Posted 17 hours ago
Thu 30 Oct, 2025 12:10 AM
As everyone begins to settle into the academic year, small problems can start to emerge. And although it might feel early, events like the Housing Fair (taking place at the Portland Building on 11 November, 11am–3pm) mean that some students are already thinking about accommodation for next year — and who they might want to live with.
Remember: that if you are signing a housing contract you are legally bound by the conditions of this contract. Students’ Union Advice can help by looking over your contract prior to signing, as well as support with issues with your housing during your tenancy. The new Renters’ Right Bill will also mean changes to student housing (both private landlords and purpose built student accommodation) tenancies, so having a good understanding of your rights and responsibilities is essential.
Whether you’ve chosen your housemates this year or are living with people you don’t know, we hope everything goes smoothly. But remember — no relationship runs perfectly all the time. Whether you’re friends, family, partners, or colleagues, there will always be moments when someone irritates you, says something you disagree with, or forgets to do their share of the chores.
There are many ways to navigate housemate issues but a good starting point is agreeing on some ground rules. These often require compromise. For example, you might prefer that all dishes are washed and put away before the morning, but not everyone will see this as important. Discussing expectations and reaching shared agreements helps everyone understand what’s fair and reasonable.
Although not legally binding you may find it useful to create a written agreement together with your agreed rules. You can adapt this sample agreement to suit your own household.
As much as we’d all like to think of ourselves as easy to live with, we’re only human. We all do things that might annoy or upset others — often without realising it. Having a conversation with someone who’s upset you (or whom you’ve upset) can be difficult, but it’s an important skill. Here’s our advice on how to approach a difficult conversation:
- Choose a good time and place. It’s usually best to talk face to face, as texts and messages can easily be misinterpreted. Pick a time when you can both talk without distractions. If you feel anxious about the conversation, plan something positive for afterwards — such as going for a walk, calling a friend, or treating yourself to a nice meal
- Listen to understand. Everyone has different experiences and perspectives, and we can’t always see what else might be going on in someone’s life. Even if you don’t change your opinion, listening openly can help you understand the situation better.
- During your conversation. Use “I” statements, not “you” statements and avoid sounding accusatory. For example: “I struggle with loud noises when I’m trying to sleep,” rather than “You’re always too loud at night.” Try suggesting compromises, such as: “If I go to bed before 10pm, I’ll wear headphones, but could you please use yours after that time?”
You can also find more helpful tips in this great guide written by the Students’ Union on managing household conflict
The University expects students to manage normal, day-to-day relationship and housemate challenges. However, if issues are serious, ongoing, or start to escalate, the following support is available:
The team can help in navigating challenges of living together if you are in on campus halls or ResX-supported accommodation. Where appropriate, they can escalate concerns to the social responsibility team who oversee student behaviour in halls. Depending on availability, if you are in halls owned by the University the team can also sometimes accommodate room moves.
Every Faculty has a Support & Wellbeing team who can offer advice and guidance on interpersonal issues, as well as connect or signpost you to further relevant support.
If housemate issues are having an impact on your mental wellbeing or you’d like some extra support managing household difficulties the University Counselling service may be a useful resource. The Mental Health Advisory Service also support students with significant or long term significant mental health needs and are able to reach out to students who potentially may be having serious issues with their mental health. Both services are referral only and can be accessed through talking to ResX, Support and Wellbeing and Report & Support.
The SU Advice Team is an independent and confidential service based within the University’s Portland Building. They provide guidance on housing and tenancy matters and their webpages include lots of useful information including the upcoming Renters Rights Bill which will impact on student tenancies.
Our friendly team support students around significant incidents and offer guidance on available reporting options.
If you are experiencing significant issues with your housemates and want to talk to our team about reporting options and support available you can complete a form including your name and contact details at reportandsupport.nottingham.ac.uk and a member of the team will be in touch with you. Anonymous reports can also be submitted, however please be aware this often limits what the team can do around issues reported. Please note telling us about something is not making an official report to the University, it will just enable us to help you explore your options around reporting. If you do though share information which indicates a risk to yourself or others we may be required to share this further.
