To apply for membership of either of the National Codes, simply head to the registration page to start an application and follow the instructions after submitting your details. It is strongly recommended that before registering you consult the Code document in full, and also read through the Code Declaration form which can be found at appendix 6. 

There are two Codes; one for accommodation owned or managed by educational establishments and one for accommodation owned or managed by non educational establishments. However, because in some situations - especially where student accommodation is provided in partnership between a provider of services and an educational establishment - it is not easy to decide which party is managing/controlling the accommodation, a framework of test questions has been developed to determine which of the two Codes is most appropriate.

For the non-educational Code, the criteria for membership requires applicants to operate one or more purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) building, and that each building must have a minimum of 15 bed spaces. 

Membership of the Code for Educational Establishments runs from January 1st 2021 until January 31st 2024, so any new applicants from this point will be required to re-sign at the end of 2023. For the Non-Educational Establishment Code membership runs from 2022 until December 31st 2025

Fees
The membership fee varies depending on the number of bed spaces that are being managed and the way in which compliance with the Code is verified (for members of the Educational Establishments Code, only).

The membership fee is payable on an annual basis and is set by the Committee of Management at its November meeting. For 2023 the fees are as follows (all figures are exclusive of VAT):

• Existing members of both Codes (who are verified externally) with less than 656 bed spaces, £900;
• Existing members with 657 or more bed spaces, £1.37p per bed space;
• New applicants to either Code (who are verified externally) with less than 574 bed spaces, £900; 
• New applicants with 617 bed spaces or more, £1.58 a bed space.
• In addition, all new applicants are required to pay an additional fee of £350 for the first calendar year that they apply to join;
• Members of the Educational Establishment Code who are verified via a Peer to Peer System pay either the minimum fee of £900 OR at £0.92p a bed space if they have 978 or more bed spaces. 
• Any new applicants wishing to join the Educational Establishment Code and not be externally verified will be charged either the minimum fee or £1.10p a bed space, if they operate 819 or more bed spaces.

Before applying you need to ensure that you apply for membership of the correct Code. Once your application (and fee payment) have been received then the National Codes Administrator will contact you with details of the assessment and verification procedures. 

In the first instance you will be asked to complete an Organisational self-assessment questionnaire (OSAQ). Once that has been returned then your membership application will be considered as being 'live' and, at that stage, it would only be possible for an applicant to withdraw from the membership process if they, a)cease to manage student accommodation that falls within the scope of the relevant Code; or b)are removed as a result of action taken through the complaints and tribunal procedures.

Membership will only then be granted following a successful verification visit to one or more of the developments that you manage, which will usually take place within 30 days of the SAQ being returned.