Accreditation checklist
To become an accredited private halls provider you must meet all of the requirements detailed on this checklist.
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LSH Standards for Private Halls
Private halls providers must give a commitment to meet the requirements of the LSH Standards for Private Halls. In doing so, students are expecting LSH accredited private halls providers to ensure the developments they manage are safe, that providers follow legal and correct business practices, and provide good standards of customer service.
If students think that an LSH accredited private halls provider is in breach of the LSH Standards for Private Halls, they can make a complaint to us and our LSH Standards Officer will investigate. If it is found that the complaint is upheld, then the provider is given the opportunity to rectify the issues in order to meet our standards.
If a provider continues to breach the standards, the complaint is put before an arbitration panel who will decide whether they can remain with LSH.
Legal requirements
Tenant Fees Act - From 1 June 2019, landlords are no longer able to charge a number of fees for new or renewed tenancies in England signed on or after that date. Examples of banned fees include admin charges, reference or credit check fees and charges for guarantor forms. Some fees can still be charged, such as for late payment of rent or for replacement keys lost by a tenant.
For more information, please visit our dedicated Tenant Fees Act page.
How to Rent - It is a legal requirement that the latest version of the How to Rent guide is issued to tenants at the commencement of any tenancy agreement or upon any renewal (if the document has been updated). If the guide is not provided at the commencement of the tenancy then a Section 21 Notice will not be enforceable. It is therefore extremely important this requirement is complied with.
Deposit protection - You may choose to charge a security deposit during the tenancy period to cover rent arrears or any damages that may occur to the property. If so, it is a legal requirement for all landlords to secure deposits in a Tenancy Deposit Protection Scheme, and this must be done within 30 days of receipt of a deposit. Deposits are capped at 5 weeks rent where the property annual rent is below £50,000, and 6 weeks rent for annual property rents over £50,000.
If you fail to protect a deposit with one of the approved schemes within 30 days, the a tenant can apply to the county court to request their deposit is repaid to them. The court also has the discretion to request you to pay compensation to the tenant, of up to 3 times the amount of the original deposit.
Holding deposits, a payment charged to a prospective tenant to reserve a property, are capped at 1 weeks rent. Should the tenant then enter a tenancy, the holding deposit can either be returned within 7 days of agreeing the tenancy, or put towards the security deposit (at which point it must be protected) or the first rent installment.
For further information on deposits, click here.
Landlord licensing - Some private halls may be classed as houses of multiple occupancy (HMO properties) and would therefore require a property licence. Where this applies, providers must supply evidence to LSH that a licence has been granted or applied for in their name, or that of the landlord. View more details on licensing, including which properties currently require a licence, how to apply and information on Liverpool's selective licensing scheme, here.
ANUK landlord handbook
Fire safety
Website user guides
For help with re-advertising a property, view our handy PDF guide.
Accreditation fees and online payments
For our fees for the accreditation term commencing 2 December 2024, please click here. Private halls providers can pay for their accreditation fees via our online store, or by invoice on request. For help paying online, please view our online payment guide.
Marketing opportunities
Online property advert - When your accreditation request is approved, your property advert will appear on our website and you can update the information as often as you wish (please note all changes are subject to vetting). The property advert includes the facilities that your property has, safety certificate expiry dates, photographs and a video, a map of where it’s located and your contact details.
Dont forget to include a detailed description to highlight key selling points, good quality photos and up to date contact details. Many students will also create an account with LSH to enquire about properties, so if you have selected to be receive online enquiries, please ensure you check your account on a regular basis (especially during peak periods). You will be sent email notifications when you receive an online enquiry, to ensure these emails do not go into your junk/spam folder, please add studentpad/pad-group to your list of trusted recipients.
For developments with studios, LSH will create a duplicate listing to advertise your studios, as any students searching for a studio would search for this, rather than private halls. We also encourage you to advise us of the different cluster sizes within your development, so that we can create duplicate listings for these e.g. 6 bed cluster flat so that these flats appear when groups are searching. There are no additional costs for any of these duplicate adverts, and providers that accredit over 1000 student rooms will be eligible for these duplicate adverts to be highlighted free of charge. Providers that accredit below 1000 rooms may also apply for these duplicate adverts to be highlighted, however this will be subject to the standard property highlight fee of £35 per property advert.
Shop window AV screen advert - As part of the accreditation package for private halls providers, we offer the opportunity to display an advert on our AV screen in the front window of our office, at no extra charge.
Artwork should be provided as a high resolution image in portrait format (1080x1920 pixels).
Please be advised that any artwork should only contain details of LSH accredited developments and due to limited space we are only able to offer 1 advert per provider (you may advertise multiple sites on your advert). LSH reserve the right to remove artwork at any time, and this opportunity is only available to providers who apply to accredit all of their student properties.
Please email LSH@Liverpool.ac.uk with your artwork or any questions.
Leaflets and brochures - We also offer private halls the opportunity to display leaflets or brochures in carousels in our front office space, for your developments that are LSH accredited. Please contact us for more information.
LSH logo - For the terms of use of the LSH logo, please click here. Private halls providers must seek permission to use the LSH logo.
Housing fair - Each year LSH hosts the only student housing fair in Liverpool, close to the launch date for properties for the following academic year.
