'I am a Scottish university student and was declared homeless': Why Social Bite is targeting universities

Comfort Mensah was declared homeless while studying for a masters degree in Glasgow

An international relations student in Scotland has told how she was declared homeless as charity Social Bite warns of a housing crisis for those at university.

Masters student Comfort Mensah moved to Scotland from Ghana in September last year to study at a university in Glasgow and was declared homeless.

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Social Bite founder Josh Littlejohn has called for more support for students after a recent report revealed a shortage of more than 25,000 student bed spaces in Scotland.

Ms Mensah graduated from a planning and development degree at Christian Service University, in Ghana, to gain entry to university in Scotland, where she studied international relations. She was forced to rely on help from a family she was set up with through her church in Glasgow’s East End, as well as small amounts of money from her mother, a retired teacher, who Ms Mensah says could not afford to support her long term.

Social Bite

The 34-year-old had just £500 with her when she arrived, and applied for hundreds of jobs in a desperate search for work and permanent accommodation, while juggling her studies. With the threat of rough sleeping looming, she said the situation caused her mental health to suffer severely.

Ms Mensah said: “It was really hard. I had so little money and was getting nowhere trying to find work. I put on a positive face, but behind it I was crashing down. I know I had a roof over my head, but I didn’t have a home – somewhere to go back to that was my own. I couldn’t pay rent and I couldn’t get a job. The uncertainty around it was so hard to deal with, and I was in a mental health crisis. We were in the colder months and rough sleeping was a high possibility.”

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Through Social Bite’s Jobs First programme, she eventually found part-time work in a Harvester restaurant in January – almost four months after arriving in Scotland. Although Ms Mensah is limited to 20 hours a week on a student visa, she has been able to save enough for her own room, and has seen a huge improvement in her grades.

The student, who has ambitions to be a teacher in Scotland, said: “Social Bite came through. Even though it was hard at first as I didn’t have experience, they helped me through it. Having a job, earning my own money and then finding a room was totally transformational. I never sleep well, but that first night I fell asleep before 8pm and slept right through to 8am – I’d never slept like it. Maybe this is how it is to be at peace.

“My advice to anybody in my situation is don’t give up – there is somebody out there who can help. When you meet that person, your mind will be blown by how much they will help. There is hope in humanity.”

Mr Littlejohn said the situation faced by Ms Mensah and thousands of other students across Scotland showed how urgently the accommodation crisis needed to be brought under control, arguing student housing must be integrated into local housing strategies.

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Glasgow City Chambers. The city is amongst areas in Scotland where university students have been left effectively homeless. Picture: PAGlasgow City Chambers. The city is amongst areas in Scotland where university students have been left effectively homeless. Picture: PA
Glasgow City Chambers. The city is amongst areas in Scotland where university students have been left effectively homeless. Picture: PA | PA

Speaking as Social Bite moves into the UK higher education sector for the first time as part of a partnership with coffee supplier Matthew Algie, Mr Littlejohn said students from low-income backgrounds, international students, and students who were estranged from their families, where financial support from family or caregivers is not always possible, were most at risk.

According to the National Union of Students (NUS), one in ten students last year reported having experienced homelessness in the past. Additionally, more than a fifth of all international students in Scotland have experienced homelessness.

Co-authored by bodies including the University of Glasgow, University of Stirling and the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) Scotland, the cross-party ‘Student housing options and experiences of homelessness in Scotland’ report found there was a “severe” student housing crisis in cities including Glasgow, Edinburgh, and Dundee.

Mr Littlejohn said: “Rent controls should include purpose-built student accommodation, more financial support for students who are at higher risk of homelessness, such as an estranged student grant that can be paid year round and not just within term time.

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“There also needs to be more guarantor services for UK national students as there is currently only one and it is very expensive. International students currently have very limited rights to work making it harder for them to meet their cost of living currently.”

Social Bite’s new initiative with Matthew Algie will see new cafes open in universities and colleges across the UK, with around 10 per cent of profits from coffee sold donated to the charity and social enterprise’s ongoing work to end homelessness.

Raj Juneja, head of education at Matthew Algie, said: “We have a number of Social Bite cafes in the pipeline already at colleges and universities across Scotland and the UK, and there is significant interest in further outlets across our large network of cafes throughout the UK education system, helping raise awareness amongst a key audience while generating funds for the Social Bite cause.”

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