Waterloo’s Christian Alliance Centre reborn as Xenia student hostel
This week Kate Hoey MP performed the official opening ceremony at Xenia, a student residence in the former Christian Alliance Centre at Waterloo.
The 100-year-old building bounded by Secker Street, Exton Street and Cornwall Road was once part of the Union Jack Club, but by the 1970s it had become the Christian Alliance Centre.
Initially providing supported accommodation for vulnerable young people new to London, it developed into a residence for international students at central London colleges and universities. The Christian Alliance Housing Association – which changed its name to Chapter 1 in 2009 – has spent £9 million upgrading the Waterloo building. Now known as Xenia – from the Greek concept of hospitality – the 150 room residence is now used by Imperial College students under a three-year deal with the charity …