Over the next few months we’ll be diving into the fascinating history of PBSA interior design and exploring key design principles shaping the next generation of interiors.
PBSA interior design has transitioned from institutional, communal living to boutique, wellness driven environments. Interiors now reflect demands for privacy, sustainability, social infrastructure, and hotel level amenities. Driven by market demand and scarcity, PBSA design blends smart tech, hospitality, and student focused comfort.
Over the last few years, the student accommodation sector has changed with Students maintaining their appetite to go to university – but wanting more from their experience. They know it will be a different experience to those who went before them and as a result they are wanting more than just a room from their student accommodation.
Stephen Cleal - Sales Manager at UCAS
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Early university halls (pre 20th Century)
Traditional halls, for example those at Oxford, Cambridge and Exeter resembled monastic colleges. They featured wood-paneled common areas, cloistered layouts, and shared dining halls. Mardon Hall in Exeter for instance, retains wood-paneled libraries and communal staircases. The emphasis was on community and structured living, not individual comfort.
- Post war modernism (1950s–1970s)
Responding to swelling student numbers, institutions built modernist, functional, often brutalist-style halls with shared facilities. For example, New Hall (now Murray Edwards), Cambridge (1960s), by Chamberlin, Powell & Bon, and University of Birmingham’s Wyddrington & Lake Halls (mid-1960s). Interiors prioritized utility with basic furnishings, communal bathrooms, little privacy. - Refurbishments (1980s–2000s)
Mid to late 20th century saw modernist halls re-purposed. Birks Grange in Exeter, for example, was rebuilt in 2005 to include en suite rooms, accessible spaces, a modern porter's lodge and a hall bar. The conversions of office blocks into cluster flats, offering shared living but enhanced privacy, marked this shift.
- Rise of PBSA and hospitality-centric design (2010s–2020s)
This is characterised by the development of market-driven, amenity rich environments. Private operators like Unite Students, iQ, and Vita Student developed PBSA with gyms, cinema rooms, study pods, wellness spaces, coffee bars and other amenities, mimicking hotels.
PBSA increasingly borrows hospitality strategies in revenue management, guest services and communal experiences. The Student Hotel (now The Social Hub) blends co living, co working, and hotel-style lobbies. Interiors include vibrant communal lounges, ping-pong zones, and wellness facilities.
Developers are focussing on scale, sustainability and wellness, integrating passivhaus standards, smart systems, and environmental controls. For example, the Canary Wharf PBSA (Europe's largest passivhaus PBSA under construction) includes yoga studios, cinemas, and efficient ventilation/smart systems.
Design trends emphasise student comfort, biophilic spaces, and inclusive environments.
Keep an eye out for the second part of this blog series next month.
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