woh Hup said: “We believe high-quality purpose-built student accommodation in the UK offers great opportunities to investors.

“We are excited to be partnering with Alumno, an outstanding and pioneering developer specialising in this area, and look forward to growing the relationship”

Alumno plans to have the new building completed for the 2024 student intake.