Private room service
A university has transferred the management of its entire student accommodation to a private company under a 125-year agreement. The £230 million deal will see the University Partnerships Programme (UPP) manage more than 4,000 rooms at the University of Reading. This will include 2,610 owned and managed by Reading, a further 898 currently being built by the university, 816 rooms that UPP already manages and a further 649 that the company will build on the site of the current Bridges Hall. The agreement makes Reading the first university to sign a long-term deal with a private investor for all its campus accommodation. Tony Downes, acting vice-chancellor of Reading, said it would allow the university to invest more in research and teaching facilities.
Source: Times Higher Education http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=26&storycode=418601&c=1