The Political Institute of Action Research

By Harvey Sykes

We can establish as a baseline within the literature that ‘the provision of purpose-built student accommodation has become increasingly important in Scotland, where there is a high demand for student housing’ (Smith & McQuaid 2019: p. 103).

According to Wilson & Huggins (2018: p. 319), ‘the demand for purpose-built student accommodation in Scotland has grown significantly in recent years, driven by a range of factors including increasing numbers of students, changing expectations around the student experience, and a shortage of affordable housing’. This is especially relevant to the situation in St Andrews, where there is less land availability and steep renting costs bar many students from the private rental market.

It is recognized in the academic literature that ‘the affordability of student accommodation in Scotland is a major concern, particularly for students from low-income backgrounds, and there is a need for greater investment in affordable housing options” (Kintrea et al., 2020: p. 4). 

Such issues should also fall under the remit of the university’s obligations and commitments to promoting inclusivity and meritocracy within academia. ‘The availability of affordable student accommodation is crucial for ensuring that higher education is accessible to students from a wide range of socio-economic backgrounds’ (Barr et al. 2020: p. 74). If universities continue to neglect or only make half-hearted attempts to provide affordable accommodation, then they are ‘contributing to wider issues of social exclusion and inequality’, as ‘the lack of affordable student accommodation in Scotland’ is a driving factor behind those issues (Pike & Westergaard 2019: p. 437).

It should not be the case that students’ academic performance and mental health is harmed due to solvable economic issues. As Cooper (2020: p. 64) notes that ‘the design and management of student accommodation in Scotland has a significant impact on the well-being and academic performance of students, and should be a key consideration for universities and other providers.’

Universities, in their provision of student accommodation, have the opportunity to provide living spaces for all varieties of students, catering to their needs. Whether these needs are financial, related to mental health, or disabilities, it is undoubtable that purpose-built and university-managed accommodation is more able to provide for the needs of more vulnerable students than the private rental market is. Therefore, in future projects, ‘the design of student accommodation in Scotland should be based on an understanding of the diverse needs and preferences of students’ (De Vito 2017: p. 28).

Bibliography:

Smith, M. K., & McQuaid, R. W. (2019). Austerity, welfare reform and the student housing crisis in the UK. Housing, Theory and Society, 36(1), 101-117.

Wilson, J., & Huggins, R. (2018). The rise of purpose-built student accommodation in the UK. Regional Studies, Regional Science, 5(1), 313-324.

Cooper, A. (2020). Designing student accommodation for mental health and wellbeing: A critical review of the literature. Journal of Mental Health, 29(1), 60-71.

Kintrea, K., McKee, K., O’Connor, R., & Stirling, A. (2020). Student housing in Scotland: affordability, quality and choice. Policy Scotland, University of Glasgow.

De Vito, L. (2017). Designing for the student experience: The role of student accommodation in shaping the university campus. Journal of Learning Spaces, 6(3), 27-39.

Barr, I., Corteen, K., Scott, G., & Yarwood, R. (2020). Young people, housing, and criminal justice: Implications for social policy. Social Policy and Society, 19(1), 69-83.

Pike, A., & Westergaard, J. (2019). Student housing and the welfare state: A comparative study’ of Scotland and Denmark. Housing, Theory and Society, 36(4), 426-444.