Halls provider Liberty Quays fails to sell out

 

The University of Kent's privately owned accommodation halls in Medways is left with several vacancies (written by Kieran Watkins for the Medwire)

Student halls provider Liberty Living, which runs the University of Kent halls on the Medway campus, has announced a drop in student applications for rooms this year.
In an email sent by the University of Kent accommodation team to current students, Liberty Quays stated that “a number of rooms were still available”.
Liberty Quays, situated at Victory Pier in Gillingham, offers en-suite rooms for new and current students, with communal areas shared by up to nine people.
The drop in room occupancy comes after a series of revelations by The Medwire revealed staff negligence and questionable living conditions at Liberty Quays.
In a previous article, it was revealed that several communal areas had been infested with mice, with faeces being found in other areas.
The revelations came after a petition by former Liberty resident, Jem Collins, saw over 150 disgruntled students, parents and members of the public complain about the service and facilities on offer by Liberty Quays.
Complaints ranged from expensive maintenance costs to delays in deposits being handed back to students. A number of comments were also made about the management team at Liberty, with students branding staff “rude” and “unhelpful” on numerous occasions.
Students have also claimed the room prices have led them to seek accommodation away from the halls. Prices have increased by an extra £10 a week from last year to £127.
One student said that he could “barely afford to live” on the prices, which total just under £5,000 for one year.
“If I paid £5,000 to live at Liberty, I’d starve!” he said. “It’s ridiculously expensive, Liberty Quays is more expensive then London student accommodation.”
In a move to entice students, Liberty Quays has offered a 2% discount on accommodation prices if fees are paid in full by September 15.
Students who choose not to live in halls usually opt for a private landlord, where a fully-furnished bedroom in a house shared with four other people can start from as little as £90, bills included.
However, the down turn in student numbers could come at a cost for Liberty Living, who are currently extending their halls at Victory Pier. The new extension is scheduled to open next summer.

Petition calling halls “extortionate” reaches 100 signatures overnight

A petition calling for an end to apparent "unfair" and "unjustifiable" charges at Liberty Quays has attracted mass support

A petition branding Liberty Quays as “extortionate” and “opportunistic” has received over 100 signatures overnight.
The campaign, calling for the Medway student halls to address a number of issues from high check out charges to rodent problems, currently has over 140 signatures.
Set up by disgruntled student Jem Collins, the online page has attracted dozens of comments from students, families and members of the public.
She said: “I set up the page after having problems with my own experience when management insisted that I was the only one complaining and I thought this just can not be true.
“They’ve told me I’ve accrued over £200 worth of damage, but the only evidence I’ve received is a couple of photos showing pictures of a pen on a shelf and some paper on the floor”.
She added: “Management have been extremely rude and patronising throughout the whole procedure and aren’t taking anything seriously”.
Other complaints about the accommodation, which is owned by Liberty Living and is the only halls provider in Gillingham for University of Kent students, range from fictitious faults to rude and unhelpful staff.
One student said he was charged for a chair that was broken upon arrival, whilst another said that they had been refused access to pictures showing the alleged damage.
One student commented: “I was charged £10 for a key that was never given to me in the first place and then treated very rudely and disrespectful (sic), accused of lying and given absolutely ridiculous excuses by S.Triggs : ‘must have fallen off before you even realised you had it.’”
Deposit charges range from £15 to replace standard shower curtains, up to £30 for dust and £65 for replacement chairs.
When quizzed over the high prices, Mrs Triggs, manager at Liberty Quays, said: “Many of our items like the shower curtains are not of standard size and the cost reflects this”, though admitted they could be sourced as cheaply as £1.

She added: “These charges are necessary to ensure the standard of accommodation at Liberty Quays is maintained at a high level in an exceptionally short space of time to ensure the accommodation is ready for our summer students.”
She also said that she had encouraged students in the past to seek to buy the items from other places to avoid paying the charges set by Liberty Living.
Other comments from students included reports of a mice infestation, leaving students unable to use their kitchen for over a month.
In another incident, a number of flats were charged for faulty fire extinguishers that the halls provider claimed the students had tampered with.
However, following a similar petition and campaign, the faulty fire extinguishers were found to be untouched.
Ms Triggs said: “The fire extinguisher incident did not result in any charges to any students. ”
Other complaints have included faeces being left in a communal area for over three days and lack of proper security patrols, allowing members of the public to walk into flats freely.
In a statement from Mrs Triggs, who in a bizarre move has signed the petition herself, she said: “We take all complaints seriously and investigate each on its own merits.”

Have you had problems with Liberty Quays or did your stay go just fine? Let us know in the comments below!

Article taken from the Medwire student magazine, written by Kieran Watkins