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Studentification in Ireland? Analysing the impacts of students and student accommodation on Cork City Therese Kenna

a

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Geography Department , University College Cork , Cork , Ireland Published online: 13 Oct 2011.

To cite this article: Therese Kenna (2011) Studentification in Ireland? Analysing the impacts of students and student accommodation on Cork City, Irish Geography, 44:2-3, 191-213, DOI: 10.1080/00750778.2011.618073 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00750778.2011.618073

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Irish Geography Vol. 44, Nos. 2
3, July
November 2011, 191
213

Studentification in Ireland? Analysing the impacts of students and student accommodation on Cork City Therese Kenna*

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Geography Department, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland Higher education institutions (HEIs) in Ireland have experienced a considerable growth in student numbers over the last 10 years. This growth in enrolments is predicted to continue for at least the next decade. The geographies of the student population in cities has been a largely overlooked research area in the Irish context, yet the major HEIs in Ireland accepting these growing enrolments are located in urban centres. Further, urban renewal schemes of the late 1990s actively encouraged the development of purpose-built student accommodation in Ireland to relieve the supply pressures being felt in the private rental sector at the time. The Irish government introduced tax incentives to encourage private investment and development in urban areas, with a particular scheme aimed at student accommodation. This paper offers the first analysis of the impacts of student populations and targeted urban renewal schemes for purpose-built student accommodation in Ireland. After a review of the current research field, the paper offers a brief overview of the student population nationally and then examines a number of recent purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) developments in Cork to offer an understanding of the scale and extent of newlyconstructed student accommodation. Finally, the paper offers an analysis of the impacts of PBSA in Cork city. Keywords: studentification; university cities; purpose-built student accommodation; segregation; gated residential estates

Introduction There has been a recent resurgence in urban research internationally, principally driven by the levels of urbanisation and urban growth being experienced globally. It is now recognised that more than a half of the world’s population lives in urban areas (UN World Urbanisation Prospects 2010). As part of the global trends in urbanisation, urban areas in Ireland have experienced considerable population growth and expansion in recent years. Current population estimates suggest that 62% of Ireland’s population resides in urban areas, with this figure projected to rise to 78% by 2050 (UN World Urbanisation Prospects 2010). The impacts of urban growth and development demand attention from geographers. In particular, geographers are needed to document and research the nature of these growing and changing urban populations
the demographic profile, the cultures and subcultures of urban populations, the economic characteristics and the like. For

*Email: [email protected] ISSN 0075-0778 print/ISSN 1939-4055 online # 2011 Geographical Society of Ireland http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00750778.2011.618073 http://www.tandfonline.com

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192 T. Kenna example, recent research by Howley and Clifford (2009) has drawn attention to the changing demographic mix within Dublin’s inner city. They note that policies aimed at urban redevelopment and renewal in Dublin have generated a new population that is younger, increasingly more affluent and ethnically diverse (Howley and Clifford 2009, see also Howley 2009). Linked to the resurgent urban research agenda has been the recent growth in research on the geographies of students within urban areas (Hubbard 2008, Smith 2008, 2009, Fincher and Shaw 2009, Collins 2010) and also on the geographies of education more broadly (see Holloway et al. 2010). Russo and Tatjer (2007), p. 1160) note that ‘students constitute an important but understudied group in the making of urban structures’. With the revival and rejuvenation of urban centres taking place across Ireland, and the continued growth in numbers of students enrolling in higher education institutions (HEIs) across the country, it is timely to consider the role of student populations in urban centres. As HEIs are found predominantly in cities and urban centres, there is a concentration of student populations within cities and metropolitan regions (Allinson 2006). Investigations into urban populations and the student sub-group will also assist in appropriate planning and policy formulations for urban areas across Ireland. To date there is a strong UK-focus to the majority of research in this field (reviewed below). This paper seeks to position the Irish experience within the emergent literature. During the 1990s the private rental market in Irish cities was feeling the strain of increasing student numbers. The Union of Students in Ireland (USI) placed pressure on the government to provide additional accommodation, and to improve the quality of private rental accommodation, for third level students. Legislation was enacted to address the problem. Through a series of Urban Renewal Schemes, the Irish government introduced tax incentives to encourage private investment and development in urban areas. The student accommodation scheme was introduced in Section 50 of the Finance Act 1999 and allowed for tax relief for the construction of rented residential accommodation for third level students (Office of the Revenue Commissioners 2007). The initiative received significant government support, as it was intended to assist in relieving supply pressures in the private rental sector, and it paved the way for the development of a purpose-built student accommodation market in Ireland. The research presented in this paper examines the impacts of purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) in Ireland and the associated outcomes of these changes to the urban landscape, using Cork City as a case study. The paper has three objectives. Following a review of current literature on students in cities, the paper offers a snapshot of the student population nationally with a breakdown of student numbers in Irish cities. Second, the paper documents in detail a number of recent PBSA developments in Cork to offer an understanding of the scale and extent of newly constructed student accommodation. Finally, the paper offers an analysis of the impacts of PBSA development in Cork. Universities, students and cities A body of research has emerged internationally on students and student accommodation within cities, informed for the most part by the disciplines of geography,

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sociology and urban planning. While the majority of this research is focused on experiences in the United Kingdom (Smith and Holt 2007, Hubbard 2008, 2009), studies of this nature are also being undertaken elsewhere in Europe (Russo and Tatjer 2007), Australia (Fincher and Shaw 2009) and New Zealand (Collins 2010). This literature, like the student populations themselves, highlights the diversity of experience across different places, whilst also revealing similarities. A number of themes are evident in the international literature, including the increasing role of universities in the development of urban centres and thriving knowledge economies, student accommodation and student populations as contributors to the process of gentrification, and the nature of the student experience both within student accommodation and in the wider urban landscape.

