With such a wide variety of accommodation on offer to students in Bristol including university halls, private rented accommodation and homestay accommodation, knowing where and how to start looking can be difficult.
Private tenants now have new rights from the 1st of May 2026.
The Students' Union at UWE have compiled the following renting FAQs for all students at UWE Bristol to help you feel ready to tackle the private rental market head-on.
If your question has not been answered below and you need further advice, please don’t hesitate to contact the Advice Centre - advice@uwe.ac.uk.
If you have viewed a property and paid a holding deposit but are yet to sign a tenancy agreement, you can still change your mind about renting the property, however, you may be at risk of losing the deposit regardless of whether the property is re-let. It is advisable to check any paperwork you have and speak to the landlord/agent to see what the position is.
As of the 1st May 2026, Landlords are required to provide you with some form of written terms and conditions, or a tenancy agreement. They are also required by law to provide you with a tenant information sheet. The decision to sign a tenancy agreement depends entirely on your circumstances. As the document is legally binding, the Advice Centre would recommend you think very carefully before signing it. It would be advisable to discuss the terms of the contract with the landlord/agency before signing if there is anything you are unsure about. You can suggest amendments and changes, but these are not something you can demand and they are entirely at the landlord/letting agent’s discretion.
The Advice Centre is available to check any tenancy agreements before you sign them, should you have any concerns.
When you are living in private accommodation there are additional costs, other than rent and deposits that you will need to budget for. These include:
Internet, Landline Phone and Cable TV – If you want internet or cable TV in your new accommodation, you must first check with the landlord that they are happy with this being installed.
TV License – A standard TV License costs £180. It's a criminal offence to watch live TV or use BBC iPlayer unless you have a valid TV licence. Without one, you risk prosecution and can be issued a fine of up to £1,000, plus court costs. You still need a licence even if you don't own a television and only watch TV on a phone, tablet or computer. You do not need a TV Licence if you only ever use services such as Netflix, Amazon Prime or Now TV to watch on-demand or catch up programmes.
As a full-time student you will be exempt from council tax payments for the period of your course. The University sends a list of all full-time registered students to the council, so you shouldn't get a bill, but sometimes mistakes happen. You might have to prove to the council that you are a full-time student and that you don't have to pay - to do this all the full-time students in the property need to get a letter confirming their student status from your faculty/school reception. This needs to be sent to the Council Tax department of Bristol City Council.
This form can be found via either MYUWE or by contacting the Information Point.
Students living in UWE-managed Halls of Residence are automatically exempt from Council Tax.
The rules for part-time students are different so we recommend you come and see us if you are part-time so that we can advise on your specific situation.
If you live with non-students but are a full-time student yourself, you will not be liable for council tax but your housemates are likely to be, but don’t panic, the council will only pursue the non-students for the council tax liability, not the students.
Check with your letting agent/landlord whether an inventory check-in/out list can be completed during a vacant period before/after your tenancy begins/ends. Your letting agent/landlord should be able to send a copy of all documents to the incoming/outgoing tenants for comment along with supporting dated photographs/documentary evidence. This process mustn't be forgotten as deposits could be at risk if there are disputes about damage to furniture etc.
If you've decided that it is more convenient to do your food shopping online there are many different suppliers in Bristol that you can choose from. There are a few things to consider when doing this, such as:
The top suppliers are listed below: Can each supermarket name link to relevant website below.
The first thing to do is to contact your landlord/letting agent to explain the situation. They may agree to a rent reduction for a period or to accept rent at a later date (known as a payment holiday). They might even consider reducing the tenancy term if they won’t release you.
However, if you agree to delay your rent payment the full rent will still be due at a later date. Repayable rent reductions are where rent is reduced for a period but the overall amount will still be due just at a later date by mutual agreement. If you are experiencing financial difficulties, including living costs as a result of the current disruption, you may be eligible for support from the University’s Student Money Service. Further details can be found at https://www.uwe.ac.uk/life/money-and-finance/student-money-service.
The deposit cannot be released until the tenancy has ended, which you can end by giving 2 months’ notice. The deposit must remain protected by the deposit protection scheme for the duration of your tenancy and cannot usually be used as payment during your tenancy term. Should you have unpaid rent (rent arrears) at the end of your tenancy agreement, your landlord can keep your deposit for any unpaid rent.
If you have an Assured Periodic Tenancy, your landlord can only evict you with an order from the court and a notice that they plan to regain possession of the property. This would be either a Section 8 (which can be used if you owe 3 months’ rent or more) or Section 4A notice. As of 1st May 2026, the government have abolished Section 21 ‘no fault’ eviction notices.
As of 1st May 2026, you can give 2 months’ notice to quit your tenancy. We would suggest you do this in writing and think about when your rent payments are due to avoid paying rent for longer than you would like. For example, if your rent is due on the 1st of the month, you may want to give notice on this date, or a day or so before. If you have a joint tenancy, you need to be aware that by giving notice this will end the agreement for all tenants.
We hope this information will help you when renting in Bristol, if you need my further advice, we are available via email between 10:00-16:00 Monday to Friday.