Residents and alumni have protested against the closure of a popular Catholic student hall.
More House, located in Kensington, London, recently announced that it would be closing “as a student hall of residence” on September 30 this year.
Owned by a congregation of the women’s religious order, the Canonesses of St Augustine Cio, More House has operated as a Catholic student hall and hostel for around 50 years, and currently houses around 75 student residents.
The hall has a strongly catholic ethos. Until last year it offered daily Mass in the community chapel, although because of a shortage of priests this year only offered a Sunday Mass. It also offers prayer groups for residents, and the use of meeting rooms for non-resident Christian groups. More House functions as a chaplaincy for undergraduate and postgraduate students at several London universities, and international students are strongly represented in the student community there.
An open letter raising concerns about the closure has been signed by over half the current population of the hall, and a number of alumni. The students emphasise the spiritual value of the hall, which they state plays “a significant role in the spiritual life of many young adults all across London.”
Other signatories of the letter include several members of the lay association Communion and Liberation, one of the outside organisations that make use of the chapel and meeting rooms of the hall.
The signatories of the letter state that, having been informed of the closure decision in February of this year, concerned residents and supporters were now appealing to Cardinal Vincent Nichols, the Diocese of Westminster, and the general public to take “decisive action”.
Although the possibility of the hall continuing to operate as a student hostel under a new owner was raised earlier this year, no further information on this has been forthcoming.
The reason given to students for the impending closure of the facility was chiefly the high refurbishment costs.
Speaking to the Tablet, one of the organisers of the petition, József Mák, stressed that as well as being a financial asset worth around 30 million pounds, More House has an even greater value as a space for community, support and spiritual sustenance for residents. The “real sense of community” in More House, which houses residents from many different faiths, makes the closure emotionally difficult for many former and current residents, who have made lifelong friendships, met their spouses, or been married in the hall's chapel.
As an affordable, faith-centred and welcoming space, especially for international students, More House was almost unique in London, Mák added.
According to charity commission figures, the Congregation of Our Lady, part of the Canonesses of St Augustine Cio, who own More House, have run a deficit for several years, culminating in a gap between income and spending of £900,000 last financial year. However the detailed accounts available under “Documents” on the Charity Commission website show that More House itself generated a healthy profit in the previous two years, 2018 and 2017.
The delegate of the UK Congregation of our Lady, Sister Jennifer Dines CSA, confirmed that the refurbishment and upkeep costs of the 100-year-old building made the student hall financially unsustainable for her order to keep supporting. Although the Congregation were reluctant to sell off such a successful ministry, Dines said, the shrinking number of religious sisters – and the age of those remaining – made the decision an unavoidable one.
Dines stressed, however, that if a buyer willing to carry on More House's mission could be found that would be “wonderful”, and added that when the marketing of the property began all credible offers would be considered.
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