The award follows the sale of the city-centre site by previous owners Maple Grove Developments and Yorvale to McLaren Construction Group’s property arm.

Eric Wright is the sister company of Maple Grove.

Work will start on the site in Hallfield Road next month to build two blocks, each with four storeys.

The 18-month build programme is due to complete in time for the 2016/17 academic year student intake.

Chris Evenson, managing director of Maple Grove Developments said: “We knew that this site had significant potential for development as student living and, by delivering the public consultation and securing planning consent prior to negotiations, we were able to maximise its value.

“We are delighted to have attracted a developer of McLaren’s stature to the project and the deal demonstrates our ability to acquire sites that can attract interest from major property development and investment names, feeding our continued growth.”

John Gatley of McLaren Property said: “We are pleased to announce the acquisition of the site in Hallfield Road which adds another strong location to our portfolio of student accommodation.

“We continue to search for development opportunities in similar top tier university towns and cities.”

John Wilson, managing director, Eric Wright Construction added: “This deal demonstrates how the breadth of disciplines within the Eric Wright Group can be leveraged to drive growth across our business units.

“The Hallfield Road scheme will build on our portfolio of successful student accommodation projects, which also includes the £18 million Opal Court Phase 2 in Leeds, reiterating our expansion in Yorkshire.”

DTZ and Lawrence Hannah acted for Maple Grove and Yorvale and Tudor Toone acted for McLaren Properties.