Operations

Supporting more sustainable journeys

Queen Mary works to reduce the environmental impact of commuting by encouraging staff and students to walk, cycle and use public transport. Its Sustainable Travel commitments include promoting lower-carbon travel and continuing to improve facilities that support cycling and sustainable transport. Practical support includes the Cycle to Work scheme, secure cycle pods and shelters, bicycle parking, showers, changing facilities and cycle pumps. Queen Mary also promotes free cycle training for Tower Hamlets residents, occasional bike-maintenance sessions and access to Santander Cycles near its campuses. Public transport is also encouraged. Mile End, Whitechapel and Queen Mary’s other London sites are served by Underground, Elizabeth line, Overground and bus services, reducing the need for routine car travel. Queen Mary also restricts campus parking. The Car Parking Policy states that staff should consider public transport, walking and cycling and that parking should be treated as an exception rather than a right. There is no general visitor parking across Queen Mary sites. 

Reducing commuting through hybrid and flexible working

Queen Mary allows eligible employees to combine working on campus with working remotely through its Hybrid Working Policy. The amount of remote working depends on the role, operational needs and local arrangements, but staff in suitable roles can carry out part of their work away from campus. Queen Mary also has a Flexible Working Policy that allows employees to request changes to their working arrangements. These options can reduce the number of journeys employees need to make to campus where the role allows them to be. 

Providing short-term accommodation for staff 

Queen Mary provides a limited number of staff flats at Mile End to support new academic staff arriving in London, academic visitors and other eligible staff. New members of academic staff are given priority and can use the accommodation for up to three months while they arrange longer-term housing. During the 2024/25 academic year, staff flats were available at a published rate of £86 per night. Queen Mary’s Housing Services also provides staff with advice on private renting and alternative housing, including guidance on tenancy agreements and a free contract-reading service. 

Helping students find affordable accommodation

Queen Mary provides almost 3,000 student bedrooms across its London campuses and partner accommodation, alongside advice for students looking for private housing. For 2025 entry, University accommodation included a range of room types and prices, with the undergraduate prospectus describing rooms from around £168 per week. Eligible new undergraduate and foundation students were offered an accommodation guarantee, subject to application requirements. Students who cannot secure University accommodation can also access housing advice, private-rental guidance and tenancy checking through Housing Services. 

Queen Mary’s Financial Assistance Fund provides non-repayable support to students experiencing financial difficulty. Awards can help with living costs including accommodation, food and utility bills, giving students an additional source of support where housing costs create financial pressure. 

Giving pedestrians priority at Mile End 

Walking is an important part of the way Queen Mary’s Mile End campus is planned. The campus has designated pedestrian entrances and internal walking routes linking teaching buildings, residences, green spaces and the Regent’s Canal. The Mile End planning framework identifies walking as a preferred way for staff and students to move around the campus. Development work is also expected to maintain safe pedestrian routes while construction is taking place. Limited parking, secure cycle facilities and good public transport links support this approach by reducing routine vehicle movement through the campus. 

Working with Tower Hamlets on greener and more inclusive neighbourhoods

Queen Mary works with Tower Hamlets Council, local organisations and residents on planning and development issues in East London. The Designing Tower Hamlets’ Green Grid project brought Queen Mary researchers together with the Council’s Place Directorate and 20 community researchers, particularly young women and non-binary people who lived, studied or worked in the borough. Supported by a £10,000 Queen Mary Centre for Public Engagement grant, participants used workshops, walking activities, participatory mapping and a design charrette to explore how parks, walking routes and other green and blue spaces could work better for different groups. Their ideas contributed to a public Green Grid toolkit that can be used in wider planning work, giving residents a more direct role in shaping local green infrastructure. 

Queen Mary also works on housing and neighbourhood development. Through the Circular Economies Community Land Trusts project, researchers work with E16 Community Land Trust on community-led approaches to housing and public space. A separate six-month policy secondment with East London Citizens listened directly to precariously housed residents in Tower Hamlets, bringing residents’ experiences into discussions about housing policy and future development. 

Building to stronger environmental standards

Queen Mary applies environmental standards to major new buildings and refurbishment projects. Its construction and refurbishment commitments aim for BREEAM Excellent on major new-build projects and BREEAM Very Good on major refurbishments. Projects can include LED lighting, improved insulation and glazing, heat pumps, heat recovery, photovoltaic panels, low-flow water fittings, secure cycle storage, green roofs and features that support biodiversity. The School of Mathematical Sciences provides an example of these standards being used in practice, achieving BREEAM Excellent at both design and post-construction stages, with a final post-construction score of 75.7%. 

More recent work also shows these standards continuing across the estate. The Mile End Library extension, opened in February 2024, incorporated a green roof and solar panels as part of its environmental design.