Nottingham student rent strike: 'We are not cash cows'

Students say they have not seen any rent reductions on their university accommodation despite being told not to use it

Hundreds more students are joining a "rent strike" by threatening to stop paying for accommodation they cannot return to during lockdown.

The protest by students at Nottingham Trent University calls for no-penalty contract releases at halls of residence and for deposits to be fully refunded.

It follows a similar move by students at the University of Nottingham.

Nottingham Trent University said it was awaiting a government announcement on the situation.

Students have been told by Nottingham Trent University to follow government advice on returning to the campus after the Christmas break.

The new rules mean many students are not allowed to travel back to university but are still being charged rent.

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Nearly 230 students have pledged their support for the rent strike via a petition which was launched on Wednesday.

The petition says: "The university has asked us to not return to our courses, and our accommodation, until mid-February due to the national lockdown, but we still have not seen any rent reductions.

"We are paying for rooms that are not even allowed to be used."

The rent strike follows a similar protest by students at the University of Nottingham

It also says students were "promised" a 50/50 mix of online and face-to-face teaching but have instead had "nearly completely online courses".

Rebecca Hyde, who is one of the organisers of the petition, said she was paying £83 a week in her house share but said the average price for student halls at the university was between £97 and £187 a week.

"Students are being treated like customers, rather than members of an academic community. We are not cash cows," she said.

The strike has received the backing of Nottingham East Labour MP Nadia Whittome who said: "Students have been treated appallingly throughout this pandemic."

A Nottingham Trent University spokesperson said: "We understand student concern around rents for accommodation.

"Universities UK is in discussion with government and we judge it is sensible to await the announcement of the government's position.

"We do not want a repeat of the situation in the summer term of 2020 where most of our students were reliant on the goodwill of private accommodation providers who did not always do the right thing."

More than 1,000 students at the University of Nottingham have also pledged to withhold rent in a similar protest.

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