A spotlight has been thrown on student accommodation after concerns raised during the coronavirus lockdown. An investigation into the “Wild West" student accommodation sector will be launched after the Covid-19 lockdown exposed vast inequalities across New Zealand universities. Students and parents will have four weeks to share their experiences of student halls, particularly during the lockdown period when many left their tertiary accommodation to return home and still faced rent. CHECKPOINT/RNZ Student halls of residence will be bound by a mandatory code of practice following the death of a 19-year-old whose body lay undiscovered for weeks in his room at a Christchurch student hostel. (Video first published in September 2019)The pandemic had exposed a "Wild West" the sector and Swarbrick hoped the inquiry would help to define student accommodation and set terms for who could provide it.

Source: Stuff June 03, 2020 06:45 UTC