RETURN OF STUDENT DEPOSITS BY EDUCATIONAL ESTABLISHMENTS

That this House notes with concern that, although educational establishments were exempted from certain provisions of the Housing Act 2004, including deposit protection, if they signed an Approved Code of Practice under section 233 of the Housing Act 2004, a problem remains with educational establishments taking a long time to return deposits and that National Union of Students/Unipol estimates that over 50 per cent. of deposits taken are not returned to students within two months of their tenancies ending and some take many months; further notes that the time set under tenant deposit protection for the return of a deposit is 10 days; and calls on the Government to require the tenancy deposit protection timescales for the return of students' money to be written into the Approved Code of Practice forthwith.