Lancaster University Under Fire In Recent Pandemic Crisis

It’s every parents dream (if they can afford it! ) to send their son or daughter to University in the hope that they’ll learn enough to get a good job at the end of it. But what if that dream became a nightmare, what if due to a horror virus it all goes terribly  wrong. 

 

Lancaster University enrols students every year. It is one of the forerunner Universities that students embark on following their time at Blackburn College in the North West of England. 

 

Recently though it has been under fire. Almost 600 students at Lancaster University are withholding rent claiming that they are being treated as "cash cows" during the pandemic. 

 

Students were persuaded back on campus giving false hope of in-person teaching. Fellow learners felt furious that they were being charged for rooms they cannot occupy due to lockdown restrictions. The university cowardly confessed they would "make up" for changes to face-to-face teaching.

 

Strike organiser, Owen Arkley, 21, expressed his frustration following the events that took place, 

 

 “Many students were trapped on campus after the travel ban was enforced on Tuesday. All teaching is now online but even when cases were rising in Lancaster a few weeks ago, we were promised at least some of the teaching would be in person. It's unfair exploitation."

 

Over 580 students requested a rent reduction of 50% for those currently living on campus and a full rent waiver for those who are unable to access their rooms. 

 

18 year old Greg Florez  from North London is studying first-year Linguistics and Philosophy, he was sadly unable to return to campus due to the lockdown. He strongly believes the University has failed students. He speaks about his upset and disbelief, 

 

"Why should we be paying for rooms that are empty, that we aren't using? We are being treated as cash cows, not as people."

 

Mr Florez said he will not be paying rent which  was due last Friday (8th January )

 

The news mirrors recent events that occurred at Manchester University last November (2020). Students occupied a building in a protest against extremely high rents. The government has therefore urged all universities and private hall providers to be fair and clear in their decisions about rent charges.

 

A spokesperson for Lancaster University revealed how classes will play out in the forthcoming weeks and months, 

 

“They will be a mix of online and face-to-face teaching. Government advice in the last few days has meant we have had to stagger the start of face-to-face teaching for some subject areas. We continue to look at options that will make up for any alterations to previously planned face-to-face provision in this rapidly-changing situation."

 

Teaching has now gone online at Lancaster University after the new restrictions were brought in on Tuesday.

 

^Alex Ashworth CCG UK Blogger.