Student activists allege high incidence of damp and mould

An activist group claims that 54 per cent of students are currently living with damp and mould.

The group - Students Organising for Sustainability - claims that a survey it has conducted reveals 59 per cent of students have felt uncomfortably cold in their current accommodation, and 54 per cent are living with damp or mould. 

A statement from the group says that students have a high risk of falling into energy poverty, as it’s often their first time renting and managing bills. Many students also live in houses of HMOs which - it states - “often remain exempt from energy performance certification if they are not let as an entire property.”

It goes on to allege that this “allows landlords to rent out the most inefficient properties to those on the lowest incomes.”

The group also claims that of 30 councils it contacted, only nine have issued compliance notices to landlords and just six issued fines as a result. 

The group says the government must ensure all properties, including Houses of Multiple Occupancy, require Energy Performance Certificates; it must support councils to enforce regulations, including training and support for council staff; provide short term emergency support for those most in need (including students); and deliver a fully-funded programme of retrofitting insulation for homes that are privately rented.

“The government needs to close the loophole and ensure all properties, including homes of multiple occupancy, require energy performance certificates. Upholding energy standards is crucial in the face of the cost of living crisis and the climate crisis. Councils need more support to enforce regulation. Poor housing should not be a ‘rite of passage’ that anyone has to go through” says Larissa Kennedy, the president of SOS-UK

‍The campaign urges its followers to lobby MPs on the subject.