STOCK WATCH

STUDENT accommodation provider Unite was lifted higher after it exchanged contracts for a development in Oxford.

The agreement with Oxford Brookes University will provide 885 beds and is expected to be completed by the academic year in 2019.

It will extend Unite’s partnership with the university to more than 1,350 beds and, as part of the deal, Oxford Brookes will refer new students to the facility.

Shares rose 2.9pc, or 21.5p, to 756.5p.