National debate needed on student accommodation

Think tank calls for conversation on residential halls and affordable rooms for students

Universities must kick-start a national debate on why students move away to university amid rising rents and controversy over unfinished accommodation, according to a report.

In a report published by the Higher Education Policy Institute and the University Partnerships Programme, University of Oxford scholar William Whyte said universities must start talking about “what we think we are achieving when students leave home for university”.