UNITED KINGDOM COUNTRY STATS Student population: 2,266,075 %International: 19,3%
Top countries of origin China India Nigeria
Top institutions (Times World Rankings)
University of Oxford University of Cambridge Imperial College London
Maximum domestic course fee: Average montly rent in National student housing student accommodation: provision rate
€10,581
€650
24%
Sources: see page 50
The UK’s vote to leave the EU has set the country up for an extended period of uncertainty. Despite this, student housing investments still are going strong. But rent strikes and student protests are having an effect on the market. Investment volumes below 2015 levels, but still strong After 2015’s record year for student housing investment, 2016 is on track for another strong year with increasing institutional investment pouring into the sector. According to JLL the expected volume of investment will reach £3.5 in 2016, down from £5.7bn in 2015, but still more than double the 2014 level. UCL Rent Strikes to Spread across the UK Rent Strikes at UCL this past academic year have resulted in one million pounds worth of concessions from the school to students in the form of need-based grants and rent freezes. As many as 1,000 students withheld rent for university provided dormitories in the face of rapidly increasing housing costs which students see as exceedingly expensive. To build on the success of the UCL rent strikes, a weekend of rent strike workshops (called Rent Strike Weekender) was held September 16-18, and future rent strikes have been planned at 25 campuses across the country. In the Wake of Brexit: Uncertainty in the Early Aftermath With PM Theresa May having committed to beginning the formal Brexit negotiation process by the end of March 2017, the UK is slated to be out of the European Union by the middle of 2019. The consequences that this departure from the EU will have for the UK, the rest of Europe, and the world are yet to be known and has left a thick cloud of uncertainty in its wake. Due in part
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Urbanest's new student tower in Vauxhall © Urbanest