NatWest Funds 237 Affordable Student Rooms in Liverpool 2026

Key Points

• NatWest has approved a development loan of £12.9 million towards the refurbishment of Mulberry Court at the University of Liverpool.
• The Mulberry Court project is being undertaken by Mulberry Partnership which is a joint venture between UQ Partnerships and the University of Liverpool.
• The redevelopment plan will provide 237 student beds in phases.
• First phase will involve 98 student beds and is scheduled for delivery in the academic year 2027/28.
• Second phase will include 139 student beds and will be delivered in 2028/29.
• This project comes as part of a larger £20 million development plan.
• Old structures, dating back to the 1970s, will be refurbished and transformed.
• Student accommodation in this case will provide cheap accommodation near the campus of the University of Liverpool.
• Rooms Group has been hired as the contractor in March.
• The structures which are included in this plan are Chestnut House, Vine House, Walnut House, Cypress House and Porter Lodge.
• The development project will make use of inefficient student accommodation facilities again.
• The location of this project is near Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral.

Liverpool (Liverpool standard) September 30, 2026 – NatWest has backed a scheme to deliver 237 student bedspaces through the phased refurbishment and reconfiguration of existing university accommodation. The funding has been secured by the Mulberry Partnership, a joint venture between UQ Partnerships and the University of Liverpool.

NatWest student accommodation Liverpool is being expanded through a £12.9 million development loan supporting the refurbishment of Mulberry Court on the University of Liverpool campus.

The development is not a new-build purpose-built student accommodation project. Instead, it will focus on modernising existing buildings that have been underused. The work is intended to provide affordable student housing while making better use of accommodation already located within or close to the university’s city campus.

The details were reported by Neil Tague of Place North West in an article published on 30 September 2026. Place North West reported that the scheme is part of a wider £20 million refurbishment drive and will be delivered in two stages.

How many student rooms will the project provide?

The Mulberry Court project will provide 237 rooms in total.

The first phase is expected to deliver 98 rooms for the 2027/28 academic year. The second phase will add another 139 rooms for the 2028/29 academic year. The phased timetable means that the full accommodation capacity is not expected to become available at once.

The scheme will therefore increase the university’s accommodation offer over two academic years. This approach also allows the refurbishment programme to progress in stages across the existing buildings.

According to Place North West, the development will transform a largely vacant cluster of student halls near Liverpool’s Metropolitan Cathedral. The buildings included in the scheme are Chestnut House, Vine House, Walnut House, Cypress House and Porter Lodge. They range from four to six storeys and were all constructed in the late 1970s.

Which buildings will be refurbished?

The project will modernise and reconfigure five existing buildings:

• Chestnut House.
• Vine House.
• Walnut House.
• Cypress House.
• Porter Lodge.

These buildings form part of the Mulberry Court accommodation complex. Rather than replacing the existing structures, the project will adapt them for continued student use.

The planned work is intended to bring accommodation that is currently underused back into productive use. This means the project will rely on the existing campus location and built infrastructure instead of creating an entirely new residential development.

The redevelopment will affect buildings between four and six storeys. Their late-1970s construction means that the refurbishment will involve updating and reorganising older accommodation for modern student requirements.

The project’s location is also significant because the buildings are situated close to the university’s city campus. Students living in the refurbished accommodation are expected to remain close to university facilities and the wider city-centre environment.

Why is the University of Liverpool developing the accommodation?

The project is intended to increase the availability of affordable student housing.

Universities across the UK face continuing pressure to provide suitable accommodation for students. In the case of the Mulberry Court scheme, the university and its development partner are using existing buildings to increase supply without relying solely on new-build accommodation.

The Mulberry Partnership said that reusing the buildings would improve the student experience and support the availability of affordable accommodation. The joint venture also described the scheme as an alternative to the majority of purpose-built student accommodation developments, which are generally delivered as new construction.

The scheme’s stated approach is to refurbish and repurpose existing university assets. This can allow accommodation to remain connected to the campus while reducing the need to develop a completely new site.

However, the available report does not provide details of the future rents, room layouts, facilities, energy performance or final management arrangements. It also does not specify how many rooms will be available to undergraduate students, postgraduate students or other groups.

When will the refurbishment be completed?

The work is planned in two phases.

The first phase is expected to provide 98 rooms for the 2027/28 academic year. The second phase is scheduled to deliver 139 further rooms for 2028/29.

Rooms Group was appointed as the contractor in March. Plans for the first part of the scheme were lodged in September last year, according to Place North West.

The phased structure means that the first part of the development is expected to become available before the entire project is finished. The timing will depend on construction progress, approvals, completion of the refurbishment and the university’s accommodation arrangements.

The report does not provide a precise completion date for each building or confirm when applications for the new rooms will open. Students seeking accommodation will therefore need to rely on future updates from the University of Liverpool and the Mulberry Partnership.

What did the project partners say?

Richard Stott, joint managing director of Kexgill, said the project was designed to address the continuing challenge of affordable accommodation.