Universities and urban development Increasingly, universities are integral components of urban development strategies internationally. Universities play a key role in urban economic development and are seen as attracting investment in the areas of research and development, as well as contributing to broader urban development projects. Bunnell and Lawson (2006) argue that HEIs have long been ‘idealised as somewhat set apart from the real world’ and the physical design of most university campuses is indicative of this. However, in recent years ‘a growing number of institutions of higher education have made conscious decisions to become actively engaged in confronting community issues and problems traditionally thought of as outside the responsibility of institutions of higher education’ (Bunnell and Lawson 2006, p.25). Speaking on the experience in the United States, Bromley (2006, pp.4
5) notes that it is increasingly common nowadays for a university to: . . .establish a new campus or carve off a portion of an existing campus in order to create a technology park, or it refurbishes old buildings in order to establish a business incubator. Such initiatives emphasise the university’s R&D functions, its desire to stimulate entrepreneurship and build corporate partnerships, and the vision of higher education as ‘an engine of economic revitalisation’.

Chatterton (2010, p. 512) highlights the importance of universities as ‘key players in urban regeneration due to their consistent role in urban regeneration, even in recessionary periods’ (see also Chatterton 2000), which is a particularly salient point given the current economic climate. This is certainly the case throughout Ireland, where higher education and knowledge-based investment is becoming a driver of urban development strategies. For example, the Cork Area Strategic Plan (CASP) 2001
2020 jointly developed by Cork City Council and Cork County Council envisages Cork as a leading European city, achieved through the provision of worldclass social, cultural and educational facilities (CASP 2001). Cork is identified in urban planning documents as a ‘University town’ and University College Cork is seen as a key stakeholder in future urban development and economic prosperity. Universities globally are increasingly viewed as actors in urban development and local economic growth through the attraction of private investment aimed at research and development, making them key contributors to knowledge economies.

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Student accommodation Studentification has been adopted as a term to describe the process by which a given neighbourhood experiences an increase in the student population, to the point where the area becomes dominated by students (Smith 2009). This has been viewed as part of, or an extension of, the process of gentrification which is familiar in many western cities (see Lees et al. 2008). Student populations and their associated residences are increasingly viewed as part of the broader processes of urban renaissance and indeed as a sub-group of gentrifiers
‘apprentice gentrifiers’ (Smith and Holt 2007). One of the major concerns is that the expansions of student populations and their residential geographies within the city, whilst contributing to a revival of key urban areas, have the potential to threaten the sustainability of neighbourhoods and social cohesion (Smith 2008). Research on the nature of student accommodation includes examinations of students within houses in multiple occupation (HMO) (Smith and Holt 2007) and those residing in purpose built student accommodation (PBSA) complexes (Hubbard 2009). PBSA complexes usually comprise a number of apartment buildings within which there are three- to five-bedroom apartments designed around communal living spaces (e.g. TV/lounge areas). Many PBSA developments are all-inclusive complexes, providing parking, laundry facilities and convenience stores. One of the overriding themes of the literature is the clustering of student residences in a particular neighbourhood. Research on this suggests that the number of student dwellings in a given neighbourhood heavily affects the broader neighbourhood attitudes and the extent to which an area becomes ‘dominated’ by students, or a ‘student enclave’ (see Allinson 2006, Hubbard 2008). Influxes of student populations are seen to have mostly negative impacts on a local neighbourhood. Potential impacts on the local housing market are often cited, noting that the presence of rental accommodation and large numbers of students reduces the value of local properties. Hubbard (2008) has noted some of the wider community attitudes and perceptions towards student clustering and student accommodation in Loughborough, UK, including the emergence of resident action groups aimed at contesting the influx of student populations into their neighbourhoods. Concerns about noise and anti-social behaviour were stressed by local residents, as were basic housekeeping and car parking issues (Hubbard 2008). Chatterton (2010, p. 513) notes that, in the UK, ‘many councils have set limits on the number of HMOs in particular areas in response to the deterioration of the urban fabric and lifestyle conflicts between students and established families and residents’. Earlier research by Chatterton (1999) in Bristol found that segregated service provision for students created quite exclusive geographies amongst the student populations in the inner city, through their selective lifestyle choices and preferences for certain cultural and social venues and events. Conducting research with a number of key stakeholders in the student accommodation market in Birmingham (e.g. accommodation officers) Allison (2006) sought to explore the different impacts, both positive and negative, of the local student population. The most frequently-cited negative aspect of student populations was found to be their lifestyles, in terms of late nights and noise, while their spending power and contribution to the local economy were viewed as their strongest positive attributes (Allinson 2006).

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Irish Geography 195 The shift taking place in the nature of student accommodation internationally, and indeed the different levels of quality and amenity of student housing, is emerging as an important research theme. Recent commentary by Chatterton (2010) is particularly useful in highlighting the transition that has taken place over the last decade in the nature and quality of student accommodation in the UK, with continued growth of the purpose-built student accommodation market and significant improvements in the quality of student accommodation. Chatterton notes how the development of new residential complexes for students in Leeds continues apace, with the latest development claiming to be the tallest student accommodation building in the world
‘the Burj Dubai for students’ (2010, p. 509). The rise of PBSA complexes has been attributed to growing pressures on the private rental stock within urban centres as student populations have grown, and indeed the inadequacy of the available HMOs (see also Hubbard 2008, 2009). One of the most noteworthy elements of the transition in the nature of student accommodation is the emergence of privately managed, often gated, central city student accommodation complexes, many of which are high-rise (Chatterton 2010). As Chatterton (2010), pp. 512
513) notes, this is of particular interest as it brings the practices of students into the broader socio-spatial practices of inner city inhabitants, such as the emergent patterns of gentrification based around gated estates, so much so that ‘universities and their students are also now central players in urban gentrification’. Large-scale high-rise student accommodation buildings, albeit of different format and design, are also being constructed outside of the UK. Fincher and Shaw (2009) discuss the quality and design of student accommodation in Melbourne, Australia, which typically comprises self-contained studio apartments without communal spaces such as shared kitchens or lounge areas. The exterior design of the apartment buildings in Melbourne presents high security as ‘a stand-out feature, resulting in blank street frontages that have no interaction with the life outside’ (Fincher and Shaw 2009, p. 1892). These features of student accommodation buildings in Melbourne limit students’ levels of interactions with their peers and a broader engagement in city life. Collins (2010) documents the construction of low-quality student apartments in Auckland, New Zealand, contrasting with the UK (and Irish) experience where there has been an overall improvement in the quality of student accommodation within university towns. Student mobility: Internal and international movements and experiences A further, emergent dimension of the student geographies literature is the mobility of students, in terms of their internal migration decisions and/or decisions to remain living at the family home and attend the local institution. This research, principally from the UK, draws attention to recent university policies that seek to create opportunities for those of lower socio-economic status to participate in higher education (Holdsworth 2006, 2009, Duke-Williams 2009). This trend towards increased socio-economic diversity amongst students, coupled with the rising costs of higher education in the UK, has encouraged a greater number of students to remain living in the family home and attend their local institutions. Using data on university and college admissions, Holdsworth (2009, p. 1854) demonstrated the emergence of more diverse geographical pathways into higher education in England and an increasing localisation of attendance at HEIs, which challenges the

