By Leah Hoyle, Second-year, English
The general standard for student housing in Bristol is low, mould feeling shamefully normal when the obligatory ‘so where abouts are you living’ question crops up. In reality, the mould is not just relatable but has serious health hazards and leads to some pretty horrendous horror stories. Epigram has interviewed University of Bristol students, revealing a disturbing pattern of negligent landlords, hidden mould problems and unsafe living conditions.
In a conversation with a second-year law student, he spoke about a leak in his upstairs bathroom which caused black mould to encase the ceiling of the kitchen. This leak created a knock-on effect throughout the rest of the house, the mould spreading to his bedroom and at one point getting so bad that a harvestable mushroom began growing on his ceiling, emerging through the mould.
Luckily for this house, the landlord acted quickly, coming in the next day to fix the leak. The mould was cleaned and the house was provided with mould spray to ensure the spores were kept at bay.
However, some students aren’t so fortunate. One second-year chemistry student, having not repositioned her room since she moved into her house, discovered a ‘massive patch of mould’ behind her bed – the decaying wall carefully hidden behind her pillows. After three months of living completely unaware of the issue, the student moved her bed away from the mould patch and reported the matter to her landlord. The landlord has, however, not only failed to address the issue but has also failed to respond. Similar to other mould-related testimony gathered by Epigram, this is a cautionary tale to always check behind your beds.
In the 2015 Bristol SU survey, one student response offered a perspective on the mould epidemic as a result of oversubscription at the University of Bristol: ‘The supply doesn’t meet the demand [...] Most accommodation in the private sector has problems and should not be let legally but are.’ The survey also revealed that 75 per cent of students report dealing with mould or damp in their student house in some capacity – suggesting nearly 22,000 students are being exposed to mould in Bristol. One second-year Maths student living near Cheltenham Road is one – with a severe case of mould exacerbating his asthma.
The bathroom attached to the student’s bedroom in the seven-person house was littered with growing patches of mould, eventually framing the once-white bathroom light with what looks like something out of Stranger Things. This left the bathroom unusable, with the smell of dampness soon emerging into the student’s bedroom.
While the issue was quickly resolved within a week following an email to the student’s landlord, further issues such as mould in the upstairs bedrooms of the house as well as a slew of never-ending plumbing issues continue to persist.
Living above the infamous triangle club, La Rocca, another second-year Law student had significant qualms regarding the condition of her flat. Moving in last June with a ‘very good condition’ claim from her landlord, she couldn’t have envisioned what was to come. After creating a list of issues throughout the year, the landlord promised to have all faults resolved over the summer period. When they returned at the beginning of second year, nothing had been fixed. ‘We were told to just keep cleaning the ceiling which is so dumb’, the student told Epigram, ‘the issue is that there just isn’t proper ventilation.’
Among the many maintenance issues in the student’s flat, including mouldy mattresses, ceilings and window sills, the situation reached a crisis point when the bedroom ceiling began leaking one night. Substantial amounts of water dripped down her walls over her mirror and decorations. The issue was resolved only for it to happen again.
Further leaks began to emerge throughout the property – a notable one appearing in the living room during the winter break. Once again, the student’s landlord failed to address the issue, leading the situation to worsen: ‘We had a rug under the leaking area which was soaking wet and had gone mouldy essentially because of how much water must have come out of the ceiling.’
‘Ultimately’, she noted, ‘it’s just issue after issue that we personally have to constantly deal with and chase up which we do not have the time for, obviously.’
Despite the widespread mould problems plaguing Bristol’s rental properties, students continue to face exorbitant rents for these substandard living conditions. Despite the consistent leaks and mould, the second-year law student divulged that her flat was – somewhat ironically – advertised as a ‘luxury student apartment.’ Each of the tenants pays around 183 pounds a week. This already high price excludes bills, with energy prices rapidly increasing. The tenants have repeatedly asked for a rent reduction – requests that have been repeatedly disregarded by their landlord.
Break The Mould: What we want to do
How mould can harm personal health and academic success
These four horror stories are just the tip of the iceberg of the mould problems Bristol students are facing, reiterating the necessity for action to be taken against negligent landlords who refuse to address the growing issue.
Featured Image: Epigram / Nel Roden
If you’ve experienced issues with mould in your student house, please consider filling out this form as part of Epigram’s Break the Mould Campaign
