Urban Hub

Urban Hub is a new £33 million student housing development on the University of Central Lancashire (UCLAN) campus that will be constructed by Truman Design and Build. The six storey building will be over 160,000 square feet and it will contain 425 self contained studio apartments.

Prior to construction of the new Urban Hub will be demolition on the Sizer House building, which is currently used by UCLAN as office space. In addition to the modern studio apartments the development will include private outdoor spaces, a gym, restaurant, cafe, cinema, prayer room, laundry room, library and a landscaped roof terrace.

Truman Design chose LOFT to furnish the apartments to ensure the students benefitted from interiors in line with their overall branding. LOFT produced both freestanding and fitted furniture for the studios' kitchens and bedrooms.

During the early construction phases of the project Easi-Edge supplied 2700 LM of edge protection barriers to the site. A high performance thermal insulation system was used with the steel frame construction, instead of a traditional brick skin façade, to make use of innovative lightweight brick slips. This will increase the pace of installation as well as deliver significant cost savings for this project. Alsecco were approached during the design process and the brick-matching capabilities of the Meldorfer lightweight flat-facing brick slips were employed to perfectly replicate the appearance of the originally proposed clay brick.

The Urban Hub is located in the heart of the UCLAN campus, making it highly desirable for students. Each self-contained studio apartment will contain an en-suite bathroom and kitchenette. There are also outdoor and indoor spaces for students to meet and socialise with other residents. David Cox Architects is responsible for the design of the project and the living spaces.

In addition to being used for students, the Urban Hub is within walking distance of the Royal Preston Hospital making it a suitable for local key workers.