196 T. Kenna assumption of ‘long-distance mobility associated with going to university’ in England. Holdsworth (2009), p. 1857) describes how mobility is embedded in the culture of higher education in England such that:

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. . .university education is as much about personal development as it is about acquiring specific knowledge. Mobility is integral to this ideal: in leaving home and living with peers students acquire a more ‘rounded’ education. Hence the benefits of moving away to go to university are not restricted to academic criteria, but are more closely bound up with students’ transition to adulthood and their acquisition of cultural and social capital.

As more ‘non-traditional’ students are encouraged to attend HEIs, an increasing number of these ‘non-traditional’ students are staying at home for their studies, and it has been argued that, by remaining in the family home, they miss out on experiencing many of the non-academic aspects of student life so integral to the student experience and the transition to adulthood (Holdsworth 2006). Thus, Holdsworth (2009), p. 1862) cautions that mobility needs to be recognised as an elite practice and that ‘differential mobilities will have the potential to reinforce the social reproduction of inequalities in HE [higher education]’. The increasing diversity of enrolments also includes an expanding cohort of international students in many HEIs internationally. Recent research from Australasia has drawn attention to the internationalisation of higher education and the place of international students within the city. Collins (2010) conducted research with Korean international students in Auckland, New Zealand and was concerned with the provision of support services for international students studying abroad, as well as the settlement experiences of international students and their role in the changing urban form of Auckland. He found that after initial periods in home-stay accommodation upon arrival in Auckland, Korean students moved into private rental accommodation with co-nationals in the inner city, thereby lessening their interaction with local students and the long-term urban population of the city. The decision to move was due to the fact that, while useful for connecting international students to wider social networks with locals in Auckland, home-stay accommodation was found to be too far from the HEIs, limiting opportunities for socialising with peers and generating security/safety concerns. Fincher and Shaw (2009) uncovered the ‘unintended’ segregation of international students within the inner city of Melbourne, Australia. Their research highlights the various practices that work to segregate this group of students from the wider urban landscape. The increase in international student numbers within HEIs in Melbourne saw the fairly rapid construction of apartment buildings to house these students. Some of these student apartment complexes are entirely occupied by international students, raising concerns due to the reduction in levels of student interaction amongst peers living in the apartments, but also wider society (Fincher and Shaw 2009, p. 1891). Indeed, the research from both Europe and Australasia is equally concerned about the impacts of mobility and student accommodation environments on levels of interaction, the experience of ‘student life’ and opportunities for socialising between local populations and recent arrivals, from the socio-economic and cultural viewpoint. Current research on students and student accommodation in cities highlights a number of emerging themes. The first is that there has been an observable shift in the

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Irish Geography 197 development of student accommodation over the last decade, which has seen an improvement in the quality of these developments. In particular a move towards more gated all-inclusive housing complexes has brought these student-centred developments more fully into the broader socio-spatial practices of gentrification and residential segregation. The world over, security and CCTV surveillance are key features of these developments. Second, the design of student accommodation complexes has been identified as having potential implications for social interaction in two critical ways. The first is the internal design of PBSA developments, which may help or hinder social interaction between students residing in the complexes. The second is the extent to which the design and exterior facade of the PBSA buildings, which increasingly include gated entrances and CCTV surveillance, work to segregate the students from the wider neighbourhood thus limiting possibilities for interaction between the students and wider urban life. Finally, a range of socioeconomic and cultural factors have been identified as potentially impeding social interactions and student life experiences for certain groups of students, thus creating inequalities within the student population. Overall, the literature on the geographies of students in cities points to the need for continued research on the development of student accommodation and residential geographies in cities, and student life, experience and social interaction. To contribute to this international research agenda on students and the city, the remainder of this paper analyses the impacts of student accommodation in the Irish context, and Cork City in particular. Research approach This paper examines the impacts of urban renewal schemes for PBSA in Ireland, with a focus on the city of Cork. Cork City has been selected as a case study for a number of reasons. First, Cork is Ireland’s second-largest city and hosts the secondlargest tertiary institution, University College Cork (UCC). UCC has the second highest share of full-time student enrolments in Ireland at 17%, after University College Dublin (HEA 2010). Because of its location within Cork’s inner city, UCC attracts a student population, as well as the development of student accommodation complexes, into parts of the inner city. Further, urban policy objectives for Cork City and County councils describe Cork as a ‘University City’ or ‘College Town’ and envisage the future urban economy of Cork to be one that is ‘knowledge-based and research-led’ (CASP 2001). Thus, Cork is well placed for examination of the extent to which the processes identified internationally are present in the Irish context. The paper draws on empirical work conducted in Cork to answer the following key questions: to what extent has the introduction of PBSA transformed the urban landscape in Cork City, and how might the Irish experience differ from experiences elsewhere? Is there evidence of the formation of a student enclave (studentification) in Cork? To answer these questions, two main data sources were used. Secondary statistics were obtained from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) Ireland, Higher Education Authority (HEA), and government reports and legislation. Data on the national student population discussed below is sourced from most recent figures released for the 2009/2010 academic year, with the exception of the data on the living arrangements of students which is only available for 2008/2009. Some time series data are presented on living arrangements from 2004/2005. These sources provide data on past and present student enrolments and the demographic composition of the

