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PROPERTY

Sweden’s student union warns that housing shortages are back this semester

Students in Sweden are facing acute problems getting flats and rooms this year, with shortages of student housing returning to pre-pandemic levels, according to a new report by the Swedish National Union of Students.

Sweden's student union warns that housing shortages are back this semester
Some 383 new student flats have been built at Fäholmaskogen in Kärrtorp in southern Stockholm for this autumn semester. Photo: Chris Anderson/TT

The housing squeeze follows a few years of temporary relief during the pandemic, when more students were studying remotely and not moving to their university towns and cities. But according to the annual housing report from the Swedish National Union of Students (SFS), as on-campus studies have returned to pre-pandemic levels, so have student housing shortages.

Of the 34 university or college locations where SFS maps the student housing situation, six areas received a worse result in this year’s report than it did last year.

The changes are tracked using a colour-coded system: green means students can receive an offer of accommodation within a month, yellow means that an offer comes within a semester, and red means a housing offer takes more than one semester. The report found that 61 percent of students live in a city that has been designated a red ranking.

International students are not insulated from this shortage. Hülya Bakca, a Turkish woman studying at Lund University, cancelled her student housing in Malmö, which she received through the university’s accommodation provider.

She had moved to Malmö late, because her classes in the first half of the autumn 2021 semester were online, and she could not afford to pay rent for an apartment she was not using.  While she then found a room in an apartment shared with two other people, she said her rent, at 5,400 kronor, not including wifi, is too high.

“I have the smallest room,” she told The Local. “The room is facing a busy road and it is noisy. I am not happy about it.”

There is no privacy, she added, as insulation problems mean that sounds from both outside and inside the apartment are audible, while the landlady lets herself in whenever she wants without prior warning. 

Bakca tried looking for a new place to live in the summer, when she expected it to be easier to search for an apartment as students left Lund and Malmö. She looked once more for shared accommodation to lower her costs. One apartment was covered in the toys of the prospective flatmate’s child.

“All the shared place was just his kid’s toys and stuff,” she said. “It was everywhere, you could just step on it. Legos, dolls.” Rent was 5,000 SEK, and did not include electricity.

Another potential flatmate was an older man, whose living room was strewn with alcohol bottles, and who told Bakca about his previous tenants, including a 19-year-old woman and a 25-year-old-woman. Rent here was 4,500 SEK, all included.  

After months of searching, Bakca gave up on her housing search, and now plans to move in with her partner when her current lease expires.

According to the report, student housing across Sweden was converted into other types of housing during the pandemic, when demand for student accommodation dipped. Rising construction costs are also contributing to the student housing shortage, as is the removal of governmental support for the creation of low-cost housing.

Meanwhile, a secondary housing market, in which first-hand leaseholders sublet their housing, pushes up rental costs further, eating into students’ already tight budgets.

As well as a housing shortage, students are also facing high rents.

“Students are among the societal groups who spend the highest share of their income, about half, on housing costs,” the report found. 

This year’s downgraded locations include Borås, Jönköping, and Eskilstuna, which have gone from green to yellow, and, Karlskrona, Malmö, and Uppsala which have gone from yellow to red. Lund, Gothenburg, and Stockholm have never received anything but a red rating since 2009, even during the pandemic, highlighting a persistent lack of housing in the three cities, all of which are popular destinations for international students.   

In its report, SFS demands action to address the housing shortage. This call for action is divided into three points: a reintroduction of government subsidies for new construction, a reform of housing allowances for students, and more streamlined checks to ensure that student housing is allocated to active students.

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SCHOOLS

Are schoolchildren in Sweden allowed to fast for Ramadan?

Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, is a holy month of fasting for Muslims worldwide. What are the rules for children attending Swedish schools?

Are schoolchildren in Sweden allowed to fast for Ramadan?

Are you marking Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr in Sweden? Ramadan Mubarak! Tell us how you’ll be celebrating in the comments below or by email: [email protected].

When is Ramadan?

Ramadan started on Sunday March 10th, stretching until Monday, April 8th. During this time, most Muslims are expected to fast during daylight hours, starting the day with suhur before dawn and breaking their fast with iftar after sundown.

There are exceptions, for example adults who are ill, pregnant, travelling, elderly, breastfeeding, diabetic or menstruating are not expected to fast, and children are not expected to fast until they reach puberty around 13 or 14.

Ramadan is not just about fasting – it’s also a month for prayer, reflection and community, as well as a time for acts of charity, such as donating money to those in need, and practicing self-discipline.

Are there any age limits?

Although children aren’t expected to fast until they reach puberty, they will sometimes want to try their hand at fasting before they reach this age, whether to emulate older siblings or family members, or just to join in with their religious community. 

There are no specific rules in Sweden as to how old a child should be to fast during school hours, but schools are likely to be less positive about a child fasting the younger they are.

Schools may not be completely aware of exactly what Ramadan is and may have a negative view of it, so it may be a good idea to have a dialogue with your child’s school around Ramadan, explaining how your child is planning to take part, especially if you live in a smaller town or other area with a small Muslim population.

If your younger child is only planning on fasting for part of the day and not from sunrise to sunset, it’s worth communicating this to their teachers so everyone is on the same page.

If a child is clearly struggling more than usual during the school day then teachers may discuss this with parents to find a solution. Teachers may also contact parents of children who say they are fasting to confirm that they are doing so with their parents’ permission. This may include asking for a permission slip.

This year, national tests for some subjects in years 3, 6 and 9 fall during Ramadan, so it’s worth taking this into account if you notice your child struggling more than usual during Ramadan.

Can my child’s school stop them from fasting?

Freedom of religion is enshrined in the Swedish constitution, so schools aren’t legally allowed to stop a child from fasting in school hours.

This doesn’t stop some schools and municipalities from issuing rules or recommendations that children shouldn’t, but teachers or other school officials can’t physically force children to eat if they don’t want to.

However, the school timetable will carry on as usual. Children will be expected to attend all lessons and keep up with the curriculum, and schools are likely to contact parents if they don’t.

Similarly, schools can’t force children to fast if they decide they don’t want to, even if it goes against their parents’ wishes.

Will schools make any special concessions for my child during Ramadan?

It depends on your school. In Malmö, schools are advised to offer fasting children an alternative place to be during lunch if possible, so they don’t have to sit in the canteen and watch everyone else eat. In smaller towns or schools this isn’t always possible due to size or staffing constraints.

Schools are unlikely to provide prayer rooms or allow children to leave class to pray, and the expectation is that Ramadan should affect their studies as little as possible.

What about Eid?

The end of Ramadan is marked by Eid al-Fitr, a three or four day celebration celebrating the end of the fast. It’s expected to fall on April 10th this year.

School is compulsory in Sweden from the age of six, and children will be expected to attend school during Eid. However, the standard rules for time off during the semester apply, which means that a child’s parents or guardians can apply for them to have an extra day off in advance. 

Applications for planned absences are decided on an individual basis by the school’s principal, who will take into account various factors like the length of the planned absence and how the child is performing in school overall. It’s also a good idea to include information on how your child will catch up on any work missed during their time off.

If your application is denied and you take your child out of school for the day anyway, you could be issued a fine. The exact size of the fine varies: some municipalities calculate it by percentage – 1 percent of parents’ yearly income, for example, while others have a set fine per day.

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