Rooms in the new Fallowfield Redevelopment could cost as much as £235 a week, it has been revealed by a senior University employee.
In an open meeting on December 2 with students, Vicky Ackerley, the Director of Residential and Sports Services, declared that premium rooms in the new Fallowfield Campus Redevelopment project could ‘top £235 a week’.
Ackerley responded to a student question on the rent price of new rooms in the development ,stating that the “new build won’t be the same price” as the previous Oak House and Owens Park rooms.
Arguing that the prices were “significantly lower than what you would pay in the private sector,” Ackerley said that the university believed that it “cannot build to the NUS definition of affordability.”
Furthermore, the University plans to lobby Manchester City Council to implement a policy that would prohibit developers from getting planning permission unless they fit a certain affordability metric.
Yet the proposed Fallowfield accommodation would not fit these guidelines “because we’ve already got the outline planning permission”.
At the start of the academic year, Vice-Chancellor Duncan Ivison revealed to The Mancunion that “I don’t think we’re going to get as close to the NUS norm as you’d like us to”.
The given price will be a further blow to student groups on campus concerned with the rising cost of living for students in Manchester.
Additionally, it was revealed that the University would have to take out leases in the “next academic year” to house students whilst the redevelopment is underway. The new accommodation is estimated to be available from 2027.
It was unclear what price range these private leases would be.
Due to the nature of their development partnership, the University does not control rent on all of the beds as they have agreed to a “cap and collar” arrangement.
The University is working with private corporate partner “Viridis Living”.
Describing the agreement, Simon Merrywest, the Director for the Student Experience said “There will be a degree of profit” for private partners as “this scheme would not go ahead” without corporate investment.
Development plans estimate 3,300 bed spaces for students and 55 for staff. 26 of these will be disabled-accessible rooms, on the ground floor of various blocks.
Whilst they could not “comment on the pricing structure” of accessible rooms, there was reference to the “fixed cost” policy already put in place by the University.
Justifying the price point, members of the meeting discussed 24/7 security, communal areas, and “landscaping” on the Fallowfield campus.
This proposed price would be an increase from the housing options previously available that are currently in the process of being demolished.
A Deloitte consultant was in attendance. The company has been consulting on the project since 2013.
The most expensive Owens Park room (single with a washbasin) is currently advertised at around £123.5 a week.
During the 2022/23 year Oak House rent was £110 a week.
Also being demolished to make space for new accommodation is Woolton Hall. With catering included this costs £219 a week for a single with an en-suite.
In a statement released to The Mancunion by the Students’ Union, they stated:
“The Students’ Union Executive Officer Team has consistently raised concerns about rent prices in both University-owned and private rental accommodation. We support the student body’s belief that at least 40% of University-managed housing should meet the NUS definition of affordability (50% of the maximum maintenance loan). However, affordable rents are needed more broadly.
No student should be excluded from higher education because they cannot afford housing, and working-class and marginalised students are worst affected by rising rents. Proposed rents are high, with plans to at least match inflation and potentially exceed it within an unspecified upper limit. The redevelopment will also eliminate the cheapest options currently available.
The Students’ Union wishes to work with the University to develop a strategy to review its housing portfolio, ensuring other accommodations remain affordable and rents decrease where possible. Increasing luxury housing will not lower rents, and raising maintenance loans only subsidises landlords. Private profit must not come before the right to shelter”.
Additionally, the Students’ Union has told students:
“If you are concerned about these rent prices please contact the Executive Officers, or to contact the Accommodation directorate directly. If you are struggling to navigate the cost of survival crisis there are support resources on the SU website”.
Further public consultations will take place between December 5, 2024 and January 9, 2025. This includes online events, drop-in events, and online surveys.