198 T. Kenna

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students (age, gender, geographic location and housing type). The student numbers in Table 1 reflect levels of full-time enrolments at the institutions listed for the 2006/ 2007 academic year. These data were used rather than more recent statistics to allow for more accurate comparability of the data with the 2006 Census population figures. When combined, these data provide a picture of the national and local context for this research. Second, field observation, documentation and website analysis of thirty PBSA developments in Cork was undertaken. Information regarding costs, lease terms, student movements, and lifestyles was also obtained from PBSA management companies in Cork. By documenting the nature of these new developments, their geographic location and key features, a thorough assessment of the landscape impacts of these developments can be made. Before delving into an analysis of Cork City, the following section, briefly introduces the national context.

Higher education and student populations in Irish cities and towns Enrolments in higher education in Ireland have been steadily increasing in recent years. The number of new entrants to full-time undergraduate courses at higher level increased by nearly 3,000 in the 2008/2009 academic year, raising the Leaving Certificate Entry Rate (LCER) (i.e. the number of people entering higher education Table 1. Irish HEIs, full-time registered student numbers and population figures. UNIVERSITY & FULLTIME REGISTERED STUDENTS 2006/7 University College Cork “ 14,165 students University of Limerick “ 8,592 students Mary Immaculate College Limerick “ 2,693 students National University of Ireland (NUI) Galway “ 11,753 students National University of Ireland (NUI) Maynooth “ 5,343 students University College Dublin “ 16,875 students Trinity College Dublin “ 12,912 students Dublin City University “ 6,884 students St Patrick’s College Drumcondra “ 2,029 students

POPULATION 2006 Cork (total): 481,295 Cork City: 119,418 Combined students: 11,285 Limerick (total): 184,055

STUDENTS AS % OF CITY POPULATIONS 11.9% 21.5%

Limerick City: 52,539 Galway (total): 231,670

16.2%

Galway City: 72,414 Kildare (total): 186,335

(2.9)*

Combined students: 38,700 Dublin (total): 1,187,176 Dublin City: 506,211

7.6%

Note: *As a percentage of total population for Kildare not an urban centre. Sources: HEA 2006/07 Annual Statistics; CSO Population Statistics, 2006.

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Irish Geography 199 before the age of 23) to over 70%, up from 66% in the previous year (Department of Education and Science 2010). The Department of Education and Science has projected that enrolments in higher education will increase by a further 50,000 during the next decade, while the LCER is predicted to increase to 80% by 2017 (Department of Education and Science 2010). By way of comparison, this figure is considerably higher than the target for school leaver enrolments in the UK, where policy is seeking to expand the number of school leaver’s attending HEIs to 50% (Munro et al. 2009). A number of emerging pressures on higher education places in Ireland have been highlighted. Ireland experienced a considerable increase in the birth rate during the 1990s and Irish HEIs are expected to see a flow-on from that changing (more youthful) age structure over the next few years. The recession has also added to enrolment numbers in Irish HEIs due to the increased demand for further skills and higher educational training, particularly amongst those recently redundant or without work. A further pressure identified was the growing competition for skilled graduates internationally as economies undergo change and shift towards a service or knowledge-based economy (Department of Education and Science 2010, p. 13). Higher education is thus set to continue to play a significant role in Irish society and indeed in the lives of young adults. Slightly more women than men are represented in current enrolments in Irish HEIs (56.5% female; 43.5% male), while the age profile is still predominantly those aged under 24, with enrolments from those aged over 25 accounting for 21% of the total student population (HEA 2010). During the 2009/2010 academic year, 90% of the students were Irish born (including Northern Ireland). The second highest country of origin for full-time students was the US, at 2.8% (HEA 2010). During the 2008/2009 academic year 17.4% of students nationally were residing in specific college accommodation (including those off-campus; up 7% from 2004/2005), 37% were living in the parental home (up 9% from 2004/2005), and 31.6% of students were living in private rental accommodation (unchanged from 2004/2005). Thus during a five-year period there has been an increase in the number of students living in PBSA in Ireland, as well as those living in the parental home. To consider the possible impacts of student populations on urban centres across Ireland, data have been gathered from the Central Statistics Office on urban populations in Ireland and the Higher Education Authority (HEA) on full-time enrolments across the major HEIs. Table 1 provides data on the number of registered students across the seven universities that are recognised under the Universities Act 1997. It indicates that the number of registered full-time students in Irish cities and towns is high, in some cases representing 15
20% of the long-term population of those urban centres. In the UK, students on average account for around 9
10% of the population in most university cities and towns, with the highest reaching 14% (Hubbard 2008). Total student numbers would of course exceed the numbers presented in Table 1 if both part-time students and enrolments at other HEIs (e.g. technical colleges) were added. In the case of Cork specifically, if the figures for 6,000 full-time enrolments from Cork Institute of Technology were added to the full-time student numbers, they would account for 17% of the long-term population of Cork City. Given the location of these institutions within city centres across Ireland, the numbers are indicative of the number of students moving in and around the urban

200 T. Kenna areas, particularly during the academic year. Thus, student populations in urban areas across Ireland are significant and warrant research attention.

