Introducing Purdown View: The UK’s Largest Certified Passivhaus Development

Welcome to Purdown View at UWE Bristol, a groundbreaking achievement in sustainable living with over 900 bedrooms spread across three impressive 6-storey buildings. Spanning a total treated floor area of 21,000m² (GIA 27,000m²), Purdown View proudly holds the title of the UK’s largest certified Passivhaus development to date!

This remarkable certification of this supersized scheme was awarded by PHT member Etude, a testament to the rigorous standards met by this pioneering project.

A Collaborative Triumph

The success of Purdown View is a result of close collaboration between the University, the design and contractor teams, and experts.

Key Team

Client: University of West of England (UWE)

Architect: Stride Treglown

Passivhaus Consultant: QODA Consulting

Passivhaus Certifier: Etude

Contractor: VINCI UK

Structural engineer: Curtins, M&E consultant: Amber Management. Quantity surveyor: Turner & Townsend, Project management: JLL

A vision for the future

For UWE, this ambitious project is a monumental step toward their 2030 Strategy, underscoring their dedication to combating the climate crisis. By investing in Passivhaus standards on such a large scale, they’re making a bold statement about their commitment to future generations. Completed in 2024, Purdown View is already welcoming its first student residents into these cutting-edge accommodations.

A further phase (SAP 5) is in the pipeline, which will provide an additional 421 new student residences, delivering an overall total of 1321 Passivhaus student rooms on the campus.

Purdown View I © UWE Bristol

For the wider industry, these low-carbon residences show that large-scale developments can help slow the progression of climate change, while still performing in a climate-changed world.

Join us to learn more

Discover more about this pioneering development from PHT member Beyond Carbon at the UK Passivhaus Conference 2024. Hear from the Passivhaus consultants practical experience of designing & delivering a Passivhaus at this scale. Join us on the 19th of September, in Oxford or online, where we will be covering multiple large-scale Passivhaus developments across the UK, both residential and non-domestic.