moving out of uni accomodation

As a young LGBTQ+ person, moving into student accommodation may have been an opportunity to live life on your own terms.

If you’re about to finish studying or the holidays have started, you may be worried about moving back in with family or afraid of becoming homeless.

This guide will help make sure you leave uni feeling confident about life ahead.

advice for leaving uni accommodation:

find your move out date:

• You should be able to find your official move out date in your contract (tenancy of licence agreement). Get more advice on this and fixed term agreements from Citizens Advice.

holiday accommodation:

• If you will be returning to study after a holiday, or if you will be starting a Masters course at the same uni, you may be allowed to stay in the accommodation until the start of the next term. Speak to your university to see if you can be granted permission to stay.

money and benefit options:

• In order to get accommodation, you will usually need some form of income to help pay for rent and utility bills. Income might be from a job or from benefits.
• If you know how much income you’re going to have, work out a budget of how much rent you could afford.
• If you haven’t got a job lined up yet, you may be able to claim Universal Credit from the day after your course officially ends.

universal credit:

• It can take up to five weeks to receive your first UC payment, so you may need to budget in order to make your last student loan instalment last (if you receive one).
• Find out what support you could be entitled to using this online Benefits Calculator or visit Save the Student for more advice on money for students and graduates.

local housing allowance:

• Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rate calculates the maximum amount you can claim in benefits for an entire property (not per person). Generally if you are under 35 you will only be entitled to the Shared Rate of LHA.
• If you know the area in which you’ll be moving to, you can use this online tool to calculate the total amount you could claim for renting:

LOCAL HOUSING ALLOWANCE CALCULATOR

private rented sector deposit scheme:

• If you put an application in to your local council and they have confirmed your status (threatened with homelessness) you should be eligible for the Private Rented Sector Deposit scheme. This would help you with a deposit and your first month’s rent.
• If you haven’t applied yet, contact your local council to make an application under Part 7 of the Housing Act which states that you require housing advice and assistance to find suitable accommodation.

housing options:

• Once you know the date you have to leave you should start thinking about where you’re going to stay. Ask friends or partners if you can stay with them in the short-term or buddy up with other friends looking for a place to stay.

local housing options service:

• Your local council should have a Housing Options Service. They can provide you with a list of landlords and letting agents.

LGBTQ+ community:

• If it’s important for you to live with other LGBTQ+ people then there are many websites and Facebook groups for LGBTQ+ housing.

Here are a few listed, but have a look for yourself to find more in your area:

QUEERHOMES.CO.UK

HOMES FOR QUEERS MANCHESTER

HOMES FOR QUEERS LONDON

HOMES FOR QUEERS LEEDS

LGBTQ+ ROOMS TO RENT

Some housing and spare room websites also allow you to filter the results for LGBTQ+ friendly properties. Here are a couple already filtered for you:

SPACEROOM

ROOMIES

when you’re ready to apply for accommodation:

finding a suitable reference:

• You may need to provide references. Contact your previous landlord or student accommodation provider.
• If that is difficult, other formal references may be suitable (e.g. an employer, a teacher, uni lecturer). Check with the rental company or landlord first.

what if I need a guarantor?

• You may also be required to provide a guarantor. A guarantor is someone who will be liable if you don’t pay rent or cause damage to the property.
• They are usually a homeowner and often a parent. But if that is difficult, see if you know anyone else that would be willing to act as guarantor for you.
• You can also pay a Guarantor Company, but you should only do enter into this agreement if you can afford to and be wary of the paperwork you sign to ensure they can be trusted.

housing advice for international students:

• We know that many LGBTQ+ international students may be financially dependent on family, and that you may only have student visa meaning you are legally required to return to your home country once your course has finished.
• If you are in fear of abuse or persecution in your home country and want advice on staying in the UK then you can contact the UK Council for International Student Affairs*

* Only people or organisations regulated by the Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner (OISC) can provide immigration advice.

care leavers and care-experienced students looking for accommodation:

If you are a statutory care leaver and have a Personal Advisor you should ask them for support around your housing options.

If you are a care leaver or care experienced you can contact:

• The Rees Foundation – supporting care leavers and care experienced people and communities across the UK.
• The Become charity – providing advice, support and opportunities for care experienced children and young people. It also has a coronavirus advice page for care experienced young people.
• The Propel website (run by Become) – providing care leavers with information on the support available to them from colleges and universities offering higher education courses across the UK. It contains named contacts for care experienced students.
• The Care Leaver Covenant – a promise made by private, public or voluntary organisations to provide support for care leavers aged 16-25 to help them to live independently.