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Investing in student accommodation in Ireland Private developers in Ireland are attracted to the student accommodation market for a number of reasons. According to Ely Property Group (2010), one of Ireland’s largest investors in student accommodation, the student accommodation sector is an attractive investment because it is a fairly stable and predictable section of the private rental market. In particular, they note that it ‘benefits from a stable, tangible and specific demand source
the student population’ (Ely Property Group 2010, p. 1
2). The availability of quite reliable data, such as the projected student numbers in HEIs across Ireland described above, allows property developers and investors to anticipate demand. Property investors are also offered the surety of a defined academic year, with a 40- to 45-week period where occupancy by both new and returning students is assured. Thus demand is more predictable in the student accommodation sector than other segments of the private rental market, and is likely to expand over the coming decade (Ely Property Group 2010). In addition to the perception that it is a stable, predictable and low-risk section of the property market, private investors have also been offered generous tax incentives to develop new student accommodation in Ireland. Section 50 of the Finance Act 1999 offered tax relief whereby ‘expenditure incurred on student rental accommodation can be set against the rental income from the property... thus reducing the taxable income of the person incurring the expenditure’ (Office of the Revenue Commissioners 2007, p. 3). This tax scheme allowed for the buyer or investor to offset rental income within Ireland provided they did not sell the development for 10 years. There were certain conditions for the scheme, namely that the development offers at least 20 bed spaces, is certified by an authorised educational institution, and that the development is either on the grounds (campus) of the third level institution or within an 8 km radius of the main campus (Office of the Revenue Commissioners 2007). In the case of Cork, this means that all of the new PBSA constructed under the Student Accommodation Scheme are located within the bounds of the inner city, keeping student activities and accommodation concentrated in this area. Between 2004 and 2008, the cost of tax relief for provision of student accommodation was in the realm of t270 million (Kildare Street 2010). Although the scheme ended in 2006, the development of student accommodation continues, albeit at a reduced pace (discussed further below; see also Baker 2010). Case study: Cork City Cork hosts a number of higher education and third level institutions. The two most prominent institutions are University College Cork (UCC) and the Cork Institute of Technology (CIT). University College Cork was established, as Queen’s College Cork, in 1845 and thus has a long history in the region. In 2010, the university had 19,269 full-time students enrolled: 12,578 undergraduate; 3,663 postgraduate. These figures also include 2,400 international students (UCC 2010). UCC accounts for 16.4% of the total full-time student enrolments in

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Irish Geography 201 Ireland (HEA 2010). Cork Institute of Technology, founded in 1973, currently has approximately 12,000 registered students (around 50% of these are full-time) and an average of 2,000 new enrolments each year (CIT 2010). A number of smaller third level institutions are also found within Cork City, including St John’s Central College, Crawford Art College, Griffith College, and the College of Commerce. The strong presence of higher education institutions within Cork City sees Cork identified as a ‘University City’ or ‘College Town’ in many official planning documents (e.g. CASP 2010, p. 7). Census data from 2006 showed that County Cork had a total population of 481,295, including 119,418 people in Cork city and 361,877 in the wider county. Certainly, a student population of around 20,000 moving in and around Cork City will have considerable impacts on the dynamics of the urban system. Combining numbers from CIT and UCC, the 2006 full-time student population in Cork represented almost 17% of the population of Cork City during the academic year, which is more than twice that of some of the British university towns experiencing studentification (see Hubbard 2008 and Table 1). All HEIs are located within the bounds of the City, as defined by the Central Statistics Office, as are the PBSA complexes identified and examined in this paper. The social and demographic profile of UCC’s full-time student population is largely similar to that described above for the national population. In 2008/2009, 16.1% of students at UCC were living in college accommodation, 50.8% in the parental home and 25.4% in rental accommodation. Fifty-eight percent of the students were female in 2009/2010, while 19.7% of the full-time student population was aged over 25 (HEA 2010). Corresponding with the national profile, 90.2% of UCC students are Irish born.

Purpose-built student accommodation in Cork The development of PBSA in Cork is a fairly recent phenomenon encouraged by various government incentives over the last decade. Approximately 30 major PBSA buildings and complexes were constructed in Cork City from the late 1990s and into the 2000s. The planning of new PBSA in Cork was welcomed by the City Council, which saw the developments as potentially reviving areas of the city that were in need of renewal, while facilitating the return of larger homes in and around the city to family occupation (Cork City Council 2004, 2009). The Cork City Development Plan 2004 (p. 168) noted that: Increasing demand for student accommodation in the established residential areas around UCC is having a negative impact on the residential amenity and character of these areas. The City Council will encourage the provision of student accommodation in purpose-built blocks in appropriate locations rather than an intensification of use or demolition of existing residential houses.

The development of designated student accommodation complexes also allowed for the lifestyles and noise of students to be contained within that particular space, reducing community concerns about concentrations of large groups of students.

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202 T. Kenna The considerable increase in the number of PBSA residences in Cork over the last decade has contributed to the development of new residential geographies in the city, as indeed is the case in other Irish cities. Beyond this there are associated or potential impacts (both good and bad) on the local economy, social relations in inner city neighbourhoods, urban night life and processes of socio-spatial differentiation. This section explores and documents the nature of student accommodation in Cork, using examples of a range of PBSA complexes to show the diversity of student accommodation available and the differential impacts of this new residential form. Broader implications are considered towards the end of the paper. Thirty PBSA developments have been used in this analysis of students and student accommodation in Cork City (see Figure 1). It should be noted that while this is not an exhaustive list, they nonetheless provide a spectrum, and are largely indicative of the nature and extent of these developments across the city. These developments were included due to the existence of a current website for the development. The greater part of the student accommodation has been constructed in the last 10 years and consists of three- to five-bedroom apartments, with shared facilities in each apartment (e.g. kitchen, lounge/sitting-room area and shared bathrooms in some cases). Increasingly, bedrooms now contain private ensuites. With one exception, all PBSA complexes are off-campus. Two of the largest providers of student accommodation in Cork are Campus Accommodation (UCC) Ltd. and College Accommodation Cork. Each company manages four PBSA developments in Cork and, combined, they are responsible for around one third of the market. As shown in Figure 2 there is an identifiable cluster of PBSA buildings in the Victoria Cross area of Cork City, between the campuses of UCC and CIT, and in close proximity to Cork University Hospital. This clustering of student accommodation potentially poses a number of issues, discussed further below.

Figure 1. Location of 30 PBSA developments in Cork City, Ireland 2010. The circle indicates the cluster of PBSA developments at Victoria Cross.

