Unite Students has announced it has obtained planning consent to develop 1,186 new beds in Birmingham and Sheffield, bringing its total development pipeline to 6,500 beds.

The new scheme in Birmingham, dubbed International House, is situated alongside Unite Students' existing development 'The Heights'. Meanwhile in Sheffield St Vincent's Church is located next to the University of Sheffield's main city centre campus.

Both schemes are expected to be open for the 2018/19 academic year and have a combined £75 million development cost, including land.

The schemes will be funded by internally generated sources and are expected to achieve a yield on cost of 8% and to contribute 2p per share to EPRA earnings once complete.

Richard Simpson, Group Property Director for Unite Group, said of the new developments: "We are delighted to have secured planning consent for these important sites in two of the UK's most popular University cities. These cluster led developments will help to meet the strong demand for student accommodation in these cities and provide a safe and secure home for students.

"We will continue to progress our secured pipeline which remains focused on regional locations with strong student markets."