Authorities Outraged
Outrage abounds among Oxford University bursars this week as they deny claims that student rents may be doubled.
In an article in Monday's The Times newspaper it was claimed that the Estates Bursars' Committee agreed that all contributions currently made by colleges to lessen student rent "should be eliminated by 2006". It is also alleged that the committee endorsed "making students foot the bill for restoring crumbling college buildings."
The plans were allegedly made after the Estates Bursars' Committee commissioned a "confidential" audit last year, seen by The Times, into the true cost of student accommodation provision in Oxford colleges. The article claimed college bursars are considering "more than doubling" rent to £6,000 a year.
The University, however, fiercely denies that there are plans for across-the-board rent rises in 2006, whilst the bursar of Oriel College Alex Hardie condemned the article as "inaccurate and misleading in various respects."
A spokesperson for the university stated that the audit conducted by JM Consulting "is not a secret report, but a consultation document which was commissioned to assess costing methodology, not pricing." He explained that it was intended to help colleges better understand where the costs lie, not to dictate the level of subsidy. It was made clear when the report first came out in mid-November last year that it would be made available to OUSU. The University refuted claims that there was a deadline for the reduction of rent subsidies, stating that the decision of whether to reduce them and the time-frame for any reduction would be left to the colleges. They maintained that there was no suggestion that the Full Economic Cost should or would be passed on to students.
The level of colleges' subsidy of student accommodation has been a point of controversy for some time. In a statement issued by the Conference of Colleges regarding the JM Consulting report, a spokesperson said the University was "committed to ensuring that no young person with academic ability and potential should be deterred from applying to us on financial grounds...and we are currently reviewing the financial support package that Oxford can offer students if variable fees are introduced in 2006."
22nd Jan 2004