Cut the Rent membership surges as UCL accommodation prices rise

Membership of UCL’s Cut the Rent group surges in the wake of increased university accommodation prices.

UCL’s Cut the Rent group has seen a dramatic increase in membership this academic year, with four times the number of freshers signing up to its mailing list compared to 2018.

Cut the Rent is a campaign group calling for a reduction in the cost of university halls. It exists across many universities in the UK, including Liverpool and Bristol. It has become an increasingly popular group among UCL freshers, achieving a 333% increase in mailing list sign-ups. Over the past few years, the movement has engaged in a number of activities in an attempt to make UCL cut rent prices, including numerous rent strikes. 

The  cost of UCL halls has increased considerably over the last few years. The yearly cost of a single room in Schafer House with no en-suite has increased from £6,808.62 in 2015/16 to £7,330.05 for the last academic year, according to statistics on the UCL accommodation fees website. A similar rise in prices can be seen across most UCL halls, making the increase higher than the inflation rate. 

Members of Cut the Rent spoke to Pi News about the successes of their campaign so far: “Since our campaign started in 2015, we’ve managed to win millions of pounds in rent cuts, freezes and accommodation bursaries through collective action, such as rent strikes.” 

Nevertheless, the group has acknowledged that further work needs to be done: “UCL still makes tens of millions of pounds in profit from students’ rents every year, whilst refusing to deal with poor conditions in halls. By continuing to put profit over student wellbeing, UCL is excluding working class and low-income students from studying in London, and forcing those who do manage to come into stressful financial situations. In order to become a truly progressive and accessible university, it’s imperative that we work collectively to significantly lower rents.”

A spokesperson for UCL’s Cut the Rent campaign group said:  “It’s been really exciting to see our sign-ups quadruple this year; this shows that the ridiculously high rent costs at UCL are still an issue that students are willing to fight back against.”