Camping students are still without permanent housing

They two military tents who have housed students with no housing were taken down last weekend. For two weeks they have given a temporary housing for some of Uppsala's many homeless students. 

The camp site were established with the aim to make it easier for students without housing to participate fully in the studies and the welcoming activities during their first couple of weeks in Uppsala. The tents were a last resort and an alternative to daily travels and park benches. 

- In totalt 12 people have been living in the tents, Daniel Persson, project leader for the camp site, says. The first week there wasn't that many students, but once the courses started in week two, the telephone kept ringing. 

A total of 25 people have been in touch about wanting to stay in the tents.

- Most often it all worked out in the last second for most students. But when we took down the tents, still three students were staying in there, Daniel Persson says.

The three students still staying at the camp site when it was taken down, now together have found another temporary housing for a month. 

- We who have been staying there have become like a family. When I found an apartment it was obvious to help the others, Sofia Jillefors Olsson says. It's sad that you have to stay in a tent when moving to Uppsala, but the company and the breakfast in the morning from UTN made the whole experience nice. 

- It feels good that we don't have to throw someone out in the streets, but the lack of housing is still unacceptable. It's not us students that should arrange with housing for the municipality's inhabitants, Johan Wikander, president of Uppsala Union of Engineering and Science Students, says. 

Questions regarding UTN's temporary housing can be answered by Uppsala Union of Engineering and Science Students' president Johan Wikander, phone 018-57 25 21, or vice president Henrik Valllgren, phone 018-57 25 22. 

Uppsala Union of Engineering and Science Students is an organization for the more than 8700 students at the Faculty of Science and Technology at Uppsala University. Its purpose is to safeguard, promote and maintain its members’ interests in foremost educational, student social and future employment matters. Furthermore; UTN has taken on the mission to provide social activities for its’ members and to strive for a good camaraderie between them.

Earlier press releases regarding the tent project can be found here (in Swedish).