Petition · past parliament
Accommodation providers to release students from their current tenancy agreement
Rejected
21 signatures
What the petition asks
All students living away from home, now back at home due to the Covid-19 pandemic, still have to pay rent. They should be released from their contracts and given the option to leave or stay.
With University finished for most students, they should be given the option to move out at this point in the year. They should be released from their accommodation provider contracts to have the choice to pay and stay or leave now with no extra payments. It is absolutely unjust that a financially struggling student should pay up to £3500 for an accommodation they can’t/will not live at.
Why it was rejected
It asked for something that is not the responsibility of the UK Government or Parliament.
Suspending payments for rent is a matter for individual landlords, and not the UK Government or Parliament.
The Government has published an FAQ for university students on Covid-19, which includes advice on accommodation costs: https://dfemedia.blog.gov.uk/2020/04/09/university-students-covid19-faq/
You might like to sign these petitions, which call for similar actions:
Enable private tenants early release from tenancy agreements due to Covid-19: Enable private tenants early release from tenancy agreements due to Covid-19
Refund university rent and tuition fees due to coronavirus: Refund university rent and tuition fees due to coronavirus
Encourage lenders, landlords and utilities to freeze payments during lockdown: Encourage lenders, landlords and utilities to freeze payments during lockdown
You can find out more about coronavirus and how you can protect yourself and others here:
www.gov.uk/coronavirus
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/
The Government has also created an online service to help you out what you can do if you’re struggling because of coronavirus: https://www.gov.uk/find-coronavirus-support
You can read NHS tips to help if you are worried about coronavirus here: https://www.nhs.uk/oneyou/every-mind-matters/coronavirus-covid-19-anxiety-tips
You can read impartial analysis of the Government response to coronavirus and policy developments here: https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/coronavirus/
You may also be interested to know that because of the large number of petitions that have been started in relation to coronavirus, the Petitions Committee has been questioning the Government about its response to the coronavirus outbreak.
Find out more: https://committees.parliament.uk/work/192/the-governments-response-to-coronavirus/
The Government has published an FAQ for university students on Covid-19, which includes advice on accommodation costs: https://dfemedia.blog.gov.uk/2020/04/09/university-students-covid19-faq/
You might like to sign these petitions, which call for similar actions:
Enable private tenants early release from tenancy agreements due to Covid-19: Enable private tenants early release from tenancy agreements due to Covid-19
Refund university rent and tuition fees due to coronavirus: Refund university rent and tuition fees due to coronavirus
Encourage lenders, landlords and utilities to freeze payments during lockdown: Encourage lenders, landlords and utilities to freeze payments during lockdown
You can find out more about coronavirus and how you can protect yourself and others here:
www.gov.uk/coronavirus
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/
The Government has also created an online service to help you out what you can do if you’re struggling because of coronavirus: https://www.gov.uk/find-coronavirus-support
You can read NHS tips to help if you are worried about coronavirus here: https://www.nhs.uk/oneyou/every-mind-matters/coronavirus-covid-19-anxiety-tips
You can read impartial analysis of the Government response to coronavirus and policy developments here: https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/coronavirus/
You may also be interested to know that because of the large number of petitions that have been started in relation to coronavirus, the Petitions Committee has been questioning the Government about its response to the coronavirus outbreak.
Find out more: https://committees.parliament.uk/work/192/the-governments-response-to-coronavirus/
Timeline
| 3 Apr 2020 | Petition opened for signatures |
| 28 May 2020 | Rejected by the Petitions Committee |
Key facts
Signatures
21
Status
Rejected
Rejected
28 May 2020
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Source: the official petition page. Last checked 15 Jul 2026.