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Membership Application Process

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Applying for Membership

To apply for membership, providers must complete the online registration form to start an application. It is necesscary before membership that applicants read the relevant Code document in full, and consult and understand the terms of membership in the Code Declaration form.

Membership Periods

Educational Code - The current Code period for the Educational Establishments Code began on 15th January 2025 and will run until 15th January 2028

Non-Educational Code - The current Code period began on 1st May 2026 and will run until 31st December 2027

Fee Levels

New applicants are required to pay two fees as part of the membership process - the application and administration fee and a membership fee (all figures exclusive of VAT):

  • £2000 applicaton and administration fee - this covers access the National Code online training course and pre-application support from the National Code team. Please note this fee is non-refundable even if your application is declined. 

The membership fee varies depending on the number of bed spaces managed and will be either:

  • The minimum fee £1200 (if registering 750 bed spaces or less)

  • The per bed space fee £1.60 per bed space (if registering 751 or more bed spaces)

Commitment Entailed by Payment of Admin Fee & Self-Assessment

Payment of the administration and application fee is to cover the cost of the application process and does not mean applicants are then a member of the Code. Membership will only be granted once the verification process has been undertaken and the outcomes confirmed by the verifier as satisfactory.

Once the fee is paid, the applicant is fully part of the membership process and the applicant agrees to having placed in the public domain the fact of a failed application beyond this point and the reasons for that failure.

Applications which fail once the SAQ process has commenced are dealt with formally by the Audit Panel, for recommendation to the Tribunal for the application to be formally withdrawn.

The Application Process What To Expect

Membership Criteria

See below the membership criteria for each Code

Non-Educational Code

Non-Educational Code Membership Criteria

  • National Code membership is for providers who undertake the day-to-day management of Purpose-Built Student Accommodation (PBSA). This may be a managing agent rather than the owner of a building. To determine whether it should be yourself or another party registering the building, please use Annex 1 Management Test in the National Code document.

  • Applicants must have operational control of the whole residential building under management which must be solely or principally occupied by students; (principally relates to where there is a residential staff presence e.g. warden)

  • Overall control means you should have management control of both the common parts/areas and the flats/studios/bedrooms.

  • Joint applications are currently not accepted.

  • For the purposes of National Code membership, a PBSA block is a larger student development that is defined as having 15 or more bed spaces - please note rooms that can be designated as dual occupancy (e.g. for couples) only count as one bed space - a couple sharing 1 bedspace does not constitute 2 bed spaces.

  • Applicants must register all PBSA stock that they operate that meets the eligibility requirements of the Code

  • The definition in the Code glossary of a larger development is “A larger development is a development where 15 or more students live in one building in rooms off a central corridor, in cluster flats, or in self-contained flats.”

  • To progress your application you must be operating a building that is currently open and occupied. This is because a verification visit can only be undertaken on open and occupied buildings.

  • Traditional off-street student housing (e.g. small HMO houses) are not eligible for membership of the National Code.

For providers who operate buildings/houses smaller than 15 bed spaces - please note if membership is accepted, the benefits of being a Code member extend only to your registered PBSA sites. If you also operate small HMOs that do not meet the requirements of the Code, you must abide by the tenancy changes under the Renters Rights Act for those properties.

Educational Code

Educational Code Membership Criteria

  • National Code membership is for providers who undertake the day-to-day management of Purpose-Built Student Accommodation (PBSA).  

  • Applicants must have operational control of the whole residential building under management which must be solely or principally occupied by students; (principally relates to where there is a residential staff presence e.g. warden)

  • To progress your application you must be operating a building that is currently open and occupied. This is because a verification visit can only be undertaken on open and occupied buildings.

Joining as a New Member with an Established Track Record

This process has been established to allow a route into membership for new Members with an established track record of compliance with the Codes. The National Code Administrator will assess an application requesting acceptance as a Member because of a previous good track record and recommend a course of action to the Audit Panel. More details on the process can be found in the Code document at Annex 2.

Read The Code Track Record Process Guidance Document
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FAQs

New Applicant FAQs

There are two ANUK/Unipol Codes of practice:

  • one for accommodation owned or managed by educational establishments (the Educational Code)

  • one for accommodation owned or managed by non educational establishments (the Non-Educational Code or Private Providers Code)

To determine which provider should register for Code membership, the Management Test has been developed to determine which of the two Codes is most appropriate. The test can be found at Annex 1 of both Code documents. For any questions or queries, please email [email protected]

Membership of the Code is for whichever party is undertaking the day-to-day management of the accommodation. What constitutes day-to-day management is covered through the 9 sections of the Code, and also within the Management Test under Annex 1. This may be a managing agent rather than the owner of a building. To determine whether it should be yourself or another party registering the building, please use Annex 1 Management Test in the National Code document.

Owners of buildings who do not do the day-to-day management of the site should make sure it is the management company that registers for Code membership. 

To apply for membership applicants must have operational control of the whole residential building under management which must be solely or principally occupied by students; (principally relates to where there is a residential staff presence e.g. warden)

  • Overall control means you should have management control of both the common parts/areas and all of the flats/studios/bedrooms.

  • Joint applications are currently not accepted

No - to be eligible for Code membership a building must be solely or principally occupied by students; (principally only relates to where there is a residential staff presence e.g. warden)

No - membership can only be awarded to those who have applied via the membership application process or the tracked record process.

No - traditional off-street student housing (e.g. small HMO houses) are not eligible for membership of the National Code.

There is no average/set time period for the application process - the time taken to become accredited is individualised to each applicants own ability to complete the required administrative tasks, organise the visit date and complete any actions resulting from the visit. Previous applicants to the Code have gained membership within 3-12 months since their initial application. 

No - applicants do not get the exemption until membership is formally granted. Applicants should abide and meet all requirements of the Renters Rights Act legislation until membership is granted.