London School of Economics ‘evicts student with mental health issues’ which affected studies

Academic heads at the London School of Economics (LSE) are under pressure to reform rules around wellbeing after a “severely mentally ill” student was reportedly evicted from halls against the advice of two NHS medical health professionals.

An online petition, which has now closed, gathered more than 1,000 signatures of support since BeaverOnline reported on how the student in question was recently admitted to hospital to deal with various health issues, a move which affected their studies.

LSE then allegedly informed the student that, as a result of the pause in studies, they had one week to move out of accommodation as they were “no longer an LSE student for the 2015/16 academic year.” The school is now being accused of not taking the student’s circumstances into account for the interruption.

BeaverOnline reports that it has seen communication between LSE students’ union (LSE) officers and LSE staff which has shown “a lack of understanding of the student’s mental health issues.” The site also reports that SU officers have alleged that staff have come across as “somewhat hostile.”

The petition described how the “poor treatment and support” of LSE students with mental health issues has gone on “far too long.” It added: “This is an opportunity for you to change the pathological culture within LSE - please do not waste it.

“We demand the school complies with the points of action outlined in the petition.”

Highlighting a list of demands, the petition said the student in question should “immediately be returned to student accommodation free of charge,” adding: “Housing and financial support should also be provided to all students in similar situations facing effective homelessness in the future.

“Once a student is no longer in the care of university residence after being assisted in finding external support, members of the school’s wellbeing service should maintain contact to ensure they are adapting well. LSE must [also] make it clearer who the point-of-contact is for students struggling with severe mental health issues and accommodation difficulties.”

Finally, the last demand stated that staff in the wellbeing service and residential service “must be trained” to have better knowledge of external mental health support services available so they are equipped to signpost them to students.

In a statement on her Facebook page, LSE students’ union’s (LSESU) recently-elected community and welfare officer, Aysha Fekaiki, described how, on election results night, she cried “from anger and helplessness” over the student’s “horrible situation” despite two weeks of pleading.

She said: “The school’s welfare system is atrocious and the rigorous and logical process by which students can access urgent help is actually non-existent.

“I was genuinely shocked by how I was treated along with the student. The complete lack of empathy, the arbitrary power and, ironically, the miseducation of how to deal with students with mental health difficulties on a one-to-one level.”

In a statement to the Independent, an LSE spokesperson said the school takes the safety and welfare of its students “very seriously” and urges all students to use the resources available to them when they need help.

The spokesperson added: “We are not able to comment on the details of individual situations, but we can advise that the school strived to provide the student, in this case, with high level support during their time, and to help with their difficult circumstances as much as possible.”

Since the petition closed on Monday afternoon, LSESU issued a statement highlighting how it, along with the school, will be implementing support measures for students who are being affected by mental health issues.