First child off to uni accommodation - what do we need?

DS is at uni and couldn’t have given two hoots about matching crockery, bed linen etc.

DD OTOH totally different story and is Pinteresting furiously 😂

So depends on your DC. The one thing we shell out on is a decent mattress topper as uni mattresses are shite.

I have a dd starting uni in September.

I am more than happy to help her buy stuff but I am not taking it upon myself to make a list of what she needs. She is an adult and going off to uni is a huge step towards independence. She is perfectly capable of thinking about what she needs and going online to research this, and in many ways, I think that's an important part of the preparation for independent living. If she realises later on that she has forgotten something, that can ba addressed then.

I am not saying this to be snippy, OP. I get that it's a big deal when they go off to uni and our natural instinct is to support and help them as much as we can. However, I don't think we do them any favours by doing too much for them. Time to take a step back and let them do the thinking for themselves. We can still be around to advise and provide guidance where needed, but our young people should be taking the lead.

It's easy to go way OTT with stuff. Send the basics and be ready to pay for other bits and pieces over the first few weeks. Incidentally those first weeks are way more expensive than the rest of the year due to one off costs, so factor that in when sorting money.

I bought new bedding but otherwise my approach was to round up old pans, cutlery and crockery. It gets hammered and neglected. Nothing much came back from two DC at uni over 5 years.
When they left uni and got their own place was when I splashed out and bought them all nice new stuff.

Ikea basic tool kit. No one else had as much as a screwdriver and mine all found them useful during and post uni. I actually made them all up a bag with the tool kit mini first aid kit mini sewing kit £20 a large bar of chocolate a door wedge- essential for making friends packet of condoms a new novel a dvd ( this was all a long time ago!) new pjs probably a few other bits and pieces and a nice letter from me !

Don't take 4 of everything. There won't be room.

They'll probably only get one cupboard in the kitchen so they don't need loads, DC only took the bare essentials I.e. 1 plate, bowl, mug & glass. 1 set of cutlery, 1 sharp knife etc

They had to keep a lot of the dry food stuff under their bed to save space.

As others have said let them work it out for themselves, they will have flatmates to borrow from in an emergency and the supermarkets sell all sorts if they find they need it.

Having just picked DC up after their 1st year, and seen the amount of stuff that was bought home, I would definitely advise to take as little as you can get away with!

If you head over to the higher education board, there are lots of threads about what to take to university from previous years.

My top tips are:

1. Take a tape measure. There is a good chance they might want extra storage (eg underbed, on top of the wardrobe, plastic drawers, a hanging rail) but you won’t know what will fit. They will probably need a laundry airer - over radiator ones and a socktopus are handy but you will need to measure up (ditto for storing a folding airer). You can order online for delivery once you know what they need.
2. If you already have plastic storage crates, underbed boxes, drawer organisers, shoe boxes, those pop up fabric boxes, small boxes/baskets (for things like toiletries, kitchen stuff, laundry products), mini drawers etc use them for packing (ideally the things they could be used to store). If they fit, unpacking takes minutes. Take clothes on hangers covered in a bin bag (you can usually guesstimate the wardrobe size from the accommodation photos to know how much hanging space there is).

Mattress protector, pillow case protector, duvet cover and pillowcase and 2 cushions, 2 bath towels and 2 hand towels. I bought my DD an inexpensive (Tesco) set of 4 dinner plates, pasta bowls and tea plates and 4 mugs. A set of 4 cutlery on a stand with 4 knives, 4 forks, 4 large spoons and 4 teaspoons. I got her 3 saucepans one small, one medium and one large one, a few wooden spoons, a tin opener, a tea pot because she likes a potful not a single tea bag, a kettle and a toastie maker, a roasting tray and a slow cooker. Tell her to definitely keep her toothbrush in her room along with personal toiletries like shampoo. If she puts it in the bathroom it will just disappear. The above saw her all through uni and post grad degree and she still has some of it like the towels and the slow cooker and uses it today years later.

