Carillion lined up for £214m student village

Carillion is in line to win a £200m-plus education-sector deal in the West Midlands, sources say.

CJ understands that the firm is favourite to haul in the £214m project at Aston University in Birmingham's city centre.

To push the student accommodation scheme forward, facilities management group Operon has created a partnership with the university and Bank of Scotland Corporate to finance, build and operate the scheme.

The deal centres on building about 2,350 en-suite student rooms on campus and the three parties have formed a registered charity, Aston Student Villages, which will co-own the project.

Operon took over FM services for the buildings on site last April and will now provide maintenance and repair of the new buildings over the next 37 years.

The first phase of the project consists of 1,350 rooms and is due to start on site later this summer and be ready for student occupation by 2010.

The next phase of the scheme, comprising the balance of 1,000 rooms, is expected to follow on immediately afterwards.

The entire project, part of the Aston Triangle masterplan, is due for completion by 2014.

The deal, which received planning consent last July, also involves the demolition of two tower blocks, built in the 1970s.

And the environmentally sustainable development will include shops, sports facilities and an underground car park.