The Residence Life team at the University of Leeds are dedicated to making halls of residence inclusive, welcoming and supportive spaces for all student groups.
The University of Leeds' commitment to enhancing inclusivity within student residences took a significant step forward with the pivotal report 'Living Black at University' published by Unite Students in February 2022. This report, which highlighted the experiences of Black students in student accommodation, was a catalyst for change, leading to the development of actionable steps to support these students.
In response to the report, Jenny Shaw of Unite Students reached out to several higher education institutions, including the University of Leeds, to form a commission dedicated to implementing the report's recommendations. Rebecca O’Hare, Interim Deputy Director of Residential Services at Leeds, shares the experience so far:
“I was absolutely thrilled to be offered the opportunity, and of course, said yes. The commission has been running for nearly two years now and together we have created a range of resources for the sector including toolkits and one day training conferences”.
Leeds’ engagement with the commission underscores the University's acknowledgment of the existing inequities and its dedication to fostering a more inclusive environment. Getting involved with the commission was just the first step on a longer journey for Leeds, Rebecca says:
“I looked at the Unite Students report, and I thought, I've got to do something with the...the little bit of privilege that I have. Teleola Cartwright, who, along with her partner Dr Nick Cartwright, formed the social enterprise ‘Liberate Us’ and assisted with the creation of the Living Black report, wrote to me and said: ‘I've done some work before with universities, would you be interested in working together and doing something?’ And so I had a chat with my director, and they said yes, and we got some funding to do our own version of the Living Black research at the University of Leeds.”
Leeds-led research
The ‘Liberate Us’ Leeds-based research focused on the lived experiences of non-White students in halls of residence. The study employed a mixed-methods approach, integrating longitudinal quantitative data from student surveys with qualitative insights from focus groups. This comprehensive methodology ensured that the diverse perspectives of non-white students were captured and understood. The involvement of a Black researcher to facilitate the focus groups further enriched the study, striving for an environment where students could share openly. All resident students who identified as non-White were invited to take part in focus groups facilitated by a Black researcher. There were 5 focus groups of between 5-9 students, and in total 36 students shared their experiences.
The findings from the focus groups revealed several areas for improvement, particularly concerning racial diversity and cultural competence. The feedback indicated a need for enhanced training for staff to address the cultural and empathetic gaps identified by students. Concerns regarding food and dietary sensitivity highlighted the importance of cultural awareness as part of the broader inclusion efforts.
These themes were not wholly new to Leeds’s Residential Life Team, but confirmed their suspicions, Sarah Djuric, Residence Life Manager explains:
I think one of the challenges for inclusivity that we've seen is students not feeling comfortable reaching out to staff when they are experiencing any kind of issue in their halls.
Often if they don't see some sort of reflection of themselves, it can be hard to want to talk to those members of staff as it doesn't feel right away like they're able to relate to that experience.
The study also highlighted a significant theme regarding the use of space in halls of residence, noting that some halls offer more inclusive environments than others. The intentional design of common areas to foster inclusion was acknowledged, yet many students felt the halls did not support socialising, citing issues with noise and access to facilities. Ethnic clustering within student groups was observed, with mixed reactions; some valued the cultural connections, while others felt it hindered a sense of belonging.
Putting learning into practice
In response to Liberate Us’s findings, Rebecca and her team made significant changes to their ‘Residence Life’ website to develop broader residential resources for students and increase the inclusivity of what was on offer. Rebecca reflects:
“Prior to the research, we had recently launched our Residential Life website which was proving to be a useful resource for students prior to arriving at the University, and we were interested to build on this and see if the platform could be used to tackle some of the issues around inclusivity.
We had seen some early-stage work done elsewhere where Unite Students had created a guide for Black students giving guidance on e.g. Where to get hair care products, recommendations for certain dietary requirements etc. and this is something we knew we could create on our website. The changes have now all gone live, and we have specific comms for Black students and students who are carers, estranged students, students who have children and there's an LGBTQ+ community as well.”
Additionally, the team focused on diversifying their group of Residential Life Wardens to address the perceived cultural gaps in residence staff. Rebecca states:
“We knew that [we didn’t have] the most diverse group of wardens. It just so happened that last year we had four posts available. Sarah used that as an opportunity to reach out to different networks within the University. We are aware there was a staff Muslim network, for example, and so we reached out to that network and that's one example of how we have diversified our warden pool and bring in different perspectives.”
Sarah continues:
“We did some bespoke training with our wardens that was run by Teleloa and Nick Cartwright, based on the research, which was really useful. All the wardens went through that training and then did additional specific training with departments such as the International Student Office to ensure they could offer support to all groups of students in our halls.
Moving forward, we want to make sure that inclusivity is a priority in the induction of Residence Life Staff here at Leeds.
The next steps
However, the work of the Residential Life team has only just begun, and Rebecca is determined to keep pushing forward:
“Lots of people say that the work we have done is great. We believe it's not enough. There's more to do. I really want to learn more about what we're doing, the changes that we’re making for students in halls of residence can perhaps translate beyond the halls setting and help students with their wider university experience. And that's the hard stuff for us. Getting data around that and trying also to measure the impact, that is the hard stuff.”
Sarah agrees: “A lot of it is ongoing work for us and we're certainly not getting everything right straightaway – it's a learning process and we're trying really hard.”
To find out more about the work of the Residential Life Team, or discuss a collaboration, email the Student Success Team at studentsuccess@leeds.ac.uk.