STUDENTCO-OPERATIVEHOUSINGEVENTHELDONCAMPUS

Up next, four guest speakers offered their insights and detailed their experiences of housing co-operatives, promoting such alternative models and outlining the prospects for them in an Irish context

Dr Scott Jennings, Vice-Chair of Student Co-op Homes, a collective of UK and Irish-based co-operatives described the lessons he has learned in founding the Nottingham student housing co-op Dr Jennings is also a Director of the Confederation of Co-operative Housing and the Co-operative Housing International organisation

Last Tuesday evening, a public discussion on the issue of student cooperative housing was held in UCC Organised by the college’s Cooperative Society alongside the Cork Student Housing Co-operative group, the event was held in the O’Rahilly Building’s CACSSS seminar room from 6-8:30pm and brought together several guest speakers with stakeholder expertise on the topic

The aim of the evening’s conversation was to highlight the increasingly intense and unsustainable housing situation faced by students in Cork today and to promote alternative cooperative models which see communal and democratically-operated living arrangements implemented, seeking to overcome the reliance on private landlordism and the profit-centred rental system generally

Opening the event, UCC’s Student Union Welfare Officer, Alannah O’Connor and MTU president, Isobel Kavanagh spoke of the current state of student housing in Cork, citing the various complaints and concerns they receive on a daily basis from the students they represent

O’Connor described certain instances of mushrooms growing on students’ bedroom walls and described her feelings of helplessness, whereby she can usually only offer assistance from the likes of tenants unions such as CATU or the anti-homelessness charity, Threshold

Kavanagh meanwhile spoke of the proliferation of luxury accommodation blocks that have been built in recent years which are inaccessible to the majority of students The MTU president also claimed that international and Erasmus students are being exploited by rogue online scammers who are taking deposits of over €1,000 and then disappearing from contact With rents soaring over the last few years, students were described as having to work every available hour, negatively impacting their grades and wellbeing Subsequently, AJ Nagle from the campus’s Co-op Society cited certain examples of Cork’s luxury accommodation takeover, with average rents in these complexes standing at roughly €900- €1,100 Contrasting this, it was highlighted that the average national income of third-level students is just €754 a month

Speaking to the room, Scott explained the seven general principles of co-ops and how student groups can help them get off the ground Referencing several successful examples internationally, including Sweden and Austria, and several in North America, the socioeconomic and democratic capacities for these arrangements, whereby students collectively own, run and maintain the properties they live in was promoted. According to Mr Jennings, the extractive element of the rentier system is circumvented by co-ops, where decisionmaking processes and voting mechanisms are rooted in transparency and consensus

Ryan Harling, founder and current secretary of the Belfast Student Housing Co-op explained the transformative process of co-op mobilisation in a Northern Irish context, whereby his group set up their project in the deprived Holylands area of inner-south Belfast. The ultimate goal of Ryan’s group was to enable students to access dignified accommodation and overcome the housing-related powerlessness experienced by young people today

In terms of financing housing cooperative projects, both speakers discussed the opportunities provided by credit unions and local authorities, citing broad stakeholder buy-in as crucial to success in the early stages Community Finance Ireland was mentioned as a significant lending body that can assist these groups and Co-operative Housing Ireland, an Approved Housing Body, was urged to develop a greater share in the housing stock

Following these presentations an informal discussion panel was held Dr Noreen Byrne from the UCC Centre for Co-op Studies, Dr Frank O’Connor, founder of the Derelict Ireland Movement and Cllr Lorna Bogue from Cork City South-East contributed to a dialogue on the housing crisis and how co-ops, as a socially innovative substitute could improve prospects for citizens and students

During this conversation, the panellists spoke about cultural barriers to the growth of housing co-ops in Ireland Lorna Bogue spoke of an ideological favouritism towards privatisation in local government and weak consultation efforts with the public over the use of State land, giving the example of a “nonsensical” procurement process at a site on North Main Street in the City Noreen Byrne argued that the current housing situation is unsustainable and unfit for purpose for all stakeholders, including small landlords, and therefore, co-operative housing can serve as a robust long-term solution

The audience were then invited to ask questions, one of which raised the issue of student homes as opposed to merely “accommodation” The panellists viewed this distinction as significant, with Noreen Byrne identifying the “transient” nature of student tenancies as stymying efforts to improve housing in the longterm However, the major student presence in Cork, comprising 24,000 people across various institutions, was cited as a powerful tool for mobilising co-op action

Frank O’Connor also urged an effective business model for Cork’s housing co-op groups seeking to effect change The legacy they create will be consequential for the state of student housing into the future and will hopefully help to end the “epidemic” of vacancy and dereliction as he described it

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Hi there,

I’m finding it hard to believe that this is the last thing I’ll write for the University Express! I’ve been a part of this paper for two years now, and have really enjoyed working with the respective teams I’ve learnt a lot from everyone, but also about myself When taking on this role, I knew I could write, but I was uncertain as to my ability to instruct other people as to how to get the best out of their own writing Turns out, with the team I have around me, I didn’t need to give much instruction

They were all brilliant already, making this job a lot easier! It has been a pleasure to read and edit the variety of articles every fortnight, to see the design of each issue come to life and to celebrate our successes along the way So, to James, Claire, Max, Emer, Cian, Eoin, Atakan, Kate, Conor, Jack M, Alison, Béline, Orla, Nathan, Rosie, Kellie, Cormac, Ciara, Luke, Sarah, Mark and Jack K, thank you all for making this job one of the most enjoyable and rewarding I have ever had From the newsroom chats, late night texts and photoshoots, to celebrating people’s successes in awards and cheering each other on in ventures unrelated to the paper, I am glad to have been able to work with you all and call you my friends and colleagues I wish ye the very best in the future and can’t wait to see where you all go next!

In this issue, the team reflects on our year of writing in the Opinion section, look at student housing in our News articles, have an ode to that stalwart Sicilian Delights in the Food & Health section and discuss drag with our Arts & Lit editor

Happy reading and slán from me!

JAMES KEMMY | NEWS EDITOR

And that’s a wrap! With issue no 12, we bring to you the final installation of the Express ‘22/23 :(

Over an eventful term we witnessed renewed energy on campus emerging out of the pandemic By documenting stories that defined the past seven months in UCC and beyond, we have hoped to capture powerful moments and offer thought-provoking journalistic insights for our student audience

From current affairs, sport, sex, food, Irish and opinion-oriented writers, the Express brought together a diverse breadth of journalists this year, each contributing their original voice and promoting student interests throughout On the technical side of things, our designers and social media staff ensured we had an aesthetically compelling and wide-reaching publication With an over twenty-strong team alongside various contributing writers, UCC’s media sphere is undoubtedly in a strong place right now

Above all though, our greatest achievement would be if the Express resonated with you, the reader at some point this year If our stories reflected certain experiences you have had as a student or if they gave voice to an issue generally under-represented in Irish media, our credentials would be bolstered and we would truly feel accomplished

The Express has aimed to serve as a link between student issues and social consciousness, informing and enlightening the student body It would not be possible however without a vibrant campus scene and all the creative and activist work that takes place which we then transcribe, chronicle and produce to be released every second Monday

Ultimately, I want to say thank you to everyone who has taken the time to read, share and contribute to the paper this year, it’s been such an enriching experience Long live the University Express