Living Black at University 9 Living Black at University 8 We have known for some time that there is clear evidence of systemic disadvantage for Black students within UK Higher Education (HE). The 2019 report Closing the Gap 8 by Universities UK (UUK) highlights a long-standing and well-known “attainment gap” which, at the time of publication, stood at just over 23 percentage points between the proportion of White and Black students achieving a first or upper second- class degree. To put this more starkly, more than 8 in 10 White students achieve these higher grades compared with fewer than 6 in 10 Black students. The rationale for this research came from two separate understandings. Firstly, that the experience students have in their accommodation has an impact on their overall student experience and their academic attainment. Secondly, while we may hear stories about the experiences of Black students in accommodation through word of mouth, social media, articles and news interviews, the research team were unable to find any existing research in this area. The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) 9 and Universities UK 10 reports demonstrate the wider context of racial harassment in UK Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), yet Halpin’s research team were unable to find substantive research on the lived experiences of Black students in halls of residence or private Purpose-Built Student Accommodation (PBSA). The research team adopted a mixed methodology, drawing on both qualitative and quantitative field research with students and accommodation staff. The research spanned both university halls and the breadth of the private PBSA sector, with the majority of respondents having lived in university halls. A crucial aspect of the research design was to listen to, understand, and amplify the day-to-day lived experiences of Black students in their accommodation, and use these as a basis through which to present key findings and propose recommendations to the sector. It is a goal of this report to give a platform to those voices and let them speak for themselves, alongside presenting conclusions and recommendations drawn from the research as a whole. These are challenging findings, though they will probably come as little surprise to those in the HE sector. A summary of the key themes, findings and recommendations is set out on the following pages. 1.2 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 8 https://www.universitiesuk.ac.uk/what-we-do/policy-and- research/publications/black-asian-and-minority-ethnic-student 9 Equality and Human Rights Commission, Tackling Racial Harassment: Universities Challenged (2019, EHRC) 10 Universities UK, Tackling racial harassment in higher education (2020, UUK) 11 While accommodation providers are not responsible for external food outlets, this is something that affects Black students and therefore is worthy of attention. Safety and belonging in accommodation Black students reported a less positive experience in their accommodation on average compared with White students, in terms of a lower sense of belonging, comfort, safety and security. Only 43% of the Black students surveyed felt a sense of belonging in their accommodation compared with 61% of White students. Black students spoke about feeling that they are seen as out of place, and how White peers appear to have a right to speak and act in a racially discriminatory way. Black students feel that there is little support available for them when they feel distressed about these issues, and they describe the long-term impact on their mental health and wellbeing from feeling this way. Incidents reported include racial slurs and name calling, being excluded in social situations by White flatmates and being disproportionately challenged by security on-site. Cumulatively, these can have a significant impact on the everyday lived experiences of Black students. Environmen t Over a quarter (28%) of Black respondents indicated that they cannot access culturally relevant services close to where they live. Examples given included a lack of availability of culturally relevant food. 11 While half of all students believed that there were positive images of other cultures in their accommodation, Black students in particular were more likely to have expected to see more people who look like them in their accommodation. Where staff diversity doesn’t reflect student diversity, this can lead to Black students not coming forward for help or support. In some cases, the accommodation felt as though it had been purposely segregated. A quarter of Black students in the survey agreed with the statement “My accommodation needs to be decolonised.” Policies and procedures Almost a quarter (23%) of Black students disagreed with the statement “There are clear and accessible policies promoting equality, diversity and inclusion in student accommodation” compared with just one in ten (11%) of White students. They did not know if there were policies and procedures to tackle racism and felt that this was not a priority for those making policy. There was a gap between having policies and procedures, and putting them into practice. Most Black students said they would not report racism, and some reported a poor response in which incidents were not taken seriously or dealt with. In some cases, this was attributed to staff being predominantly White. Some students were concerned about reporting incidents, fearing that they would not be believed and the impact this would have on them. Experiences of racism More than half of Black students surveyed reported having been the victim of racism in their accommodation and 64% of all student respondents reported having witnessed acts of racism. Not all of these incidents were from fellow students; some were from staff. Experiences discussed in the focus groups included the use of racial slurs and racist language, and microaggressions such as touching hair. Casual racial discrimination was more common than explicit racism, but all of these incidents had a serious impact on students. The positive findings within this theme are that there are instances in which racism is being confronted. Half of all survey respondents and 40% of Black respondents have witnessed staff confronting racism. Two-thirds of students and 57% of Black students have witnessed other students confronting racist attitudes. This is something to build on. Mental health T hree-quarters of Black students reported some level of impact on their mental health due to racism, with some feeling distressed in their accommodation. This is compounded by a lack of support and difficulties in finding counsellors with either the lived or professional experience to understand the impact of racism on mental health. As a result, students are turning to family and Black peers for support. Black students report relying on their friends and family for support, with home students often going home at the weekend rather than finding support structures within their accommodation. Many students rely on the Afro-Caribbean Society or similar ethnicity-based networks for support, even when they are not formal support organisations. Black students feel that the distress caused by racism is not given due consideration by non-Black counsellors who do not have either lived experience of their own, or professional experience in supporting those affected by racism.