Accommodation services

Tender description

The University of Brighton is seeking a partner to deliver a new development which is anticipated to comprise of a minimum of 800 student study bedrooms along with ground floor ancillary University facilities including fitness facilities and student union. The University of Brighton is seeking a partner to deliver a new development which is anticipated to comprise of a minimum of 800 student study bedrooms along with ground floor ancillary University facilities including fitness facilities and student union. The final composition of the development is subject to receipt of a satisfactory planning permission as referred to below and is therefore subject to change. The site, referred to as Moulsecoomb East, is located adjacent to Mithras House on Lewes Road in Brighton. The design has been developed by the University's design team up to RIBA Stage 2 in advance of a detailed planning application which is programmed to be submitted in early December 2016. The development comprises five towers of differing heights between 9 and 18 storeys above a podium level, accessed at ground floor from a central plaza off Lewes Road and from the existing Mithras House at second floor level. The University's preference is for Phase 1 (comprising circa 395 rooms in Towers 1 and 2) of the development to be completed by September 2019 and for Phase 2 (comprising circa 409 rooms in Towers 3, 4 and 5) to be completed by September 2020. The precise phasing of the scheme may however be subject to change as development proposals evolve. The planning application will comprise a wider development, including separate proposals for the Preston Barracks and Moulsecoomb West sites on the opposing side of Lewes Road. The requirement for a joint application has been driven by a specific planning requirement for development proposals for whole area to be submitted as a single application. The separate proposals for Preston Barracks and Moulsecoomb West are not intended to form part of this procurement. The successful partner should be experienced in the development, financing, operation and maintenance of purpose built student accommodation. This should be evidenced as part of responses to the Selection Questionnaire. The University requires the successful partner to complete the scheme design from RIBA Stage 2, build, fund, operate and maintain the new development over an operational term of up to circa 50 years following practical completion. It is important to the University that the Moulsecoomb East development is classified as off balance sheet from the University's perspective. The successful partner will be expected to assume full occupancy demand risk for the new residences and will be responsible for providing hard and soft facilities management services. The University proposes to take a lease back of the ground floor areas that are not ancillary to the student residences above, including the fitness facilities and student union and will have management responsibility for these areas, with the successful partner retaining responsibility for the hard FM and insurance aspects of these areas which it has provided as part of the development but otherwise with such leased back areas being outside of the terms of the project. The University will also maintain pastoral responsibility for its students accommodated in the residences along with marketing and administration of student applications, including room allocation. The key driver behind the University's requirement for the development is to bring much needed additional capacity of modern affordable student accommodation for the University. Presently there is a structural under-supply of accommodation of purpose built student accommodation in Brighton, which the University is seeking to address through this procurement. Further information can be found in the accompanying Selection Questionnaire (SQ) and Information Memorandum (IM) that interested parties can request copies of via the contact details provided.