'Students' VS 'Residents' - Bath is full to the brim

In September 2014, I moved from my home near Reading and started life as an undergraduate Psychology student studying at the University of Bath.

As of September 2014, my predominant postcode has been BA2. I have done my food shopping in Bath supermarkets. I have drunk coffee in Bath coffee shops. I have gone to church in a Bath based church. I have spent my nights out in Bath clubs and eaten Sunday roasts in Bath pubs. I have lived next to Bath-born neighbours. I have worked for Bath and North East Somerset Council. I have mentored young people who commit crime in Bath. I have organised events which have raised money for charities local to Bath. I have spent 2 out of the 3 summers since moving here, working and earning money in Bath.

Yet, because of my age, my student status, and a heavy dose of prejudice from some who live in this city, I am not considered a resident. Some, such as Eleanor Swift - resident in Southdown Road, Bath - would even go as far to call me a 'transitory stranger'.

In a city that is pushed for space, combined with the fact it consists of 2 popular universities, some would argue that it is no wonder there is tension between 'residents' and 'students'. On the one hand you have 'residents' complaining that "students live in houses built for Bath families" and express the desire to "retain their communities", and on the other you have students pleading with residents to believe that they do in fact put their bins out on the correct day.

Beyond the wave of rage that washes over me when I read such letters from residents, is an overwhelming sadness that there is such a divide and disconnect between 'students' and 'residents'. And whilst I acknowledge that you will always get a rogue house of students having a house party on a Saturday night, or a front garden of an HMO that isn't pristinely populated with hydrangeas and rhododendrons, I not only would argue that students make an extremely positive difference to the communities in their university towns and cities, but I would go as far as to say that students - specifically in Bath - have been put in a position where they simply cannot win, and the prejudice from 'residents' towards us will further exacerbate the evidently enormous ravine between the two groups.

Excuse me for sounding defensive, and 'residents' - this might be difficult to swallow, but this situation in Bath around housing: is not our fault.

We have all worked hard enough to get into a prestigious university, and will be lucky enough to graduate with a degree from a very credible university. We love this city - its stone buildings, its independent pubs, its delicious coffee and its UNESCO-worthy beauty.

It is the University, not us, who are responsible for the exponential growth in student numbers over the past 10 years, and is the reason why you view us 'students' as a plague driving you out of house and home.

The same reason why we struggle to find a seat in the library to revise for our exams, the same reason why we have to queue for ages to get our lunch between lectures, the same reason why several buses can drive past us at the bus stop queues, the same reason students have to decide after 2 months of being at university who they want to live with in their second year, the same reason student house viewings can be fully booked for weeks at a time, the same reason we have to scrape together the money for a deposit before Christmas. The same reason why we often live in houses not fit for purpose, because the demand for accommodation is so high. The reason why we get manipulated for every penny of our money by letting agencies who can get away with duping us.

We are all bearing the brunt of it. But because we're not residents, this doesn't matter, right?

Open your eyes. 'Students' and 'residents' are both feeling the pinch of the same systemic issues: increased student numbers, lack of space on campus, lack of housing in the city, and overpriced purpose built student accommodation. We are in this together.

Just a few weeks ago, news arose that some rooms in Bath Spa accommodation block Green Park accommodation were being let out to the general public, as it's expensive rooms had priced students out of living there. The same has happened in the past with University of Bath postgraduate rooms in nomination agreement blocks.

Combine all of this with our £9000 a year tuition fees (and that's just for home students), the fact that maintenance grants have been scrapped, a student finance system whose arbitrary income assessment methods frequently mean that students are not getting loans that even cover their rent, let alone money for food and bills, and the high cost of living in Bath, I would hope it becomes apparent that it is not as if students are swanning around, pinching all the HMOs, throwing lavish parties to piss off the neighbours and buggering off home to Mum and Dad for the summer.

If you're a 'resident', you might have children that have grown up in Bath and will go off to university and become a 'student'/'resident' in another university city. And unless this prejudice against students is addressed, it is highly likely that the 'residents' of your child's university city will tarnish your child with the same brush that you're tarnishing us with. It's not fair is it?

Realise that 'students' are 'residents'. We serve you coffee in Bath coffee shops, we pull your pint in your local pub. We have the same postcodes as you, and walk the same streets as you. We buy your homeless people a hot chocolate, we invest in your nighttime economy. We raise money for local charities, and volunteer in community projects. We are not trying to replace your communities, we are trying to be a valued part of them.

If you're a 'resident', I challenge you to get to know at least 1 student this year. Instead of keeping us at arms length and making us feel unwanted, spend time getting to know us like you would any other human being. You never know, you might even have some similarities with us.

'Residents' struggle to find housing in Bath. 'Students' struggling to find housing in Bath. 'Residents' love their city. 'Students' love their city. 'Residents' contribute to their city. 'Students' contribute to their city. Why are we so different?