We invite all of our accredited private halls providers to exhibit at the fair (additional charges apply) and we promote the events widely through the universities and students’ unions. These events are well attended and are an excellent opportunity for accommodation providers to meet with students and promote their properties for the next academic year. Details of the housing fairs are sent out each summer by email to currently accredited private halls providers, so it is important to ensure your contact details are up to date to ensure you don't miss out! Please note, private halls providers must have been accredited for a period of at least 12 months immediately prior to the fairs, to be eligible to attend. Providers will only be permitted to market those developments that they have submitted for LSH accreditation
Let agreed - Once you have secured tenants for your property, you have the option to disable your property advert, or to mark it as 'let agreed' and continue to display it on the website. The 'let agreed' facility is a positive promotional point, as students will still see the property has been let, and this indicates your success in renting out rooms in your developments which could encourage them to look at similar developments you are advertising on our website that still have rooms available. We kindly ask that you regularly update your property listings, when rooms are taken and/or become available, and that properties that are fully let are taken down or marked as let agreed.
Campaigns
Taking a multi-agency approach, LSH work in partnership with Merseyside Police, Citysafe and other key stakeholders to deliver a number of burglary reduction campaigns. You can view these campaigns here, along with details of how to request burglary reduction campaign materials to display within your accredited developments.
Briefing notes
Throughout the year LSH regularly communicates with accredited private halls providers to share important market information and provide updates on what LSH have been doing. A range of the briefing notes we have recently shared can be seen here.
Common problems in student accommodation
Disputes between private halls and tenants - As well as supporting students, we support private halls providers to resolve disputes so that an amicable outcome can be reached. We help to mediate to help with disagreements to do with disrepair, student and private halls responsibilities, rent arrears, payment of bills and return of deposits. We always recommend that both providers and students maintain open communications but we understand that disagreements can arise. We can advise you on positive steps to take, to help resolve issues with your tenants and your obligations, however, we are not a replacement for legal advice.
Bed bugs - Bedbug infestations are on the rise, mainly due to the increase of world-wide travel. We recommend that you seek an experienced expert in bedbug control. They should be a member of the British Pest Control Association.
Liverpool City Council have produced an information leaflet about preventing bedbugs and what to do if you think you have an infestation in your property. Please note, Liverpool City Council do not offer a service for the treatment of bedbugs.
Mould and condensation - One of the most common complaints that we hear about at LSH is mould growth in properties. Quite often student tenants will not realise that the majority of mould growth is due to the build up of condensation and poor ventilation in their property. If your tenants do report mould, always have it checked to make sure there are no serious damp problems in the property.
If the mould is due to condensation, you may want to advise your tenants about ventilating the property and making sure that they are not drying clothes on radiators. Liverpool City Council - Liverpool Healthy Homes, have produced a leaflet about controlling condensation and mould.
Security - Student accommodation is a prime target for thieves due to the number of high value items that students own, such as laptops, tablet computers and mobile phones. Ensuring that your property meets the security standards that LSH expect will help towards reducing the risk of burglary. View page 11 of the LSH Standards which covers security. As part of our ongoing commitment to student safety, our various burglary reduction campaigns aim to educate students about key safety messages, including tailgating in private halls.
Student market information
Market background
The Liverpool student rental sector has always operated with an abundance of accommodation in the city with, at times, an oversupply. Over recent decades the city has seen enormous growth in Purpose Build Student Accommodation (PBSA) in and around the city centre, pulling students away from what were previously preferred areas in other parts of the city. The knock-on effect of this is, in some areas, we have seen the complete withdrawal of student dwellings as student choices shifted to wanting to live within close proximity of the city centre.
LSH has continued to advise new investors to the city to conduct comprehensive due diligence in respect of the market and to research specific areas with specific reference to planning and potential impact from Article 4, which was introduced in some parts of the city by Liverpool City Council to address the high levels of HMO’s.
Renting to students - Rent levels vary considerably depending on the location on the property, standard and range of facilities, and you can view average rents by area on our statistics page.
You are free to choose whoever you want as tenants, however discrimination against students on grounds of sexual orientation, race, creed, colour or religion is illegal and LSH will take action against anyone who contravenes this.
There is always a need for accommodation for families, students with a disability and short-term lets for exchange students. If you are willing to offer accommodation to these groups, please ensure you have selected these options on your advert. LSH will not recommend individual students to private halls, neither will we recommend particular private halls.
Where do students live and study - See below for student numbers for the 2021/22 academic year
| Institution |
Undergraduates |
Postgraduates |
Total Students |
| University of Liverpool |
22265 |
6415 |
28680 |
| Liverpool John Moores University |
22510 |
5590 |
28100 |
| Liverpool Hope University |
4360 |
1280 |
5640 |
| Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts |
|
|
990 |
| Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine |
|
|
270 |
Source: HESA.ac.uk (information up to date as of July 2024)
On the map below, the campuses are marked in red and the areas in which students live are outlined. You can view more information about where students live on our dedicated Liverpool area guide page.
Community cohesion
Liverpool Student Homes works with stakeholder universities, students' unions and external partners to develop initiatives that encourage positive relationships between students and the local community. Find out more about this here.
LSH Policies and Terms and Conditions
Useful contacts for private halls
Emergency out of hours contacts for universities
University of Liverpool - Campus Support 24/7
0151 794 3252 or 0151 794 2222
Liverpool John Moores University - Security
0151 231 2222
Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine
0151 705 3100