Imperial’s new postgraduate accommodation opens its doors

Griffon Studios in Battersea prepares to welcome its first residents - News

By John-Paul Jones 
Monday 19 September 2011

The first residents of Imperial’s brand new postgraduate accommodation complex will begin moving in this week.

Griffon Studios is a development of 566 studios in Battersea and was developed by the College together with Berkeley First. Its aim is to expand the limited provision of accommodation available to postgraduates in London, with priority given to Imperial students

Henry Addison, a postgraduate in the Department of Computing, and an occupant of one of the new studio flats, said: “I'm looking forward to living in London and Clapham in particular and being well connected to the rest of London. And I'm especially looking forward to living and making friends with lots of other Imperial graduates.”

The accommodation, which is close to Clapham Junction station, also includes a gym, common room and gardens. Its rooms are being released in two phases. The first phase has seen 452 studio apartments made available for postgraduates this year, with the remaining 114 scheduled to be ready for the beginning for the 2012-13 academic year.

Staff and students have already had the chance to inspect one of the studios thanks to a specially made pod containing a showroom, which spent time on South Kensington campus in the last academic year.

Jane Neary, the College’s Director of Commercial Services, said: “We’re delighted Griffon Studios is up and running, and receiving its new residents. There is a shortage of high quality postgraduate accommodation in the capital in general so we hope the Studios will be a great new addition for Imperial’s postgraduate population and postgraduates across London. We’re looking forward to seeing how they settle in.”

Wael Mekdach, a Business School student, taking a Master’s in Finance, will also be moving in, having moved to London from his own house in Lebanon. Wael said, “When I looked round the first thing that impressed me about Griffon was how near it was to Clapham Junction. The colours used all over the place are very vibrant and make the whole place fun and interesting too.”

The College’s other efforts to improve London’s postgraduate accommodation provision include plans for postgraduate halls at its new campus in West London.

Click here for more information on the Griffon Studios development.