UEA first years are paying en-suite prices for twin Ziggs accommodation

New UEA students are struggling with accommodation before even arriving at university, as health and safety concerns have left several students in twin rooms paying double the normal price.

According to a post on UEA’s ‘Concrete confessions between UEA seshions’ page, several students have been assigned twin Ziggurat rooms which would usually be shared between two students with desks, beds and storage for both. Due to the coronavirus and concerns for social distancing, the rooms will not be shared and have been assigned to single students.

Despite this, the university have not maintained the usual shared price of £79.45, meaning each student must pay £158.85 a week: £40 more than a standard room in the ziggurats and double what is expected when applying for a twin room. This new price will see these students paying the same as those in en-suite accommodation despite having to share bathrooms with others in their flats.

To add to the controversy, according to the post, many students who have found themselves in this situation had only put a twin Ziggurat room as their last accommodation choice or hadn’t listed it at all. Of course, the Ziggs have a reputation of being a fun and lively halls as well as being in a prime campus location, but they’re also one of the most affordable choices.

When asked to comment a university spokesperson said: “We have written to those students with concerns and explained that the price is the equivalent for an en-suite room and therefore reflects the significant amount of extra floor space.”

They assured any unhappy students would receive help finding other accommodation and continued to say: “It wouldn’t be fair to students in other Standard Ziggurat accommodation to charge a cheaper rate for these particular rooms.”

Is the extra floor space really worth the price? Those who have been effected to do not think so. The author of the original post has now started an online petition asking the university to lower the price which can be found here.