Student Accommodation Survey

Project details

Full project title: Student Accommodation Survey

Duration: June 2001-February 2002

Funded by: UWE Bristol

Project leads:

• Derek Worthing
• Sue Wood

Project summary

The project was commissioned by Student Accommodation Services (SAS) at UWE Bristol. It comprised an investigation into how students perceive SAS in terms of the quality of service, and of the accommodation provided.

It took place in a context of increasing competition between universities and a perception of rising expectations of students and their parents. The particular reasons for carrying out the work relate to good business practice, in the sense of getting feedback from clients, and the potential redevelopment plans at the Frenchay Campus, which might have provided 1,000 to 3,000 bed spaces.

The project had three stages. The first two stages focused on opinions about the service provided by the Student Accommodation Services, and on aspirations, while the third was about the experience of living in the accommodation. Stage one consisted of a questionnaire on the accommodation allocation process, sent with all the allocation letters in late June/July.

Stage two had two parts, a questionnaire on the deposit return (sent out with the deposit return letters in August) and a questionnaire, in the autumn, to parents of students who have recently moved into university accommodation.

Stage three involved ‘focus groups’ comprising of seven student ‘households’ (five to six students each), chosen to include different accommodation types, student characteristics (eg international), and locations. These groups were organised in a semi-structured way, with the topics chosen as a result of the responses received at the earlier stages.