It is being reported that one of the major providers of purpose-built student accommodation to let – Unite – could temporarily close some bedrooms and take a £3.5m hit in the wake of the Grenfell Tower tragedy. 

London’s Evening Standard newspaper says the developer – which operates 49,000 bedrooms and is one of the largest in the student Build To Rent sector – has been forced to make minor adjustments to six of its 132 properties which feature aluminium composite material cladding. 

They did not meet the standards set out in an initial test for high-rise landlords after the Grenfell Tower fire. 

Although the properties have been declared safe, Unite is awaiting the results of a second round of government-demanded tests on different cladding systems.

The Standard says that if the cladding needs to be replaced, Unite may have to shut 600 beds for the start of the 2017/18 academic year.

That could apparently result in lost earnings of up to £1.5m in addition to £2m construction costs.