Minister Lawless approves €67 million in funding to build 493 new student accommodation beds at UCD
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From: Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science
- Published on: 5 September 2025
- Last updated on: 23 September 2025
Minister for Further and Higher, Education, Research, Innovation and Science James Lawless announced today the allocation of €67 million in state funding to enable UCD to enter contract for the delivery of 493 new student accommodation beds.
This project is the second tranche of beds delivered under the €100 million Short-Term Activation Programme announced in 2022. In line with programme requirements, thirty percent (30%) of the newly built beds are being made available for use by students in National Access Plan priority groupings or categories of students eligible for support via SUSI at a discounted rate of rent.
Speaking today, Minister Lawless said:
"This significant investment reflects the government's ongoing commitment to making higher education more accessible. By supporting the development of new student accommodation at UCD, we are helping to meet the growing demand for student housing, while also investing in a long-term solution that ensures students from all backgrounds have access to affordable, high-quality places to live today, tomorrow, and well into the future."
UCD President Professor Orla Feely added:
“This government funding towards the next development phase of on-campus accommodation at Belfield is a significant milestone in the provision of much-needed places to match rising demand year after year, and importantly, it will support UCD in providing on-campus accommodation to those students in most need.”
This project follows on from 116 beds at Buckley House, Maynooth University the first student accommodation project approved under the Short-Term Activation Programme. Buckley House is now completed and ready to welcome students for the upcoming academic year 2025/2026.
Notes
On 29 November 2022, in response to these challenges, the government approved a €100 million short-term policy to activate the supply of student accommodation. The short-term approach was a response to the difficulties being faced by students in securing affordable student accommodation and the challenges being faced by the Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) trying to build student accommodation.
As part of the government’s Short-Term Student Accommodation Activation Programme, funding is being provided to Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) to advance student accommodation projects that have planning permission but were unable to proceed due to cost viability challenges.
The first phase of the programme was the approval of the Maynooth University Student Accommodation project to construct 116 beds. These beds are now available for the 2025/ 2026 academic year.
A central condition of this funding is that a portion of new beds must be ringfenced for students from disadvantaged backgrounds, particularly those supported under the SUSI (Student Universal Support Ireland), NAP (National Access Plan), and DARE (Disability Access Route to Education) schemes. In line with programme requirements, 30% of the beds will be reserved for students from the targeted disadvantaged or underrepresented groups.
Image caption: An impression of what the new development at UCD could look like.
