Students housed in hotels will now be expected to pay £160 per week.
In an email seen by The Glasgow Guardian, students unable to find accommodation who have been housed in hotels have been informed by the University of Glasgow that their hotel stays will “cease to be free of charge from November 2nd onwards”, providing only a week’s notice of the change.
Since the beginning of term, the University has been offering students who are unable to find accommodation in hotels fully subsidised by the University. A policy first reported on by The Glasgow Guardian, in September which was then concerning 30 students, the University says that: “placing students in hotels is continuing as a duty to care for those in emergency need”. Although students have expressed concerns that the hotels aren’t adequate living spaces and that there is no access to proper laundry or kitchen facilities.
The email, which was sent to students on 25 October, went on to explain that “the University will heavily subsidise the cost and you will be required to contribute This will be the case for all students the University is supporting with temporary accommodation…This charge will be equivalent to the cost of a bed in a University residence and is likely to be £160 per week.”
The University has been paying to place students in hotels around Glasgow for one week at a time as a temporary measure before attempting to house them in more permanent accommodation. Some students were offered alternative accommodation at a “subsidised” rate similar to what is being asked of to continue their hotel stay.
When approached for comment by The Glasgow Guardian a representative from the University said:”Students who came forward for emergency support have been offered free hotel accommodation from the start of term to the end of October. Students requiring extension of their hotel stay into November were advised at their most recent October extension that they would need to start making a contribution from November.
“[Students have also been offered] a move to serviced apartments as and when these become available, food vouchers for catering outlets on the University campus (at least one low cost hot meal is available every lunchtime in the JMS), access to hardship and discretionary funds on a needs basis.”
The University has previously assured students that they are “working with any student placed in emergency hotel accommodation to help them find a permanent solution.”
