Worcester in rent rise woes

Rents and increased charges cause outrage among Worcester students


Worcester college have proposed a rent increase of 8.6% which would bring the price of accommodation at the college above the university median. 

The JCR already experienced a rise in rent costs of 8.7% last year, which was blamed on the poor state of college finances. Students have expressed opposition to further increases, with the JCR unanimously voting to boycott the next telethon if the rent increases go ahead.

The JCR’s Environment and Ethics rep said: “students are being made to pay for the faults of previous management… the burden being placed on the undergraduate body is unreasonable.”

A nameless third-year stated: “If the college want to raise my rent again, I guess I’ll have to pay but they can consider the extra money as substitute for any alumni donations they expect me to make in five years time.”

As for the SCR? Apparently, no obvious commitments have been made by them to ‘do their bit’ – and they still get the perks of free parking and free lunch, despite rising costs for students.

It also exacerbates the usual concerns for access, seeing as student loans do not fluctuate with inflation, meaning students from poorer backgrounds might be left worse off.

The JCR President said: “a rent increase that puts termly battels about student maintenance will price many out of rooms… this will dissuade applicants from poorer backgrounds from applying here.”

Worcester already has a “relatively poor bursarial system” and “runs the risk of alienating these potential applicants to have to apply to a more affordable college that offers better value for money.”

The worries of the student body were seemingly universal, with an open letter signed by the JCR, ending with: “Worcester prides itself on possessing a friendly and inclusive atmosphere. If a significant proportion of the undergraduates opt to live out rather than in, we are at a real risk of losing that.”