As reported by Neil Tague of Place North West, Stott said: “Affordable accommodation remains one of the biggest challenges facing students and universities across the UK.”

He added that the Mulberry Partnership demonstrated how universities and specialist accommodation providers could work together to increase supply, improve affordability and support the student experience.

Stott also said the refurbishment of existing buildings could create high-quality student homes while providing a model that might be used at other universities in the future. His comments presented the scheme as an example of partnership-led redevelopment based on the reuse of existing accommodation.

UQ Partnerships is a specialist university platform backed by the Kexgill Group. The organisation has almost 50 years of experience in the student accommodation sector, according to the report.

Matthew Clough, director of campus services at the University of Liverpool, said providing high-quality, affordable accommodation on campus was important to many students.

As reported by Place North West, Clough said Mulberry Court would be a valuable addition to the university’s accommodation offer and reflected the university’s commitment to supporting students during their university experience.

Andrew Dexter, relationship director at NatWest, also commented on the development. He said demand for affordable student accommodation continued to grow and was creating challenges for universities, students and local communities.

Dexter said the partnership combined the strengths of the University of Liverpool and UQ Partnerships. He added that the project would increase the supply of affordable accommodation while making productive use of existing buildings.

The NatWest relationship director described the development as a project that could have a lasting effect on students and the city. These comments were attributed to Dexter by Neil Tague of Place North West.

How will the project use existing buildings?

The scheme will refurbish and reconfigure existing accommodation rather than construct a wholly new student housing complex.

The buildings at Mulberry Court are currently underused, and the project will return them to active use. This approach allows the development to retain its existing campus setting while increasing the number of rooms available to students.

The strategy also reflects a wider focus on the reuse of existing buildings. The Mulberry Partnership said that, unlike many purpose-built student accommodation developments, its project would repurpose buildings within or close to university campuses.

The available information does not state whether the refurbishment will include changes to the external appearance of the buildings, improvements to accessibility, new communal areas or upgrades to heating and insulation. Those details may become available through later planning or university announcements.

What does the NatWest loan cover?

The £12.9 million development loan will support the phased refurbishment and reconfiguration of Mulberry Court.

The loan has been secured by the Mulberry Partnership, the joint venture responsible for the scheme. The funding is intended to enable the delivery of the two phases, which together will create 237 rooms.

The report does not provide a breakdown of the total construction cost, the amount contributed by the university or UQ Partnerships, or the terms of the loan. It also does not state whether the £12.9 million covers all project costs or forms part of a wider funding package.

The wider scheme is part of a £20 million refurbishment programme. The relationship between the £12.9 million development loan and the full £20 million programme is not detailed in the report.

Why is this important for Liverpool students?

The project could increase the number of university-linked rooms available to students in Liverpool. The first 98 rooms are planned for the 2027/28 academic year, with the remaining 139 rooms expected in 2028/29.

The accommodation’s city-campus location may be relevant to students who want to live close to teaching buildings, university services and central Liverpool. The project’s stated focus on affordability may also make it relevant to students concerned about housing costs.

However, no rental figures have been announced in the available report. It is therefore not possible to determine how the refurbished rooms will compare with other accommodation options in Liverpool.

The development will also not immediately add all 237 rooms. Students beginning their studies before the first phase is completed may not benefit from the new accommodation. Availability will depend on the final completion timetable and the university’s allocation process.

Background: why is Mulberry Court being refurbished?

Mulberry Court is a cluster of existing student halls within or close to the University of Liverpool’s city campus. The buildings included in the plans date from the late 1970s and range from four to six storeys.

The refurbishment forms part of a £20 million programme focused on bringing underused accommodation back into productive use. The Mulberry Partnership is delivering the project as a joint venture between UQ Partnerships and the University of Liverpool.

Rooms Group was appointed as contractor in March, while plans for the first part of the scheme were lodged in September 2025, according to the report published by Place North West on 30 September 2026.

The project differs from a conventional new-build student accommodation scheme because it is based on the reuse and reconfiguration of existing buildings. Its stated purpose is to provide additional affordable student housing while keeping the accommodation connected to the university campus.

Prediction: how could the development affect students?

The development is likely to give more University of Liverpool students access to university-linked accommodation from the 2027/28 academic year, when the first 98 rooms are expected to be delivered. The full effect should become clearer in 2028/29, when a further 139 rooms are scheduled to be available.

If the rooms are offered at affordable rates, the project could provide students with an additional option in a competitive housing market. Its campus location may also reduce the need for some students to travel long distances to university facilities.

The project may place greater emphasis on refurbished accommodation as a way of increasing student housing supply. If the Mulberry Court model is completed as planned, other universities could consider similar partnerships to bring vacant or underused halls back into use.

The final effect on students will depend on the rents, room standards, facilities, allocation arrangements and completion dates. Those details have not been announced in the available report, so the project’s impact on affordability cannot yet be measured.