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Irish Geography 203 The developments range in size, while the extent of on-site amenities also varies. The largest PBSA development in Cork has 420 beds, with the smallest accommodating 20 students. Average prices are in the region of t4,000 to t4,500 for a 40-week lease over the 2010/2011 academic year (September to May), although some reductions are available for the 2011/2012 academic year (College Accommodation Cork 2011). The cheapest single room on the market in Cork is leased at t70 per week (around t2,800 for the academic year) and the most expensive single room, which is marketed at postgraduate students, cost t5,780. Weekly payments are rare, with full payment expected up-front in September, although some management companies allow for two instalments, with one in September and the final payment in December. Properties at the lower end of the market are generally not all-inclusive developments and simply offer rooms within apartment buildings. Those at the higher end of the market include extensive amenities for the students within large residential complexes, such as 24-hour security and CCTV, on-site residential wardens, private secure parking, en-suite bathrooms, fully-furnished bedrooms, broadband internet in each room, common rooms, refuse and recycling, and laundrettes. Convenience stores are also not uncommon features of these complexes. All have private management companies or bodies that oversee the day-to-day running of the accommodation and facilities, as well as handling the rental applications. In some areas of the city, the developments themselves are very much part of the urban fabric. In these cases, with the exception of a small sign to indicate that there are rooms available for student accommodation, the external appearance of the development is the same as any other apartment building. This contrasts with the more recent emergence of purpose-built student accommodation that is heavily secured and often gated. Some of these developments also prominently feature signage to make passers-by aware that these developments are student-centred, while others are ambiguous. Examples from the student accommodation market in Cork are discussed below. Large-scale all-inclusive residential complexes: Victoria Lodge Victoria Lodge is a large gated complex in Victoria Cross, Cork City. It contains 335 rooms, making it one of the largest PBSA complexes in Cork. Campus Accommodation (UCC) Ltd. owns and manages the development, which specifically caters for full-time students at UCC. The website for the development notes that the apartment buildings have been specifically designed for ‘student life’ and are located only 10 minutes’ walk from the UCC campus. Apartments in the complex comprise a number of single bedrooms, the majority of which have private en-suite bathrooms, shared kitchen and living rooms. The complex also offers students a common room with internet access and lounge areas, as well as an on-site laundry and a gated secure entrance (see Figure 2). The cost for a single room without an en-suite is t5,296 for a 40-week lease term, inclusive of all bills (UCC Campus Accommodation 2010). Whilst observing and documenting the development of Victoria Lodge one Saturday afternoon in October 2010 there was an eerie quiet to the place until a group of four female students arrived home from a trip to the local supermarket, all speaking French. Otherwise the place was largely empty; a much different

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204 T. Kenna

Figure 2. Entrance to Victoria Lodge, Victoria Cross, Cork City, Ireland 2010 Note: Victoria Lodge has a gated entrance and private parking is provided onsite (source: author).

scenario to a Wednesday evening visit to the same development where the common room was buzzing with activity and students were flowing in and out of the development. These observations support the trend confirmed by the management company that students are highly transient and return to their family home on the weekend (UCC Campus Accommodation, personal communication, October 2010).

Cosmopolitan inner city apartments: Abbey Wharf Apartments, Washington Street and North Mall The Abbey Wharf student accommodation apartments are privately managed and located in two inner city locations in Cork: Washington Street and North Mall. There is a choice of three- or four- bedroom apartments. A single room within the Washington Street apartment building is leased at t4,800 over the academic year. Rental costs are inclusive of all bills for internet, refuse and electricity. The buildings have key-pad entry systems, but do not offer private parking (see Figure 3). Given their location in Cork’s inner city, these developments market a more cosmopolitan image of student life within the city. The Abbey Wharf website notes, ‘with a thriving student population, Cork is a young and lively city, with all that a ‘college town’ has to offer’. In particular, the website highlights the location of the Washington Street accommodation in an area ‘known for its lively student life. . . [which] can be the focus for many student social events’ (Abbey Wharf 2010). The marketing for this development speaks more to the student experience, as well as student life beyond the accommodation complexes and beyond the lecture theatres. This development markets a cosmopolitan experience for students and connects them with social experiences and broader city life, as well as identifying a defined student market within the night-time economy of Cork City (see Chatterton 1999 for a UK-based discussion).

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Irish Geography 205

Figure 3. Abbey Wharf Apartments, Washington Street and North Mall, Cork City, Ireland 2010 (source: author).

Socially mixed complexes: Farranlea Hall Farranlea Hall, located in Victoria Cross, has on-site security personnel, a gated entrance and CCTV (see Figure 4). The development’s website notes that the management company provides a dedicated reception and a nightly/weekend warden security service (College Accommodation Cork 2010). During observational fieldwork at this location, the security presence was very apparent and unwelcoming. This complex, constructed in 2003, is marketed as providing ‘superior accommodation for students... designed to meet all the needs of our students’ (College Accommodation Cork 2010). Farranlea Hall has two large buildings with 284 en-suite bedrooms in three- to six- bed apartments. A single room with en-suite is let for t5,625 over the academic year. Like the other developments in Victoria Cross, it offers close proximity to UCC and CIT. Unlike

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206 T. Kenna

Figure 4. Farranlea Hall, Victoria Cross, Cork City, Ireland 2010 (source: author).

Victoria Lodge, however, this complex is not exclusively for students of a given HEI, but rather accommodates a mix of third level students from different HEIs. Because it houses a mix of students from CUH, UCC and CIT in particular, this development provides a space for improved levels of interactions between students across different HEIs in Cork (College Accommodation Cork personal communication, October 2010).

Exclusive gated residential developments: Sheares Gate Sheares Gate is a fairly exclusive student residential development containing 25 dwellings which consist of three or four bedrooms (mostly double rooms), or between 75
90 beds (see Figure 5). This development is not identified as student accommodation in any of the exterior facade. The development is marketed as meeting the needs of ‘mature students’, particularly postgraduate medical students at Cork University Hospital. The Sheares Gate website notes that ‘due to our excellent location and facilities, Sheares Gate has become very popular with mature Medicine and Dentistry students’ and that ‘a large proportion of these students come from Canada and U.S.A’ (College Accommodation Cork 2010). Further, the accommodation is marketed as ‘exquisitely decorated’, consisting of: . . . a kitchen/dining room, a downstairs toilet, a living/TV room with double doors leading out to a private patio garden and bedrooms on the 1st and 2nd floors. Sheares Gate is a gated complex with resident only access and is monitored by 24 hour CCTV.