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Please don't name stuff, so embarrassing. And honestly, let your adult child sort it themselves (even if you pay). Take the bare minimum, cheapest stuff as it'll all go missing, and remember they can just go and buy what they need once they're there, or order online.

Some stores have student discount

Yous shouldn't directly be buying anything, make sure uni child is fully involved.

I would find the closest Argos to where he is moving to and reserve everything he might need a couple of days before he moves in to ensure it's in stock - particularly bulky things like duvets.
Then go to the Halls, see what is already there and what others have brought with them, then go to Argos and pick up and pay for the things he actually needs and leave the rest.

The communal kitchens have nothing at all (except cooker and fridge and cupboards).

He'll need plates bowls etc. some kitchens have a lockable cupboard per person but many don't.

Not worth naming stuff.

If you have a pet, a cushion with photo of pet on it is usually very popular (miss the pet more than the parents!)

TV licence if they are taking a telly. I was AMAZED at the number of people who assumed that their parents' licence would cover them (why would it, possibly hundreds of miles away?!)

It's weird. University accommodation is either boiling hot or freezing cold. There's no in-between.

In general I'd recommend less rather than more. A couple of plates, a bowl or two, etc. If it turns out that they need anything more then they can always get it at the local supermarket and/or you can get it delivered to them via Amazon.

I agree that storage space is very limited which can cause problems for suitcases. A collapsible crate is useful for kitchen stuff and packs down very small. Do leave them with at least a small suitcase or sportsbag so that when they come back for the holidays they can bring a big pile of dirty washing the essentials with them.

Chances are whatever you send much of it won’t get used. Box of laundry pods pretty much untouched 😱 However, electric fan used daily, even when snow on the ground

Thanks for all the helpful replies 🙂

Some halls have underbed storage. At DS’s you lifted up the mattress/base. So good to check whether that is available.

DS’s flat only had a magnetic whiteboard on the walls, others have large pinboards. Most halls will ask you not to attach anything to the walls

Many laundries specify laundry pods only, not washing powder/fabric conditioner

Remember space in the kitchen is very limited. DS took spare crockery/cutlery from home.

Do I need to buy cutlery and crockery

Yes. The kitchen is just an empty kitchen with nothing but the appliances in. They will also need bedding - duvet, pillows, sheets, duvet covers, pillow cases, towels etc. Don't buy these until you know what size the bed is. A lot of halls now provide a small double bed.

Student halls just provide an empty kitchen and an empty bedroom, plus bathrooms. Student bedrooms contain a bed, wardrobe desk, shelving and a chair. The only soft furnishing might be curtains if not a blind.

Packing tip - don't use suitcases unless you can take them away with you. There is nowhere to store them. Use soft, zippable, foldable bags and vacuum bags. I found vacuum bags to be a game changer. We did use a couple of large plastic storage boxes for kitchen stuff, but took them back with us.

It goes without saying that your young person needs to know how to cook before going to university and how to use a washing machine.

I used to get frustrated at the number of posts on the Facebook page from parents of DC who couldn't even heat a tin of beans. It is our job ad parents to ensure that our DC are able to fly the nest with the correct life skills to be independent.

Check what type of hob. Many universities use induction hobs

Each halls will have their own rules regarding electrical appliances that can be brought for kitchen and/or room so check the rules carefully.
Many also have rules on airers - some allow, some don't, most won't allow heated ones.

Fairy lights often need to be battery operated.

A small electric fan is useful.

Most rooms are very small.
There is nit much storage space in shared kitchens, usually two shelves in a cupboard (sometimes 2 Cupboards), a cutlery drawer, a shelf in a fridge and a freezer drawer.

Cutlery
Crockery
Cooking utensils
Pots/pans

They need their own - sharing does not work for these items.

Most halls will provide a microwave.
Kettle and toaster usually, but not always. These can be purchased by the group. WhatsApp groups are usually set up before move in for this sort of thing