Clear Window Campaign

Our campaign is built on transparency, designed to let students see exactly what's inside the world of renting. No fog, no curtains—just the truth, so you can make sustainable, informed choices about where you live.

Mission Statement

We are a student-led housing campaign created by students for students. Our mission is to empower and uplift renters through accessible education on student housing rights. We fight for safe, fair, and transparent renting by giving students the tools and confidence to know their rights, call out bad landlords and agencies, recognise the good ones, and take collective action to transform the student housing experience.

Goals & Objectives

Enact a system of checks and balances to bring privately owned student housing in line with human rights standards.
Promote awareness of housing law and human rights around housing.
Create a rating system based on the definition of adequate housing.
Deploy the rating system in Brighton & Hove for a 6-month trial, then expand nationally.
Present data to pressure groups and parliament to secure government approval and funding.

Rating System

Each property/landlord/agent is rated on the following criteria (Yes/No):

Accessibility
Security
Reliable utilities
Good transport links
Accepting community
Treating tenants with dignity and respect
Letting agents treating tenants with dignity and respect
Addressing concerns within 3-5 working days
Safe occupancy numbers
Rent in line with/below local averages
Compliance with housing laws and licensing

Score out of 11:
40-55: Excellent
30-40: Good
20-30: Needs Improvement
10-20: Poor
0-10: Abhorrent

Scores can be advertised by landlords to improve credibility.

Key Features

Leaderboard of landlords and estate agents
Hall of Fame / Hall of Shame media
Expose owners, donors, and not just company names
Weekly social media exposés and story requests
Workshops for students and landlords/agents
Leaflets, zines, posters, info cards (including braille)
Hashtags and keywords for filtering
Financialisation focus: show where rent goes, info on shareholders/investors
Accessibility filters and needs-based search
Protect integrity of ratings
Compare rent to area rates
No account required to read reviews; total anonymity for reviewers
Primary target: landlords (with financial incentives)
Secondary target: government, private housing orgs
Allies: charities, students; Constituents: renters; Opponents: investment firms, government

Campaign Launch Ideas

Hall of Fame / Hall of Shame
Leaderboard of landlords/agents
Expose ranks and owners
Daily exposé posts in first week, then weekly
Surveys and feedback forms

Workshops

For Students: Discuss criteria, ranking, advice, resources, feedback, and community building.
For Landlords/Agents: Criteria highs/lows, advice, support, and improvement strategies.
Leaflets, zines, posters distributed widely (including accessible formats).

Tactics

Social media campaigns, surveys, workshops, ranking system
Petitions, leafleting, zines, stickers
Measure success by participation, social media engagement, workshop attendance, survey completions, petition signatures, and advertisement reach

Human Rights Foundation

Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Article 11(1) of the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights
UN General Comment No. 4 on Adequate Housing
Yogyakarta Principles
Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
European Social Charter
African Charter on Human and People's Rights

Key Takeaways & Stats

£2.8bn transacted in first 9 months of 2025
30.8% reduction in student visa issuances in 2024
University rental growth (4.44%) outstrips private sector (1.16%)
Rental growth in lowest quality stock (+4.14%) outstrips highest quality (-0.98%)
Average price per operational bed in 2025 is £100k
Postgraduate entrants down 9.7% in 2023/24
Yields stable at 4.25% Prime London, 5.25% Super Prime Regional
17.0% of beds above Maximum Maintenance Loan in 2025/26
Student to bed ratio projected at 1.90:1 by 2030/31

Interactive Campaign Charts

Frequency of Rent Struggles

How often students report struggling to pay rent during their studies.

Student Housing Issues

Percentage of students experiencing mould, pests, homelessness, or considering dropping out due to housing costs.

Rent vs. Maintenance Loan

How student rent compares to their annual maintenance loan entitlement.

Top UK University Accommodation Ratings

Average accommodation ratings for leading UK universities (out of 5).

Team Roles

Kathryn: Tactics, social media mockups, leaflet mockup, workshop outlines
Rhys: Criteria, justifications, score system
Charlotte: Law of student housing, new approaches/laws
Jamie: Graphics, stats, hall of fame/shame media
Charlie: Created live Demo Site of Clear Window