Safestay expands Elephant and Castle hostel

Safestay, the owner and operator of a contemporary hostel, has been granted planning consent to extend its hostel in Elephant & Castle.

Southwark Council has given the company full planning permission and listed building consent to develop an additional 80 beds over four floors and rework the lower ground floor food and beverage areas.

The new development will provide an additional 5,000 square feet of gross internal area and raise the hostel’s bed count to 493.

Elephant & Castle was the company’s first hostel and was previously the site for the Labour Party’s headquarters.

“It is a great building in a strong location, which has proven very popular amongst our customers,” said chairman Larry Lipman.

He said the firm’s recent up valuation by £3.8m to £16m in July 2016, shows its strong trading performance.

"The works, which will commence in 2017, will see accommodation added as a blend of private rooms and smaller en suite dormitories. It will allow the hostel to grow with strong margins generated from the increased capacity although there will be some disruption during the works, which will be timed to minimise the impact. We are also taking the opportunity to enhance the food and beverage space to further strengthen our non-accommodation revenues," said Lipman.

The share price fell 1.18% to 43p at 1104 BST on Thursday.