Ms Megan O'Connor:

-----a huge barrier. I am very privileged to say that all of the purpose-built student accommodation I have lived in was accessible and there was provision for students with disabilities that was very much part of it. For example, there would be one physically accessible bathroom for a student with a disability in a larger apartment with more regular rooms.

It is a huge issue, however. As we saw with the National Housing Strategy for People with a Disability 2011-2016, there was only a very brief mention of students with disabilities in that strategy. It is something we can look for when we are asking for a new strategy for student housing to ensure that is implemented within it.

The additional costs incurred by students who are looking for appropriate forms of accommodation rules out almost all of what is actually available. With the housing crisis as it is at the moment, it is phenomenally difficult to find somewhere. On top of the crisis, if one has accessibility needs, such as needing ergonomic furniture, wheelchair access or anything like that, or if one needs somewhere quiet for rest breaks, somewhere that is not too far from one’s place of study or where one needs to be during the day, those accessibility needs make it harder to find a place. It is a huge issue.

I have never come up against resistance within an institution to doing something such as this. They have to do this. It has to be a priority because institutions will not be able to bring in or retain students if it does not provide accommodation. We will see that with the international market, where international students are often a huge source of income for the higher education sector across the country. That is not necessarily something we are in favour of, but it is the fact of the matter on the ground. They will not be able to continue to recruit students unless that accommodation provision is there and very quickly improved.