Protest highlights student digs issue

Students at the University of Surrey protested last week against proposed rent rises on campus of 24 per cent over the next four years. But the problem of soaring student accommodation costs is not confined to well-heeled Guildford. A National Union of Students survey shows rents have risen by more than twice the rate of inflation.

"The suggestion is there that students can afford these rises," said a spokesperson for Surrey students union. "We can't. Soon the cost of living on campus is going to swallow the whole of our student loans and more besides. It's going to be cheaper to live off campus, which is madness in such an expensive area. We're all going to have to get jobs to pay for these rises, cutting heavily into our study and relaxation time."

The NUS survey reveals that the average rent in university accommodation has risen by 5.13 per cent in a year. London remains the most expensive area to live - halls in inner London cost just under £80 a week, almost double student rents in the Northeast. This difference is not reflected in the amount of extra support London students can apply for.

Richard Paxton, director of accommodation at the University of Surrey, justified the hike, saying that his institution's rents were below average for the sector. "We provide a wide range of accommodation to meet our students' needs." He said Surrey was committed to modernising all its older accommodation over the next ten years.

Reductions in government funding mean universities can no longer subsidise accommodation.

With expansion, many universities are facing an acute shortage of space in halls of residence and are turning to the private sector. This is good news for property investors but not good for relations with local communities.

For example, house prices in Leicester, home to two universities, are going through the roof. The cost of an average terraced house in the Clarendon Park area has gone up by over 50 per cent in a year. Estate agent John Ravenhill said investors were cashing in on the demand by buying up homes in areas near the universities.

The problem at De Montfort is with first-year student accommodation, while at Leicester University it is a lack of housing for students leaving halls after their first year.

Building new halls, including a 370-bed block, will not satisfy demand at De Montfort. It had a 1,000-bed shortfall for 2,500 freshers wanting university accommodation this year and is working with the city council and the Leicester Landlords Association to remedy the problem.

Leicester University believes that its number of undergraduates will increase to nearly 20,000 in two years' time - a rise of some 1,500. Plans are in hand to adapt existing halls to take another 600 beds for first-years.

Ordinary house-hunters could find themselves being priced out of the market in some parts of the city, local estate agents say.

First-time house buyers are also being squeezed out of the market in Cheltenham by the rapid development of buy-to-let accommodation catering for students.

The growth of the former Cheltenham and Gloucester College of Higher Education into the University of Gloucestershire has helped house prices to spiral in areas of the city where most students live.

Student union president Ian Pain said that with more than 1,000 first-year students a year who cannot be placed in halls, on top of about 1,600 others in shared flats, local people were beginning to feel marginalised.

"Where local people used to make up about three-quarters of a street, they now account for only a quarter. Those who have dug their heels in and stayed because they have lived here all their lives have found themselves swamped by students," he said.

A spokesman for local estate agents Allen and Harris confirmed that the proliferation of buy-to-let properties was "making life very difficult for first-time buyers".

University of Gloucester accommodation services manager Alan Folliard said he thought the local buy-to-let market had "probably expanded too far".

The university is increasing its accommodation, with a new campus in Gloucester and new halls that it manages. It aims to be able to eventually offer all first-year students a place in halls.

Mr Folliard said the growth in student numbers was having some positive impact on areas of the city that were previously run down. "Students can give a lift to the local economy. They may not help the market for family housing, but other businesses do benefit," he said.

Students in Leeds claim unscrupulous landlords are spreading scare stories about a housing shortage and then cashing in on the panic.

Sarah Lund, welfare officer at Leeds students union, said there was no shortage of beds for the city's 36,000 students. But she said many landlords targeted first-year students at Christmas, pressuring them to sign up for properties for their second year.

"This of course ends up costing students a lot more, and the properties they rent are not regulated by the universities," she said.

Many of the city's students end up living in Headingley, which, according to residents' associations, has become rife with unscrupulous landlords.

Pressure group HealHeadingley said there was an "epidemic of uncontrolled landlordism" as more and more houses were bought up for rent to students, destroying the community and pricing families out of the area.

One resident said: "We have been forced to move out of the area because of rowdy students and unscrupulous landlords. Every eight months new neighbours descend on us," she said.

Ms Lund said there was much antagonism towards students as they continued to be blamed for sharply rising house prices.