Living On the Margins: A tutor's story of homelessness in St Andrews

Living On the Margins: A tutor's story of homelessness in St Andrews Reports of a housing crisis in St Andrews aren’t really news anymore. Most students have tales of the annual rush to find that elusive treasure: a decent but not overpriced flat. But what about those who don’t get a spot in this rat-race?  Sam Hickford, a former PhD student and tutor, worked for the University of St Andrews until earlier this year. Throughout his time living in the town, he experienced severe financial struggles, calling two cottages, one caravan, and many places in between his home. Hickford said his “highs and lows” consisted of renting a “basically glacial” caravan and sofa surfing before finding a serviceable place to live during his final months in St Andrews.  Hickford’s saga began in 2021 when he moved from London to St Andrews after being granted a fee waiver for his PhD, for which he remains “extremely grateful.” This didn’t provide income, however, and as a new father, he wondered, “Where am I going to live? How am I going to feed my child?” With barely “any money at all,” Hickford applied, unsuccessfully, for family accommodation before being forced to look further afield.  That September, he found a flat in Dundee but did not have power for his first two months. “That was a bit of a bad introduction to the University of St Andrews,” he recalled, “but I did fall in love with the uni.” He shared that especially loved the culture of books and beaches. Back in Dundee, however, his flat began to fall apart. When he found a cottage in Boarhills, however, Hickford felt his luck had finally turned: “It just seemed to have been dropped down from heaven for us.” When Hickford moved into the cottage with his family in February 2022, it “seemed like the most perfect accommodation” imaginable. Two years later, however, a divorce case resulted in thousands of pounds in legal fees, leaving Hickford “completely financially destroyed.”  “I was living out of bins, going to food banks in town,” Hickford said. “I was working thousands and thousands of odd jobs just to make ends meet.” Despite his attempts to maintain stability, he was soon evicted from his home. That day, his “brain went into total survival mode.”  Luckily, he was offered cheap rent in another cottage and funding from the University during the final phase of his PhD, but this new arrangement was far from ideal. His new cottage was remote, so Hickford wasn’t able to spend much time in it during the semester. Instead, he went to the Old Burgh School. “I very occasionally slept there,” he said. “I used the shower. I used the microwave to make myself meals.”  Not long after, Hickford’s luck fell again when he learned that his father had been diagnosed with a neurodegenerative illness. He returned home to care for him, a development that he believes resulted in his eventual homelessness. In August 2025, the University offered Hickford teaching work, and he moved back to St Andrews. Without time to properly relocate, he ended up spending the semester sofa-surfing. Here, Hickford studied, wrote a book, and slept in a communal living room. He was no stranger to such arrangements or to the lack of privacy, but he found it difficult not to “have a place that [he] could come back to and switch off.” The bitterness of the Scottish climate was especially challenging to manage: “The house was pretty cold a lot of the time,” a consistent theme throughout Hickford’s St Andrews experience. “I don’t think I ever lived anywhere that ever felt warm enough.” At the beginning of 2026, Hickford received an offer on SpareRoom from a woman willing to let out a holiday lodge to him, but his attempt to move into the property was unsuccessful. The woman soon told him that she had already rented the lodge out on Airbnb, but that she could move him into a caravan for £700 per month instead. The caravan was small and shared with another student “who had clearly been totally tricked into this arrangement.” Hickford was instructed not to use the lights, heating, or gas in order to save money.  “I thought ‘this is ridiculous, and I just don’t want to be exploited like this,’” Hickford said. He decided to move out as soon as possible, but the agreed arrangement was “stressful,” as he had to pay rent weekly while searching for alternative accommodation. But, like a “spectacular comedy”, after five years of haphazard living arrangements, Hickford finally found a comfortable house for his final two months in St Andrews.  He credited his supportive colleagues for helping him through his housing struggle after he told the University of his homelessness. “I think my whole situation was pretty unprecedented for them, so I don’t think they really knew what to do,” he laughed. “They were trying to work out how to approach it, and how to approach it sensitively.”  His Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA) mentor and another mentor in the School of English did their best to help him manage. “Without those two people, I have no idea where I’d be right now,” Hickford said. “They were always willing to listen, and [tried] to master the situation and work [it] out.”  Hickford now works as a gardener in Rochdale, and appears cautious about accepting future employment in St Andrews. He said he would have to carefully consider “how that would work”, following his experience of homelessness here. Illustration by Ella Burrowes