University students are now in a desperate scramble to find new accommodation after being kicked out a ‘luxury’ housing block – which is reportedly set to be used by migrants.
Under plans by the Home Office, hundreds of asylum seekers could move into a 405-bed student block in Huddersfield, that features a cinema room and gym.
The government deal means that more than 150 students who had already signed tenancy agreements have been forced to find alternative housing a week before the start of the academic year.
The HD1 student halls, only a short walk from the University of Huddersfield campus, in West Yorkshire, was previously advertised as ‘luxury student accommodation’.
Rooms were available to rent for up to £200 a week, with student facilities including a games room, pool table, cinema, gym and a washing room.
Do you know one of the students affected at Huddersfield? Please email [email protected]
More than 100 university students are now in a desperate scramble to find new accommodation after being kicked out of their rooms
Dozens of students now just have weeks to find new digs in Huddersfield after the bombshell news was dropped. The block includes its own cinema room
To help with the house the new arrivals, the Home Office bought the HD1 block at Huddersfield, West Yorkshire – which comes with its own gym (pictured) and games room
More than 20,000 migrants arrived in the UK this year (pictured are migrants reaching the UK on Tuesday)
News of the deal comes after 300 migrants made the perilous Channel crossing in small boats on Tuesday – taking the total number of illegal arrivals reaching this UK this year to 20,000.
Prestige Student Living (PSL), the lettings company, claimed landlord Hudd Student Management had told them the block would not be opening to students.
The block had previously been unoccupied over the summer. So far, 168 students, due to be living in the halls, have now been refunded.
In a statement, PSL told MailOnline: ‘Hudd Student Management, the landlord for HD1, informed us that the building will not be opening to students in September. This decision is beyond the control of Prestige Student Living.
‘Our team took immediate action to inform students and help them secure alternative accommodation in Huddersfield and return all payments made to us.
‘We deeply sympathise with the students affected by the news and will do all we can to support them.
‘Our agreement with the Hudd Student Management has terminated with immediate effect.’
The news outraged Labour’s shadow immigration minister Stephen Kinnock who told LBC students were ‘paying the price for the Government’s reliance on emergency accommodation’.
Nick Hillman, the director of the Higher Education Policy Institute, added he was ‘genuinely shocked’ by the news.
‘It’s one thing for the Home Office to block-book an empty hall of residence that is brand new or empty but to let students down like this just before term starts seems pretty outrageous – especially when Huddersfield was identified earlier this week as an amber risk in terms of a shortage of student beds,’ he told the Telegraph.
Inside the block is a luxury cinema room for student to relax in when not working on projects
The HD1 block has 405 beds – with 168 students who had previously signed on to live there having now been refunded (pictured is an example of a study area in one room)
The halls are kitted out with their own kitchen and bathroom
He added the Home Office and landlords had a ‘moral duty’ to help the students but claimed that university accommodation is ‘not generally taken as seriously in Whitehall’ as other types of housing.
The HD1 studio flats are a four-minute drive from Huddersfield University. As well as having its own cinema, the luxury block also has a communal kitchen area, with students having access to super-fast broadband speeds of up to 250mbps included in their bills.
Rooms range from £200 a week ‘platinum’ studio flat, which has its own fully-furnished kitchenette, en-suite bathroom, bed, study area and waterside canal views, to a smaller bronze room from £135 to £140 a week.
A spokesman for Huddersfield University said: ‘Huddersfield has sufficient student accommodation to meet the needs of our students and there are current vacancies available. For any students affected by this, who have not already been re-housed, please contact: [email protected] ‘
The Home Office said Britain was facing a huge demand from asylum seekers crossing the Channel.
In a statement, a spokeswoman added: ‘We have always been upfront about the unprecedented pressure being put on our asylum system, brought about by a significant increase in dangerous and illegal journeys into the country.
‘We continue to work across government and with local authorities to identify a range of accommodation options. The government remains committed to engaging with local authorities and key stakeholders as part of this process.’
Do you know one of the students affected at Huddersfield? Please email [email protected]
Source: | This article originally belongs to Dailymail.co.uk