Uni Housing is Mould Standard

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A DERWENT student has told Vision of a serious mould problem in his accommodation block that took 3 weeks to be resolved. In an email shown to Vision, sent to residents of the block, who pay £120 a week for rooms with shared bathrooms, college staff inform students:

“the mould you’re describing is called mildew, and it has been caused by the shower tray being cracked and water leaking. Please be assured that any inconvenience to the residents is temporary but unavoidable, and Estates are doing their best to resolve the problem.”

In another email, a member of staff attempted to explain the delay in resolving the problem: “He [the maintenance manager] said that it’s reasonably obvious that the shower has been leaking for some time but not reported to Estates, which he’s found a bit frustrating; he says it’s quite a large crack.

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“He’s explained that the shower cubicle will now require stripping to allow the walls and floor to dry before a new shower tray can be fitted so this may increase the time it takes to complete the repair. But he’s assured me it will be done as quickly as possible.”

However, Antoine Echassoux, a 1st year student told Vision it took 3 weeks for the problem to be resolved: “We reported a crack in the shower and maintenance didn’t do anything about it, and this led to lots of mould growing behind the shower and eventually actual mushrooms in the shower room and corridor – we reported it multiple times and it took a good three weeks before they did anything.”

Though many students are angry at similar issues appearing in their on-campus accommodation, particularly with relatively high rent prices compared to the rest of the UK, Echassoux was quick to emphasise that it was just what he’d come to expect from campus accommodation, particularly campus accommodation in Derwent College.

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“For the mushroom it was more funny than anything for us, we were a bit annoyed when we came back from the holidays because it was still not fixed, but we started making jokes about it.”

“The whole of Derwent is a bit like this, that’s part of the experience, they don’t have stories like this is Hes East!”

In the same accommodation block, the taps in the student bedrooms are all labelled to indicate the water is not safe for drinking, though students still use the water to brush their teeth and wash their faces which could be a safety concern.

A student at the University of Nottingham contracted an infection while living in halls from a parasite that could have eaten her eye from the inside, resulting in permanent visual impairment or blindness.

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