The Exeter Observer recently sparked a debate around “community balance” ahead of new PBSA (purpose-built student accommodation) on Longbrook Street. Such has garnered debates around student behaviour, declining university numbers, the cost-of-living crisis and the development market at large. On the surface, this may seem to take two objective perspectives; whilst the residents may long for stability and community, the students are looking for affordability and making the most of their 3-4 years. However, one thing can be seen in common: everyone just needs a place to stay. And so, will this new accommodation block be the answer? Or must we look deeper at those shaping the housing market in Exeter?
It was September 2024 when I began to call Exeter my home. For 8 months I lived in Birks Grange Village, which turned out to be a very transformative time for the area. The catered block, my initial halls, has now been closed ahead of new development plans. This will be known as ‘West Park’, seemingly to match the ‘East Park’ accommodation on the other side of campus. Construction has now begun with development partner UPP with a key goal of sustainability, pledging to sustain the surrounding woodland area and pledging to plant 200 more trees. Thus, ‘West Park’ will come to match the UPP-built self-catered accommodation in the Village, bringing a sense of continuity and environmental consciousness.
[T]he new developers brought in earlier this year are Durham-based, a part of a wider community of companies that are offshore and undeniably detached from the city and Exeter Council.
When investigating off-campus accommodation plans, however, there is a different story. This can be said for the anticipated Longbrook Street accommodation. It was the Exeter Observer who brought this to my attention, citing many problematic features of this new build. It reports that whilst the council and community once felt optimistic about this 9-story accommodation, developers keep “pushing the boundaries”, leaving everyone “dismayed”. For example, the new developers brought in earlier this year are Durham-based, a part of a wider community of companies that are offshore and undeniably detached from the city and Exeter Council. This is coupled with a haughty demolition process of the King Billy pub, not only removing a key social area for locals but also a medieval wall with it. Moreover, it is safe to say that sentiments for more city-central PBSA are far from optimistic.
The critiques displayed here are about neither the sheer size of the block, nor the money required to erect it. Instead, they show an underlying issue of distrust and exclusion. Developers are seen to throw the community balance off kilter by inserting themselves into the community, secluding those who reside here from the goings on of their own city. Additionally, the Exeter Observer’s observations that more students live in the city centre than students point to doubts of whether more student accommodation is even necessary. This is an issue that involves both the Council, residents and students, and so I set about investigating the opinions of each of these groups. Do they think that community balance issues lie in increasing PBSA, or within the student housing market?
When speaking with fellow students, a common rhetoric was that the housing market is not a large issue. Olivia, a Second Year Student, told me that there is no “fighting with residents” or landlords, it is just that the city itself is so small. This is a factor that must be considered. When the city houses a population of around 135,000, there are inevitably going to be spatial issues when combining with a top Russell Group University.
However, what I found most insightful were her comments on the new King Billy Accommodation. She reiterated the cultural norm of not staying in Student Accommodation past first year, and so building more PBSA will not solve any issues. She predicted that this accommodation would struggle with populating itself with students unless drastic change is done to switching this narrative. In other words, if there are a mass of student landlords and properties available, students cannot be blamed for wanting to follow the culture of university housing.
She viewed that student landlords play a role in this change of atmosphere, inviting new sets of residents each year with little time to get to know their neighbourhood.
With this in mind, I aimed to hear the voices of the heart of Exeter: the residential community. The responses were fascinating, albeit mixed. Take Stephanie, who grew up on the Stoke Hill Estate in her adolescence and is a true Exeter native. She expressed concerns for community balance due to students being out of the city for a large chunk of the calendar year. She viewed that student landlords play a role in this change of atmosphere, inviting new sets of residents each year with little time to get to know their neighbourhood. However, she did not seem to blame students for any overwhelming disorderly behaviour, but the landlords for occupying “family homes” with unsuspecting temporary tenants.
This rhetoric was continued when listening to Ian. He has lived in Newtown for 20 years and maintained that “students are the life blood to our city”. On community balance, he commented that “it will ebb and flow as will the prosperity of the city – nothing stays the same!”. This was confirmed with Des’ simple statement: “students need places to live, as simple as that”.
From these perspectives, community balance is not being altered by student-resident issues, but by those who create these systems and markets. This is who William elusively referred to as “the authorities” , and added that they must focus on “giving the fairest” instead of “getting the most”. I gathered that the “authorities” in question are mainly property developers, who are hired to build PBSA and not to build the community in any other way. James even highlighted to me how his St James neighbourhood was lied to about housing projects. They were told that a “quiet living” housing development would be built as to not disrupt resident’s home lives. However, they soon came to realize that this was a white lie : a housing development was indeed built, but for students and not residents.
To understand these sentiments, one must look back at the King Billy developers. As aforementioned, Rok Prop Co has greater ties to Durham and offshore entities than Exeter itself, meaning they have little connection to the community. They are not aware of community balance concerns, the external housing market or the residents themselves, just responding to City Council’s reassurance that more PBSA has a “continued, evidenced, demand”.
I was grateful enough to speak to Cllr Diana Moore of St David’s Ward on this subject, a long time Exeter resident. From this perspective, she began by explaining to me that she views university students in a very positive light. She often hosts volunteering schemes involving campus groups, which she labelled as “fantastic”. Namely, she highlighted how the University Tennis Club visited to do just that recently. To Diana, anyone that lives in her ward is a resident and a part of the community, whether long or short term.
Moreover, my suspicions that the power of developers is a great concern was confirmed as we delved deeper into conversation. Back in January, Moore publicly opposed new PBSA being built on Water Lane due to the affordable housing crisis in Exeter. In lieu of this, she shared with me that in 2021-2022, 3,131 citizens remained on the housing list, unable to find homes. This demonstrates how PBSA is being praised as essential infrastructure, whilst thousands of non-students cannot house their families in a long-term residence. What’s more, Moore explained another crucial factor of this case: the community infrastructure levy. This is a fee calculated per square metre of land being built on, and decrees that developers must diverge a sum of money into funding local infrastructures. This would improve local GPs, cycle racks and schools. Moore found that the developers of the Water Lane site were shockingly exempt from paying this charge and campaigned tirelessly until it was changed. Indeed, this symbolises a tangible example of neglect to the community, one which resident are tired of.
Returning to the King Billy accommodation, an overall assumption can be made that whilst PBSA may boost investment and student numbers, it is not the greatest issue Exeter faces at this time. The introduction of non-regional developers proves concerning for their contributions to the community, helping to create a balance by “giving the fairest” to all. The Mid-Devon Advertiser recently reported that a community balance levy is a condition set out for this development to be truly green lit, paying £27,000 to GPs and £60,000 to bike networks. I am eager to see this followed through, along with the same enthusiasm invested into resident housing in the future.
