Occupancy Update – April 2026

We’re now seven months into the 2026-27 PBSA leasing cycle, and this update explores how the market has progressed through the end of April, analysing booking trends, year-on-year performance, and seasonal patterns by bed type. The survey continues to provide the most comprehensive view of UK PBSA leasing activity available, capturing around 50% of the private PBSA direct-let market and offering valuable insight into current market dynamics across all major student accommodation markets.

StuRents Occupancy Survey includes private PBSA direct-let bookings only. University halls and private beds on nomination agreements are excluded.

Source: StuRents Occupancy Survey

The above chart is showing how 26-27 leasing velocity has been broadly in line with that of 25-26, which itself consistently lagged behind that of the two previous years. Across all bed types in all 28 locations we cover, average occupancy for 26-27 stood at 43.0% as of the end of April. This represents a 1.6 percentage point drop year-on-year (YoY).

Source: StuRents Occupancy Survey

The above is showing how the YoY gap in bookings has changed throughout the cycle so far for both cluster beds and studios. The clusters gap narrowed in April, dropping from -2.1 to -1.4 percentage points. The studios gap has narrowed for the second consecutive month and is now 1.9 points down on last year.

Source: StuRents Occupancy Survey

Looking at which months of the cycle have had the biggest gains in cluster occupancy so far, the above chart shows that April was the best month for bookings yet, with an increase of 8.6 points recorded. It remains to be seen whether this pattern of month-on-month acceleration will continue, as last year saw a drop-off in bookings between May and July.

Source: StuRents Occupancy Survey

For studios, April recorded a stronger month-on-month increase than the equivalent period last year (7.4 percentage points versus 6.8), but represented a moderation from March’s 8.5 percentage point month-on-month uplift. With a similar trend evident in last year's cycle, this points towards booking activity remaining relatively consistent over the next few months.

Source: StuRents Occupancy Survey

The above chart shows how end-of-April occupancy varies across the 28 locations we cover in the survey, including the national average for comparison. The difference in fortunes remains chasmic, with the highest-performing location recording 70.0% occupancy compared to 27.1% for the lowest. This highlights just how varied the supply and demand dynamics are in different locations across the UK.

Overall, leasing performance for 2026-27 is tracking closely behind last year and continues to lag earlier cycles, with weaker year-on-year occupancy and widening booking gaps in recent months. While seasonal patterns remain consistent, suggesting potential for a summer uplift, the wide variation across locations underlines that local market dynamics will be key to final outcomes.

For more information about our proprietary, highly granular data covering UK student accommodation contact the StuRents Research team today. Book a demo of our Data Portal to find out how you can have up-to-the-minute university housing insights at your fingertips, or get in touch with us about our Occupancy Survey.