We’ve been working hard with our elected reps and UCL management to negotiate and agree the cost of UCL accommodation for 2019/20.
We’re pleased to announce a major win for future students who live in UCL accommodation that ensures rents are affordable and the quality of the accommodation high. We have secured the following wins for students in accommodation:
- 21% of the most affordable rooms will have rents frozen, up from 14% last year. This represents a real-term price cut as inflation (by the RPI) is 3%.
- This includes the cheapest single postgraduate rooms continuing to be frozen for the fourth consecutive year.
- Rooms in Max Rayne House and Ifor Evans Hall for undergraduate students will be frozen at the 2018/19 rates. This was a reduction of 5% from 2017/18.
- £250,000 has been committed towards rent support for those students coming through the Access UCL scheme.
- The cost of all other rooms will only rise in line with inflation (RPI, 3%).
This means that 30% of rooms next year will be available for 50% of the maintenance loan or less.
We continue to work with UCL to ensure that the quality of UCL accommodation improves while staying affordable and has a positive impact on students joining UCL. Mahmud, Democracy, Operations & Community Officer, says this is a great win for students:
“Working in partnership with UCL, we continue to play a notable part in reaching an agreement regarding rent realignment in UCL residences, and we are committed to working in partnership on this in the future. We look forward to working with UCL and our members who live in UCL accommodation to ensure the living environment provided is of high quality and affordable, so as to continue increasing access to higher education for those who would have otherwise have been deterred.”
We will continue to work with UCL to ensure that student’s voices are heard and their needs are met.