RE:UK Purpose-Built Student Accommodation Board Manifesto

The Real Estate:UK Purpose-Built Student Accommodation (PBSA) Board represents the businesses that invest in, develop and manage purpose-built homes for over 450,000 students across the UK’s key cities. Its accommodation is an essential component of the UK higher education landscape, a critical part of housing supply, and contributed £42bn in economic value in 2023.

The Board’s manifesto sets out the significant contribution the sector makes to students, housing, higher education and local economies, and the sector’s asks of Government to support its growth, including:

• Formal recognition of the PBSA sector as critical to economic growth, higher education competitiveness and housing delivery – supported by meaningful and ongoing Government engagement with the PBSA Board as the sector’s representative body.
• Policy recognition of PBSA’s distinct role within the housing system – through clear differentiation of PBSA within planning policy and regulatory frameworks - including building safety - reflecting its operational model, resident profile and contribution in relieving supply pressure within the private rented sector.
• Recognition of UK higher education as an economic asset – through strengthened domestic policy support that acknowledges the sector's contribution to national and regional growth, export earnings, and global reputation, and that equally recognises the role of PBSA in enabling that contribution.