Students with a disability make up 15.5% of the student population at UK universities. According to GSL Index 2024 Q2 data, just 7% of students who live in PBSA have a disability. A further 6% of students ‘prefer not to say’, suggesting that many students do not feel comfortable with disclosure.
Analysis undertaken for GSL and CUBO’s second research collaboration, Closing the Gap: the experience of vulnerable students in student accommodation (Closing the Gap), highlights that students with a disability have a less positive accommodation experience than students without a disability.
The Accommodation Search
When searching for accommodation students with a disability place a much higher priority on nearly all aspects of accommodation than those without a disability. Aspects such as the size of spaces and travel time are more important for many students with a disability. This is not surprising, given that navigating spaces and transport may require additional effort. However, for many students with a disability, choices are limited at the outset due to the need to consider their condition when searching for a place to live. Student comments highlight that many students with a disability are forced to pay more for their accommodation than they had planned and live in accommodation that may not have been their first choice in order to manage their condition:
“I need the disabled shower available in this building, which means I am forced into one of the most expensive accommodations to access this. However, I need it due to my disability.”
Moving In
More than a decade’s worth of GSL Index data highlights the critical role the moving-in experience plays in student retention and satisfaction. Students with a disability fare worse than students without a disability when it comes to moving in. International students with a disability are even less satisfied, with just 72% of international students with a disability rating their experience positively compared to 82% of students without a disability. Ratings and free text comments from students suggest that there are opportunities to improve pre-arrival instructions, signage and support on moving-in day so that these better meet the needs of this cohort.
The Accommodation Experience
Students with a disability are also less likely to rate their accommodation positively than students without a disability (72% vs 79%) and stand out due to the significant differences in their lower satisfaction ratings across almost every aspect of accommodation. Students with a disability are also more likely than students without a disability to say they would pay more to improve aspects of their accommodation such as laundry facilities, kitchen size and facilities, bedroom, and noise.
Many free text comments from students with a disability highlight that building design features often create accessibility challenges for students, which in turn reduces students’ independence and mobility and negatively impacts satisfaction and mental health. Some common issues raised by students include inaccessible public areas (e.g. recycling bin stores) and poor layout (e.g. public study spaces next to social spaces) and poor placement of things such as switches, power points, lighting and thermostats.
“Think out layouts of rooms a lot more, such as mirror, thermostat, wardrobe placements, little things like this can really make or break a person.”
“More easily accessible storage, especially in the kitchen. Also, the under-bed storage is very difficult to access on your own.”
“[If I could change one thing], the bin store would be disabled accessible. It has steps, so it is inaccessible. I also think that some of the door gaps in the entrance could use mini bump ramps as they are difficult to get over via wheelchair.”
In other cases, issues such as out-of-order lifts render environments inaccessible, creating significant distress for students:
“The lifts don’t work most of the time, which is hard to deal with when you are disabled and live on the 19th floor!”
Students with a disability are also more likely to struggle socially, and are less likely than their peers to say they have formed close friendships in their accommodation and that they feel a strong sense of community. They are also more likely to say they struggle with meeting new people, relationships, and getting on with those in their accommodation. A staggering 44% of students with a disability report feelings of loneliness compared to 23% of students without a disability.
The Closing the Gap report provides rich insight into the experience of students with a disability and other vulnerable cohorts in student accommodation. It also highlights a range of opportunities for both private and university accommodation providers to improve the experience of these cohorts. The full report can be accessed here.
The GSL Live conference, to be held in London on 17 October 2024, will include a session exploring the Closing the Gap report findings in more detail. It will also include a range of sessions sharing the latest research and exploring case studies on aligning Resident Life, Community, and Wellbeing for better student outcomes. Tickets are selling fast! Visit the GSL Live event page for more information.
