MORE than a third of students and apprentices in Scotland struggle to pay their rent and almost a fifth have been forced to used a foodbank, according to a survey published today.

Commissioned by National Union of Students Scotland (NUSS), the poll found that 34 per cent of respondents had encountered difficulties in paying rent in full, well above the 26 per cent UK-wide figure.

While 91 per cent had sought financial support to deal with cash crises, 19 per cent had been forced to use a foodbank, compared with 17 per cent across Britain and Northern Ireland.

The online survey found that student tenants in Scotland faced similar difficulties in securing accommodation, with 61 per cent  expected to provide a guarantor and 41 per cent of them struggling to find one. 

Once a home is secured, 93 per cent of respondents in Scotland told of problems with it, including 42 per cent with mould or mildew, 41 per cent with heating difficulties and 37 per cent with faultly plumbing.

Taking aim at how “loopholes and blind spots” in the new Housing Bill disadvantage students,  NUS Scotland president Sai Shraddha S Viswanathan said: “If the Scottish government wants to demonstrate that they truly care about the wellbeing of students and apprentices, they must listen to our calls and fix student housing.

“When rent and housing costs are so unaffordable that, after paying them, almost a fifth of students are having to resort to using foodbanks, there is no excuse for us to be treated as an afterthought.”

SNP Housing Secretary Paul McLennan, already under fire over the new Bill, admitted: “The rent control provisions in the Housing Bill … do not apply to purpose-built student accommodation.

“We would expect institutions to take affordability into account when setting rents.”