MEARU were commissioned by GSA’s Sustainability in Action Group (SiAG) to undertake a building performance study of the condition of the GSA student flats at the Margaret Macdonald Student Halls of Residence. This report seeks to identify causes of recurring problems at the Halls of Residence and suggest methods of improving the indoor air quality and levels of thermal comfort within the student living spaces.
The research findings will help to upgrade the existing housing provision and inform the design and future maintenance decisions of the proposed new GSA student accommodation.This technical report presents both qualitative and quantitative data obtains during a 4 week monitoring period within 8 student units within halls of residence.
Multiple occupancy residential accommodation has become an increasingly popular building typology in the UK. Purpose built residential units with individual bedrooms and en-suite bathrooms are particularly common to student halls of residences, care homes and hostels. These building types are similar in that residents intensively occupy their bedroom as a living space- this intensity of occupation makes the provision of good indoor environment and air quality of paramount importance to resident’s health and wellbeing. This paper seeks to highlight issues which are likely to be prevalent in this building typology by using a student hall of residence as a case study. These potential issues are partly due to the habits of the user but also issues related to the on-going maintenance of the building to ensure adequate ventilation and good air quality. This paper concludes by suggesting a methodology which housing providers could use to determine the potential causes of poor indoor air quality thereby improving the health and well-being of occupant.