System ignores impact of housing crisis on tertiary students

No data collected on how housing instability or homelessness affects students 

Homelessness and the impact of housing instability on tertiary students is a complete blind spot for our county. A request under the Official Information Act highlights that the tertiary sector right across Aotearoa New Zealand fails to collect any data on housing insecurity and homelessness among their students.   

Stories of students around the country who face unstable housing and navigate homelessness fill the void left by this data gap. Many students live in temporary accommodation and/or uninhabitable housing. Many have no alternative but to couch surf or live in overcrowded situations. This hinders student achievement and affects physical and mental wellbeing, compounding the financial struggles many students encounter while they study and then into the future.   

Tertiary students are tomorrow’s leaders – it is prudent, for a prosperous Aotearoa, to ensure their success. We must embed and collect data around student housing and homelessness to effectively deliver a social impact approach and to ensure policies and services can be targeted to need.  

It is unsurprising that housing ranks as the second-greatest concern for those aged 18-34 in Aotearoa New Zealand. We need to do better for our young people.   

Data Source: OIA declines, no data held by Tertiary Education Commission