Another brick in the wall: The student housing crisis in the UK and the ICESCR

Abstract

The financialisation of housing has been extensively critiqued by human rights proponents. One of the latest asset classes created by financialisation is student accommodation, reflecting the growing perception of students as a profitable consumer market. This article undertakes a human rights-based policy assessment of students’ enjoyment of the right to adequate housing as enshrined in Article 11 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, with a focus on the interrelated elements of availability and affordability. The article utilises the UK as its principal case study to illustrate some of the broad challenges to students’ right to housing in a high-income country, in recognition that students in other nations are likely to encounter specific issues which may concern other elements of the right. It demonstrates that threats to the availability and affordability of student accommodation in the UK are rooted in the national housing crisis, which in turn impedes the enjoyment of students’ rights to food, education, and health. The article concludes that action is required by national governments, universities, investors, landlords, and the international human rights regime to address the global student housing crisis in university locations worldwide.