Kensington Student Accommodation
Kensington Student Accommodation (KSA) is a visionary response and takes a considered approach to providing high-quality student accommodation, blending seamlessly into the existing urban fabric.
KSA is the 8th purpose-built student accommodation project that nettletontribe has completed with Cedar Pacific in Australia. Located at 177-197 Anzac Parade, the development provides 655 student beds within walking distance of the UNSW Kensington Campus. The 3500m² site is bordered by Anzac Parade to the east, a pedestrian laneway to the south, and residential buildings to its north and west.
Several urban design gestures have fundamentally shaped the architectural response. KSA reinforces the 4 storey Anzac Parade street wall, unifying the urban fabric with a sensitive scale in keeping with the anticipated character of the neighbourhood, generating minimal overshadowing to neighbouring residential buildings.
Collaboration with engineers, landscape architects, and other specialists has been central to achieving a design that is not only aesthetically pleasing but also functional and sustainable.
Face brickwork on the lower levels acknowledges the established masonry character of Anzac Parade and the neighbouring Masonic Temple. The finely detailed textured concrete upper levels are set back to further reduce the building’s perceived scale, while offset windows add a playful movement to the façade. The gently curved form defines the corner and continues the street wall along the laneway, deliberately reinforcing the public domain and encouraging pedestrian engagement with our site. A human-scaled colonnade with a vaulted soffit provides respite from the vehicle-dominated street and landscape improvements to the laneway transforms this previously underutilised thoroughfare into a lively public space.
Internally, the building creates a sense of community and well-being through attractive, comfortable spaces. Lushly planted courtyards at ground and lower levels complement bright, generous recreation areas.
On upper residential levels amenity was a core focus - wide bay windows maximise daylight, while deep reveals provide shading and dark glass mitigates glare. Acoustically treated trickle vents provide natural ventilation without traffic noise infiltration. Rooms facing courtyards are provided with angled screening for glare and privacy control.
Despite the centralised lift core required to manage student security, long anonymous corridors are avoided - large windows punctuate circulation spaces, introducing light, ventilation, and visual connections to the street and courtyard.
Communal breakout areas, kitchenettes, and study rooms are interspersed throughout the floors, fostering casual interaction and a neighbourhood atmosphere.
A rooftop terrace overlooking UNSW and Randwick Racecourse offers a mix of large gathering spaces and more intimate zones, encouraging diverse uses.
