The Property Council of Australia has this week launched its new Student Accommodation Council. With Anouk Darling (pictured right) announced as President and Torie Brown (pictured left) as Executive Director.

The new Council will represent and advocate solely for Australia's student accommodation sector. Over the last five years, 31,000 purpose-built student beds have been created in Australia to the tune of $9.3 billion, with the 10 founding members of the Council accounting for approximately 50,000 of the 123,000 beds across Australia, with assets valued at more than $20 billion.

Darling says the Council’s agenda will look to support industry growth through attracting domestic and international capital, building relationships with stakeholders and addressing tax and lending frameworks.

“Today’s launch represents a coming-of-age for our sector – and firmly asserts our position as a growing and maturing asset class,” she says.

“We are thrilled that Torie will lead our new Student Accommodation Council in its critical formative stage.

“Students thrive in the Australian education sector and thanks to our members, increasingly have access to high quality purpose built communities to support their learning journey.

“We look forward to Torie working with members to build our voice, and contribute to the positive future of international and domestic student experiences.”

Darling is the CEO of Scape, the country’s largest owner and operator of purpose built accommodation. She also serves as a Non Executive Director for Enero Group, Discovery Holiday Parks and Macquarie Telecom Group.

Torie Brown has previously served as Acting Executive Director of the Property Council’s Capital Markets Division and Deputy Executive Director of the South Australian division. Most recently, she was a Senior Advisor to South Australian Premier, Steven Marshall. The new Executive Director says she is thrilled to be taking on the role.

“It’s such a privilege to be leading the Student Accommodation Council from the outset, as the industry welcomes the return of international students now borders have reopened,” she says.

“Creating a great living experience for students in a sector that is set to grow rapidly over the next decade is important for Australia’s relationship with the world and for the success of our globally ranked education providers.

“I look forward to creating strong partnerships with universities, advocating strongly for the sector and highlighting the benefits for students, their families, the tertiary education sector and the Australian community as a whole.”

The Council is a major advocate for ensuring international students return to Australian shores. In 2019, prior to the pandemic, the 900,000 International Students contributed $41 billion to the Australian economy. The student accommodation sector has created an additional 3,500 jobs on top of the existing 5,000 industry workers.

The Student Accomodation Council has 10 founding members made up of the country’s most significant student accommodation providers. Other Council members include inaugural Deputy Chairs Richard Smith, Tomas Johnsson and John Huber.

Jarrod Reedie

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