A double room (single occupancy) in the Sheares Gate complex starts from t6,015 for the academic year, with 12-month leases also available. The Sheares Gate development is the most prominent example of the extent to which student

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Irish Geography 207

Figure 5. Sheares Gate, Glasheen Road, Cork City, Ireland 2010 (source: author).

accommodation has shifted in nature to include the provision of the highest quality exclusive developments. Indeed, a number of parallels can be drawn between the marketing of this development and the marketing and development of exclusive gated communities and private estates globally (Glasze et al. 2006, Kenna 2010), demonstrating how the student accommodation market is very much part of broader residential development trends towards privatism and exclusivity (see Hubbard 2008, Chatterton 2010).

Student accommodation in Cork: Changing urban geographies The emergence of PBSA developments in Cork has undoubtedly created new residential geographies in the city. As identifiable in the location map of PBSA developments in Cork (see Figure 1), two-thirds of the developments in Cork City are fairly well distributed across the urban landscape. The remaining one-third of PBSA developments is clustered in the neighbourhood of Victoria Cross, adjacent to UCC. This includes the two largest PBSA developments in Cork, the 420-bed Victoria Mills and 335-bed Victoria Lodge complexes. Collectively the developments in Victoria Cross account for approximately 1,710 bed spaces in the city. The existence of this cluster within one area of the inner city (Victoria Cross), between the two largest HEIs (UCC and CIT), suggests that student residences dominate this area, with the potential emergence of a student enclave. While there is a diversity of offerings in the PBSA market in Cork, one of the striking and unique features of Cork’s student accommodation developments, which sets them apart from the surrounding residential landscape, is the extent to which they are securitised and monitored by CCTV. This is particularly the case for the complexes around Victoria Cross, although the entrance ways on all student accommodation buildings are monitored by CCTV and/or reception and security

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208 T. Kenna at all times of the day. For the majority of PBSAs, reception is open Monday to Friday, and usually 9am
5pm, with a residential warden or security guard present beyond these hours. The presence of CCTV is intended to monitor large groups of students and ensure safety on the grounds of the developments (Campus Accommodation Cork, personal communication, October 2010). This degree of monitoring and securing of the developments mirrors broader processes involving the privatisation and securitisation of urban spaces, and indeed these student accommodation complexes constitute a relatively unexplored dimension of the growing phenomenon of gated residential estate development internationally (Glasze et al. 2006, Kenna and Dunn 2009). Importantly too, this demonstrates that PBSA is designed in such a way that it attempts to regulate urban space and student behaviour. A particularly novel dimension of the experience of PBSA development in Cork is the specific postgraduate student accommodation market, which has seen the construction of quite up-market housing developments. These up-market, gated estates highlight very prominently the extent to which these developments are part of the broader socio-spatial practices in the city
privatisation, exclusion and exclusivity (Hubbard 2008, Chatterton 2010). Sheares Gate is also an example of the changing residential geographies of Cork City created by increasing privatisation of urban renewal and revival. It is noteworthy that these developments are also marketed to attract international postgraduate students, a dimension that has yet to be explored in this research field internationally. It is important to recognise that the development of areas for student accommodation across Cork City has yet to meet with much, if any, community antagonism. A search of popular news media retrieves only one article on student accommodation in Ireland, a short piece comparing the cost of student rental accommodation across Ireland’s major cities (Irish Independent 2007). Student activities during ‘Raise and Give’ (RAG) week in Cork have been discussed heavily by local residents on talk-back radio programmes in a mostly negative sense and there were many calls for the week to be cancelled in 2011, as has happened in Galway. The UCC students union developed mechanisms for the patrol of student groups during the UCC RAG week in February 2011, to ensure that student parties and events remained civilised in the neighbouring residential areas to UCC. As noted above, UCC is a much-loved feature of Cork City having a considerable presence and history in the town. Certainly all tourist brochures for Cork City recommend a visit of the University Campus. As Hubbard (2008, p. 329) notes ‘... it might be expected that in cities where the university is the main employer and/or engine of local economic growth, local attitudes towards the HEIs might be more favourable’ than those HEIs that are more recent additions to a town or city. Certainly education, with research and innovation, are seen as key drivers of Cork City Council’s urban development strategies, as discussed above. The relative lack of community angst may also reflect a number of significant features of the student accommodation itself, particularly the fact that refuse collection is included, and the developments are heavily secured and patrolled by security personnel and CCTV. PBSA in Ireland could offer valuable lessons for developments elsewhere with the inclusion of residential wardens, weekly landscape maintenance, refuse collection, on-site private and secure parking (run by management companies). These features reduce potential annoyances to the local community in the sense of limited on-street parking,

