www.thecourieronline.co.uk Monday 31 October 2016 Issue 1337 Free
HALLOWEEN PHOTOSHOOT 2016 p. 18
The Independent Voice of Newcastle Students
Est 1948
GAMING HYPE TRAIN ROYAL TV SOCIETY The lowdown on November’s gaming Coverage of their latest event: ‘Drones or line up, p. 30
Helicopters; Truth Or Lies?’, p. 28
Albion House student accomadation Image: Louise Hall
Student accomodation costs criticised By Chris Middleton
Judges at the inaugural Student Accommodation Awards have refused to pick a winner due to lack of affordable housing available for students. Property Week invited the 10-student judging panel from various universities across the country to choose the company that provided the best overall ‘student experience’. They were asked to judge a shortlist of student accommodation providers, but instead chose to criticise the entrants for “driving the social cleansing of education”. In an open letter to the organisers, the student judges were dismayed that “none of the entrants could demonstrate that they are meeting the urgent need of students to live in accommodation that will not force them into poverty”. The panel’s objection stems from a perceived gentrification of higher education in which poorer students are being priced out of potential opportunities. These high costs will inevitably disadvantage poorer students, who will either have to take a job alongside their studies, or not go to university in the first place.
The students, who had never met before, came to a unanimous decision and said that “most entrants price their cheapest rooms above the national average of £146 per week, and certainly above a level which student maintenance loans will reasonably cover. Many charge rents of more than £300 per week.” Student Accommodation providers are being accused of pursuing profit at the expense of student wellbeing. One company in particular rated shareholder satisfaction as more important than student satisfaction, and even boasted of £20 million revenues. Other criticisms outlined by the panel included very high administration fees as well as some entrants not being fully accessible for disabled students. “We are not satisfied knowing our student debt is lining the pockets of millionaire shareholders,” said the panel. The organisers of the Student Accommodation Awards responded to the students saying: “Our student judges have sent a clear message that the industry needs to do better. In light of this, we have taken the decision
to remove this category for this, our inaugural event, and review it for 2017.” According to a 2015 study published by the NUS, rent for university halls had increased by 18% over a two year period, to a nationwide average of £146 per week. Critics have argued that this
all’” and goes on to say that each type of housing will come “with its own potentially high price tag.” But this is no consolation to students who are living miles away from home in a brand new city. For students attending university outside of London, the national average cost of rent would require more than 90% of the maximum maintenance loan, dropping to 70% for students in London. But of course, the average for London alone would be much higher. There is a clear divide across the country in terms of median weekly rent with smaller towns like Stockton and Walsall coming in at less than £50 per week. On the opposite end of the scale, London boasts a median rent that is closer to £140. Students are big business for the real estate markets. Empiric Student Property regards students as a “robust asset class” that provides “stable yields” which “suffer less volatility than other real estate sectors”. The student accommodation market has grown rapidly over the last 10 years, and has performed better than all other
“The most expensive accommodation offered by Newcastle University is Albion House for £155.19 a week” has been due to an increase in privately owned halls of residence which now account for over 40% of the student halls market. For today’s students there is a wide range of term-time accommodation to choose from, from smaller and cheaper multi-cluster flats, to luxury studio apartments in the city centre. Ian Harrington, a building surveyor at Eddisons, argues that “student accommodation is not ‘one size fits
real estate markets. Total investment in student accommodation across the UK was £4.2 billion last year, but rather than making the market more competitive and driving down costs for students, the reverse seems to be happening. The maximum student maintenance loan that is available to students starting in 2016 is £8,200. The most expensive accommodation offered by Newcastle University is at Albion House for £155.19 a week. This accommodation is privately owned but is managed by NUstudenthomes, and the yearly cost will total £7936.86, leaving students £80 per term to spend on food and everything else. The most expensive student accommodation available in Newcastle costs a whopping £357.50 per week, which works out to £18,232.50 annually – more than twice the maximum maintenance loan. There should, of course, be a wide range of student accommodation across many price brackets. But when most students rely solely on their maintenance loan to pay for rent and everything else, it is understandably insulting that some companies will charge more than twice the maximum possible loan.