UCL reinstates rent guarantor scheme
UCL Accommodation reinstates its rent guarantor scheme, resulting in much relief from students who depend on it.
Photography by Mary Hinkley, UCL Imagestore
As August approaches and summer nears an end, many UCL students are frantically searching for private accommodation to call home this coming year. Searching for a property in central London can be daunting and demoralising; dreams of bagging a classic townhouse in the heart of Bloomsbury are promptly shattered by staggering prices. Property hunting was further complicated this year when UCL temporarily ended its rent guarantor scheme, instead directing students to private companies in the UK. Thankfully, on July 15, UCL Accommodation released a statement saying they “listened carefully to the concerns that were raised about the potential impact on some of our students and after further reviewing the decision to suspend the scheme, it has now been reopened.”
Most landlords and agents insist that tenants have a UK-based guarantor. They are usually a family member or friend with a stable income who agrees to pay your rent and meet the commitments outlined in your tenancy agreement if you fail to. UCL’s scheme was created to give students security and peace of mind, ensuring that they could continue their studies regardless of any financial hardship.
UCL’s permanent withdrawal of this scheme would have affected many students unable to find a UK-based guarantor, such as international students, who make up 43 per cent of the student body, as well as those estranged from family and the 24 per cent from low income households. It could have affected up to 27,000 students. Prospective tenants without a UK-based guarantor are often expected to pay up to six months worth of rent in advance. Whilst this payment may have been a feasible alternative for some students, it would have been impossible for others, forcing them to seek different accommodation. Student activism and discussions with the Students’ Union have led UCL Accommodation to officially reinstate the rent guarantor scheme.
UCL’s withdrawal of the scheme was circulated via social media and provoked outrage and distress in the student body, leading to the writing of petitions and emails addressed to the provost. Students were alarmed at UCL’s decision, highlighting the intersectionality of the issue; it would have disproportionately affected working class, Black, Asian and minority ethnic students. One anonymous Medical student is therefore “really glad” that UCL has revised its decision. They called it “thoughtless and insensitive to abandon the scheme and neglect their students, many from communities who need the uni’s support now more than ever.”
Another student, also anonymous, conveyed their elation at the news: “I was extremely anxious and stressed after hearing of UCL’s decision to scrap the scheme. As somebody from a single-parent household that earns way less than £25,000 a year, I thought that I had no option but to stay at home and study entirely online. I’m so relieved.”
There is widespread gratitude for UCL’s reinstatement of its rent guarantor scheme. However, whilst costs for registering on the scheme will remain the same for students, applicants will now have to meet the tightened eligibility criteria. This criteria will be introduced alongside new terms and conditions. Further details will soon be available on the UCL website.