The Stephen A. Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities
Plans submitted for a 1,944-bed, all-electric student scheme for the London School of Economics (LSE)
We are working alongside architects Carmody Groarke and Sheppard Robson as sustainability and Passivhaus consultants on the £400m redevelopment of Bankside House, located behind another of our projects, the Tate Modern. The accommodation is grouped into three communities of around 650 students, housed in individual buildings and connected by ground-level pavilions.
LSE and the developers Equitix–Bouygues UK have set ambitious social and environmental sustainability goals. All rooms will be offered below market rate, with 15% meeting the London Plan’s affordable student accommodation criteria. The scheme targets Passivhaus certification, LETI benchmarks, WELL Standard, and BREEAM Outstanding. Ground-level areas will be open to the public, including a café, education space, and community hub.
Early collaboration was key
By working closely with both the design and delivery teams from the outset, we had the opportunity to influence early decisions—optimising embodied carbon and embedding circular design principles at the heart of the project.
The client showed a clear commitment to the principle of reuse and to driving a resource-efficient, lower-carbon scheme within tight constraints. This is a great example of what’s possible when sustainability is embedded from day one, even in the complex context of high-rise development.
A key objective of the all-electric scheme is to manage and reduce the development's whole life carbon and maximise the use of materials that have a lower environmental impact such as recycled, reusable, or reclaimed materials. The buildings are designed to minimise waste generation during the construction phase using modular and modern methods of construction.
Passive design and fabric-first principles, supported by rooftop photovoltaics, will help reduce operational energy demand, manage ventilation, sunlight, and overheating risk, and create a stable indoor environment. The development is targeting operational energy use of approximately 45–55 kWh/m²/year.
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"We're delighted to be part of the team on this project, taking high-quality Passivhaus student accommodation onward and upward in the UK.
It's been great taking the lessons learnt from designing, delivering, and carrying out post-occupancy evaluation (POE) on a series of industry-leading Passivhaus purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) projects, and applying them to a project that combines massive impact for the LSE, sits in an iconic location, and has such a progressive sustainability brief.
It's been a pleasure working alongside the LSE, the design team, and the Bouygues UK team, with really engaged input from their technical experts. We're crossing our fingers for a favourable planning result, and to seeing the scheme on the London skyline!"
Gwilym Still
MEng PhD CEng MIMechE MCIBSE
Director, Passivhaus
Partner
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The three towers are connected at the ground-floor with a community facing pavilion
© Render by Miller Hare
The ground-level pavilion's interior spaces are designed with an abundance of light and natural materials
© Render by Jeudi Wang
Communal areas in the ground-level pavilion's interior spaces
© Render by Jeudi Wang
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"Bankside House is more than student housing — it’s a commitment to widening access. By delivering nearly 2,000 beds at sub-market rents, we’re easing pressure on London’s housing market while ensuring that talented students, whatever their background, can live and thrive in the heart of the city.
This project reflects LSE’s values: world-class education supported by a world-class living environment and an ambitious civic offer to the local community"
