Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the rents levied by developers of student accommodation.
Answered on
9 September 2019
This answer is a correction from the original answer.
Higher education providers are autonomous bodies, independent from the government. The department plays no direct role in the provision of student residential accommodation.
The department assesses student accommodation rent levels through the Student Income and Expenditure Surveys that have been undertaken at regular intervals since the mid-1980s. Information on student rents is also reported in the Accommodation Costs Surveys published jointly by the National Union of Students and the student housing charity, Unipol.
The report published by the independent panel supporting the Post-18 Review of Education and Funding recommends that the Office for Students:
examines the costs of student accommodation; and
works with students and providers to improve data about costs, rents, profits and quality.
The department has not yet taken decisions on these recommendations but will consider the panel’s proposals in due course.
Original answer
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.