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Irish Geography 209 accumulation of rubbish, and untidy gardens, as experienced in Loughborough for example (see Hubbard, 2008). However, the relative lack of public disquiet about student populations and PBSA may also be attributed to the fact that the developments are largely vacant on the weekends, when students return to their family home (Campus Accommodation (UCC), College Accommodation Cork, personal communication October 2010). When combined, these elements of the PBSA market in Cork provide a number of important conclusions. The quality of student accommodation has improved since the introduction of PBSA, providing high-quality complexes that meet the specific needs of this population. The nature of such developments bears many similarities to the international phenomenon of all-inclusive private or gated residential estates that seek to cater to a specific (usually upper middle class) section of the market. While the university and the new PBSA developments have been central players in urban renewal and revival in Cork City (as suggested by Chatterton 2010 in the UK), one outcome has been the creation by PBSA of some exclusive and exclusionary spaces within the city. The nature of student accommodation in Cork has changed, not only in terms of improved quality (as noted elsewhere in Europe), but also in the way that the student accommodation market has come very much in line with sections of the private housing market
privately managed, securitised residential enclaves
regulating both urban form and social behaviour. The findings from Cork also extend the observations of Smith (2009) on studentification, to show that it is not only the volume of students living in an area that affects the extent to which an area becomes ‘studentified’, but also the style of developments (e.g. gated) (Fincher and Shaw 2009). Thus, the student enclaves described by Hubbard (2008) are, in the case of Cork, as much about the physical clustering of student accommodation in an area of the city as they are about the physical design. Discussion and conclusions The development of PBSA in Cork and other urban centres in Ireland (e.g. Limerick) continues even though the tax scheme has ended. There is much speculation about the future of PBSA internationally, particularly in the UK, given the economic downturn. However, in the Irish context, new plans for urban development and renewal, which include the provision of PBSA, are still being submitted for planning approval. In mid-December 2010, planning permission was lodged with Cork City Council for a t150 million project to redevelop Cork’s Beamish and Crawford Brewery Quarter to allow for ‘a 6000 seat event centre, a ‘‘brewing experience’’ visitors centre, student accommodation, a viewing tower, cinemas, shops, restaurants and bars, plus some offices’ (Barker 2010). The continued development of student accommodation across Ireland and the growing student numbers, predicted to increase over the next decade, deserves ongoing research attention. The development of PBSA and the presence of a large student population in Cork (and other cities in Ireland) demonstrate many parallels with the international experience; particularly in terms of the growth of third level student numbers, and the inadequacy of private rental stock to provide for student houses in multiple occupation (HMO) leading to the rise in PBSA. However, the analysis of PBSA developments and student populations in Cork City presented here demonstrates a number of departures from the international experience. First, the development of

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210 T. Kenna PBSA has been actively pursued through government policy initiatives and tax incentives to encourage private investment in urban areas, leading to significant and much need urban renewal, although such incentive schemes also came under considerable criticism for encouraging and fuelling the property boom (TASC 2010). The government proactively encouraged PBSA in Ireland. As noted above, this is creating new (exclusive) residential geographies and placing student accommodation within broader processes of urban privatisation and gentrification. Second, the nature of the developments (e.g. all-inclusive, secured, patrolled and often gated) suggests that the creation of designated students areas or enclaves within the city is a real possibility. This is not simply due to the sheer number of students within a given area of a city, but also to the design of accommodation, which contributes to the physical segregation of students from their surrounding neighbourhood. Further, the PBSA design attempts to regulate student behaviour in the city. These conclusions pose a number of important questions for further consideration. Given the specific government tax incentives and urban renewal initiatives that were developed to support the construction of PBSA in Ireland’s cities, a thorough documentation of the extent of these schemes is required. This examination of the nature and extent of PBSA in Ireland will allow for a thorough understanding of the outcomes of these schemes in terms of the changing nature of student accommodation, the quality and provision of infrastructure and services within these developments, and any associated impacts of these developments on the wider urban fabric
for example, contributions to processes of segregation through the development of ‘student enclaves’, or broader process of residential privatisation. It will be important to map the location of these developments, where possible, to gather an understanding of their spatial distribution and/or clustering within cities. One of the most under-researched dimensions of PBSA development and student populations in the city is that of the lived experiences of the students themselves, particularly in terms of their urban lives beyond the university campus and the accommodation complexes in the cities in which they reside. Hubbard’s (2009) research in Loughborough is one of the first projects to document the experiences of students in PBSA and HMOs. Collins (2010) and Fincher and Shaw (2009) are also similarly pioneering in this regard and specifically engage with international students regarding the nature of their urban lives in Auckland and Melbourne respectively. As noted above, the place of international students within Cork and Irish cities more broadly need research attention, both those in Ireland on six- to 12-month exchange programmes and those remaining for the duration of their degree. Developing an indepth understanding of the student populations’ retained attachment and connection to their hometown for employment, familial and social reasons will make important contributions to the growing theme of the impacts of student mobility on student life and the broader university experience. Broadly, the student lived experience is still a missing dimension in research regarding the experiences both within their accommodation and, perhaps more importantly, beyond their student accommodation as actors in the urban system. In relation to the dynamism of the city, Collins (2010) convincingly argued for research to view students not simply as actors in the process of gentrification, but as actors in the wider urban system. In other words, the student population should be viewed as contributors to the local economy, urban social life, and cultural vibrancy and vitality within the city. Evaluating the contributions of students to Cork and

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Irish Geography 211 other Irish cities requires in-depth qualitative research with local businesses and the students themselves. Further, the Cork Area Strategic Plan (CASP) 2001
2020 is the guiding document to see Cork become ‘globally competitive, socially inclusive and culturally enriched’ (CASP 2001, p. 7). Indeed, these documents globally boast the goals of social inclusion and cohesion, urban sustainability, vibrancy, culture and creativity. Concerns presented in the international literature outlined above regarding the potential for student accommodation to create enclosed student enclaves, to negatively affect community cohesion, and to have variable impacts on the local economy, suggest the need for academic attention to be given to such developments in Ireland. Most large urban centres in Ireland host major HEIs. As urban development strategies across Ireland seek to improve urban conditions and increase international competition, it is necessary to reflect on the impacts of urban development geared towards students, the impacts of student populations on urban centres and the local economy, and the outcomes of strategies aimed at higher education in Ireland. The analysis of PBSA in Cork City documents the nature of such developments in Cork and considers their impacts on the urban landscape, particularly their contributions to changing residential geographies within the city through the emergence of some quite exclusive, private and gated residential complexes. The analysis presented in this paper also demonstrates how the Irish context departs from the international literature in a number of ways and thus continued research in Ireland will make noteworthy contributions to international debate, as well as provide information on the changing nature of urban populations and urban social life in Irish cities and towns. Acknowledgements The author is grateful to Denis Linehan for his advice and guidance during the writing and production of this article. Thanks also to the referees who provided valuable comments which have strengthened the final paper.

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