Not all students like the same, high-octane, party- focused environments synonymous with university culture. That’s always been true.
And yet, despite research suggesting one in five students now identify as teetotal and spend more on the gym than alcohol, offering a quieter living environment has been slow- and has often failed due to lack of understanding about what quieter student accommodation should be. Universities and accommodation providers weren’t keeping up with changing student needs.
As a leading search engine for private student accommodation, Mystudenthalls.com makes it easy for students to find what’s right for them. That means understanding and representing all students with filters that include not just budget and location, but lifestyle. We wanted students to head to the site and easily find accommodation that’s quieter. Officially quieter.
We teamed up with student health expert and GP Dr Dominique Thompson to develop the criteria for the UK’s first ‘Quieter Halls’ accreditation, meaning that students can easily identify qualifying student halls on the site. From limited noise pollution to designated quiet rooms, UK students can flourish in an environment that supports them.
Private accommodation sites rushed to secure the accreditation for launch, with Edinburgh’s StudentCastle proudly the first to display the badge in 2019. At launch, we achieved coverage across national, regional and student titles. But the coverage didn’t stop there.
The accreditation has been so successful that the likes of The Guardian, The Financial Times, TheEvening Standard and The Metro and have continued to reference the accreditation to support students- with continued coverage throughout 2020.
In July 2020, theUniversity of Nottingham was the first university to use the Quieter Halls badge for its popular campus halls, to show its commitment to diverse student needs-marking the adoption of the accreditation beyond the private student accommodation sector.
The accreditation has solidified Mystudenthalls.com as a student mouthpiece which is leading innovation in the student accommodation sector, with continued accreditations awarded throughout the year.
