‘CLV has a lot to answer for’

A student living in university accommodation woke up a day after attempting suicide, lying on the floor of her room, door and curtains open. She was alone, and nobody had noticed.

The student is one of many who have come forward to Stuff with concerns about the care given to students living in accommodation operated by Campus Living Villages (CLV).

It comes after the body of a 19-year-old University of Canterbury student, Mason Pendrous, was found on Monday night, having gone unnoticed for nearly eight weeks.

The global student accommodation provider has said an internal investigation into the incident is under way.

Each student spoken to by Stuff for this story has requested anonymity; however, their identities have been verified.

One former student who attended University Hall in 2017 said she woke up in her room, alone, after a suicide attempt and no-one had noticed.

She said that during her stay she found it ‘‘incredibly difficult’’ to make friends. She had suffered from depression in the past and that year it started to get bad.

‘‘I isolated myself and would skip meals, sometimes not leaving my room for days at a time, too anxious to use the showers.’’

She often drank alone in her room, leaving the door open in the hopes someone would ask if she was OK, or what she was doing for the evening. No-one did.

‘‘I started to think if I died in my room nobody would notice.’’

One night while drinking she tried to overdose.

‘‘You could see into my room from the windows. I woke up in the afternoon the day after trying to kill myself on the floor of my room, door open, curtains open, pill packets everywhere. Alone. Nobody cared.’’

She then dropped out and did not finish the second semester.

A mother, who declined to be named, took her first-year son to the University of Canterbury’s Ilam Apartments in February.

The mother was initially worried about her son, who needed peer support, but was assured he would be looked after.

When they arrived staff gave him a key. In his apartment were flight students, a nursing student and a second-year student, but no first-years.

‘‘There was absolutely no support. There was no orientation. He didn’t know who the residential assistants were, didn’t know who to go to for help.’’

The student lasted a week before his mental health deteriorated so much his parents had to pull him out of university.

‘‘CLV has a lot to answer for. They are willing to take thousands of dollars off students but provide very little and sometimes no support or pastoral care.’’

A female student went to the Ilam Apartments in 2017 wanting a ‘‘supportive environment’’ as she had no family in Christchurch.

That year was ‘‘horrific’’, with her grandmother dying.

She built a rapport with one of the pastoral care team, who was a ‘‘huge support’’ for her. But when this ended she faded ‘‘quick and fast’’.

‘‘Being in there you are just a number. I’ve seen students crying, locking themselves in their room, with no place to turn.’’