A student at Edinburgh's Queen Margaret University has spoke of the difficulty acquiring accommodation as a single mum studying in the city.
Siri-Elisabeth Sortland, from Bomlo, Norway, accepted an offer from the university earlier in the year and has been looking at potential accommodation since January. Unfortunately, due to visa complications and a lack of options for international students who are parents, Siri-Elisabeth's three children, Kristian, Torina and Luna, have already missed the start of term and she has resorted to home schooling until a solution can be found.
Siri-Elisabeth, who is currently a teacher back home, is hoping to complete a year's masters in media, management and the creative industries. Unfortunately for her, time is running out and with only a few weeks until the course starts, she is still searching high and low for potential accommodation, while also paying hundreds of pounds more for her visa to get it fast-tracked.
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The 27-year-old told Edinburgh Live: "As of Monday I started home schooling. I have three children and they have missed the start of term, I also left my job in August for a year to hopefully come to Scotland. In Norway, universities have their own nursery's and primary schools, so typically there is a lot of facilities to accommodate single parents who want to study.
"I am excited to come to Edinburgh and don't think I'm entitled to anything more than residents here are, it's just very tricky for me to find a solution. I started looking at property back in January before I was even given a conditional offer. I have sent over 80 enquires to different letting agencies about booking a viewing. It has been incredibly hard, and still is, to actually schedule a viewing.
"Even before I get to the booking stage, there is a form for me to complete. Here is the first hack; I have to have a UK guarantor and a UK landlord reference to even book a viewing. As I have lived in Norway for the past ten years, I do not have that. In fact, I have never rented an apartment in my life as I bought my own house at the age of 21.
"I actually paid £300 more on top of the £400 for my work visa to get it fast-tracked. I now have an acceptance number so hopefully that speeds things up a little. I just didn't expect it to be this difficult, I kind of feel like I'm the first-ever foreign student who has children, but obviously I won't be.
"The whole process of issuing documents and getting them translated to English has made me question if I would go through with it had I known it would be this challenging, although I visited Midlothian when I was in high school on an exchange program and loved it. I would only be here for a year and I wanted my kids to learn English and experience something new.
Siri-Elisabeth has been in touch with East Lothian Council, as the Musselburgh area is preferable to her to be close to Queen Margaret. She said the council need an address before enrolling her children into a local school, so she hopes to fly over once her visa is granted and stay in either a hotel or AirBnb to view flats.
Siri-Elisabeth said she's also tried contacting the university directly and the union to see if there are any flats that accommodate parents, but was told it wasn't possible. The 27-year-old had also tried posting in a local Facebook group to see if anyone could give advice as to where to look for a potential flat in the area, but has had no luck.
She continued: "I didn't assume everything would be go, go, go, but I didn't think it would be this difficult. I'm looking for a two-bedroom apartment to accommodate my kids, but even if I find one they'll be very expensive. When I come over and find a hotel or AirBnb to stay in while I look at more permanent flats, that's what will cost the most. Luckily I've been saving for years so I have money.
"My parents were both teachers and so am I, which really suits my lifestyle because when I'm off, my children are off too. I don't want to make demands or be put above anyone else, but I thought it may be easier to acquire some sort of student halls as the university's website states that they welcome international students."
A spokesperson for East Lothian Council added: "East Lothian Council is a relatively small authority but also one of the fastest growing with its population projected to increase much higher than the national average. We have high house prices and high private rents with over 2,600 people on our housing list looking for council houses.
"It is clear from needs and demand data that the demand for housing exceeds supply and the Council faces a number of challenges in relation to the supply of affordable housing to ensure there is a sufficient number of homes of the right types in the right locations to accommodate anticipated growth in the number of households across the county. The effects of the pandemic, Brexit and other supply and resource difficulties add to this challenge but we continue to work with partners to identify new opportunities where possible.
"Council housing is not the only option for people looking to live in the area and our website provides information which can help. We also have a dedicated housing options team who are committed to do everything they can to provide advice around housing options including accessing tenures such as private rent, mid-market rent, housing association accommodation. Our teams can also provide general advice depending on her circumstances and eligibility for benefits/rent deposit etc– see our Housing Options Advice page on the East Lothian Council website: https://www.eastlothian.gov.uk/info/210550/housing/12220/housing_options
Edinburgh Live have previously reported on the housing issue within the city in previous articles.
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