MAYOR of Greater Manchester has called for greater regulation of student accommodation in light of The Cube Fire to give reassurance to student and their parents.

He said:"Many of these premises are unregulated and do not necessarily provide the highest standards of safety and so are calling on the Government to bring these student accommodation blocks under a form of regulation and we believe the right body is the Office for Students.

"We support the call by the University of Bolton for that to be done so students, and their parents can have confidence in the buildings their sons and daughters are renting while they are way from home

" At present we don't believe there is sufficient regulatory oversight of these buildings and it is certainly a call echoed by many in the university sector."

Mr Burnhams said that students should contact their local fire service before signing up to live in a particular building.

"I think it is incumbent on those providers of those buildings with advice from fire services to provide evidence to prospective students and parents that their buildings are safe," said Mr Burnham.

Cllr Nick Peel. Leader of Bolton Labour Group said “The outcome of this fire could have been so much worse, had it not been for the speed, bravery and excellent training of our fire fighters.

“The Government recently announced a fund that would go to only a small proportion of buildings with non ACM combustible cladding, such as the Cube. After all of the media and Government spotlight on the Cube at the time of the fire, its somewhat perverse that the Cube does not quality for Government help on 2 fronts; firstly that is slightly under the 18 metres threshold and secondly, that it is purpose built student accommodation. What that has to do with it has never been explained.

“This issue is way too serious for arbitrary rules to be applied to a crucial cladding safety fund, and Bolton Labour Councillors have launched an online petition calling on the Government to widen its criteria for financial help, so that the Cube and other high rises in Bolton can become much safer places to live.”