Save energy in your student home
Through the Student Energy Action for Life (SEAL) project, SOS UK is here to support students to have more energy-efficient student homes. We work with students, landlords, students’ unions, universities and other experts across the sector, with the aim of building a more sustainable future for student housing.
Students
Check out our guides, tips and opportunities for students in private-rented housing – helping you save energy, cut bills, and live well in your student home.
Do you live in student halls or on-campus accommodation? Check out our Green Campus Revolution work instead!
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Sign up to our newsletter
Find out more about saving energy & winning prizes
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Review how sustainable your accommodation is!
Complete our mini-sustainability review to see how your accommodation scores!
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House hunting checklist
What to look for when renting a new place
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Home energy guides
We have resources on various topics around sustainable housing.
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Become a student home energy auditor
Paid opportunity for students living in the private rented sector
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Essential Guide to Student Renting
Free training developed by SOS UK and National Energy Action, open to all students.
Students' Unions
We work with students’ unions, universities and student groups to build knowledge, develop housing and sustainability campaigns, and to network with others doing the same.
Do you want to set up a home energy campaign, add energy into your housing campaign or need support with an existing campaign? Get in touch as we can offer advice, resources, networking and support calls to help you.
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Sign up for our housing campaign training
Leading Change: Energy Efficiency & Action Training - for staff who work in sustainability or housing-related projects.
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Join our energy network
Get involved with our work
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Essential Guide to Student Renting
Free training developed by SOS UK and National Energy Action, open to all students.
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Homes Fit for Study
Student experiences of living in the private rented sector
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Students’ Union Campaign Toolkit
All our resources are free to download and use. Please let us know if you would find anything else especially helpful.
Landlords
To compliment all of the work we do with students and students’ unions, we also support landlords, focusing on how to improve the quality and energy efficiency of their properties.
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As part of the SEAL project, SOS UK has partnered with 3 organisations to deliver targeted support to student landlords – Manchester Student Homes, Aston Student Homes and Swansea University.
Our landlord partnerships are with students’ union letting agencies and university teams, designed to engage, educate and assist landlords with complying with legal Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) and making energy efficiency improvements in the properties that they rent to students.
Through working with these organisations, who are at the forefront of landlord interactions, we plan to positively engage the landlords who they work with, as well as letting agencies in the local areas to ensure household checks are completed to include MEES compliance, and direct landlords to funding available to make property upgrades.
We also contribute to events organized on these university campus, such as energy surgeries and housing/accommodation fairs, and are also working together to create new landlord accreditation schemes that hold landlords to minimum energy standards in the homes that they rent, which are beneficial for the property, the tenants and the planet.
Another of our SEAL partners is the UK’s leading fuel poverty charity, National Energy Action (NEA). NEA is an expert in energy efficiency and energy poverty. NEA supports the project through the co creation of resources, guides and in-depth trainings, helping to empower landlords, staff and students to understand the importance of energy efficiency and tenant rights.
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Our landlord training offers a practical guide to help landlords make smart, energy efficient upgrades to their properties
Our landlord training offers a practical guide to help landlords make smart, energy efficient upgrades to their properties, and provides clear, actionable tips to improve a property’s energy performance.
The training session was developed in collaboration with National Energy Action (NEA), the UK’s leading fuel poverty charity, and focuses on space heating, water heating, lighting and appliances. We also discuss changes to policy and legislation in this area, which are adapted to the latest developments, and discuss the implications that this has on improving domestic energy efficiency.
The session lasts approximately 1.5-2hrs, depending on mode of delivery. The session can be delivered in-person, online or pre-recorded to suit.
You can register your interest with us here!
If you are looking for more bespoke training or other opportunities for landlords, local authorities or other organisations, get in touch!
Find out more
- Find out more about the SEAL project.
- Find out more about our Homes Fit for Study Research.
- About our funder, The National Lottery Community Fund.
- Thanks to National Lottery players, Student Energy Action for Life (SEAL) has received £1,250,503.17 over five years from The National Lottery Community Fund, the largest community funder in the UK.
- This comes from the Climate Action Fund, a £100 million commitment over 10 years from The National Lottery Community Fund to support communities across the UK to take action on climate change and involve more people in climate action. This forms part of one of the funder’s four key missions in its 2030 strategy, ‘It starts with community’ – supporting communities to be environmentally sustainable.
- Freedom of Information request report – coming soon!