It's real now - leaving home to go to uni (part 3)

[user9512736123]

Here you go @Lucysky2017

DS1 was at Warwick. They always send out accommodation offers in September. Also, and this may have changed, there was no deposit on the accommodation and if they paid by DD the first payment was timed four weeks after the date of the first student loan payment.
Maybe worth checking the small print about the accommodation payments?
DS2 at another uni had to pay cash upfront on offer day to secure accommodation.

Private landlords don't usually expect more than a month in advance. True but that may well be 9 months before the tenancy starts. DS2 has to pay quarterly in advance so had to pay almost £1200 at the beginning of July for a house he is moving into at the end of September.

He is moving in on Sept 30th, early - we're taking him on our way to a wedding on the south coast, so need to be done and dusted by lunchtime!!

Uni starts on Monday 2nd so I'm assuming that's why they want the money by then. We'll just have to front it on the credit card and he can pay us back when his loan comes in. No option I guess.

Apparently bed linen, duvet and pillow are included - will they be new or used? How many sets of sheets do they get?

He and I are off to Ikea when he gets home so I guess that will bankrupt me too!!!

Ilove it won't include the bedlinen just the bare duvet , pillow etc. They seemed to be laundered and rewrapped in plastic. Ds preferred his own though.

@LIZS thankyou!! I wondered that, though it does say "linen, duvet and pillow"

There again I'm sure he'll prefer his own sheets etc, towels etc.

Hi loan will (just) cover his accommodation this year, so how much does everyone allow for food and drink a week for their kids?

I was (hoping) thinking £35/40 a week will be ok, and if he wants more he'll have to get a job!

DD's registration email has come through. I so want to do it right now, so I know it's all sorted, but I'm sitting on my hands and trying not to say anything.

sat with DS and did all his registrations ( he is dyslexic so needs support with this sort of thing)

Took nearly 3 hours to do all the set up, plus form filling etc etc.. but now all done.

He has his accommodation sorted, move in date booked, I am preparing a packing list .. ..

So far, everything except changing bank account to a student one has gone well. Barclays have been s£$t! DS has been away for the summer so filled in an online form yesterday to change his existing account to a student one, was given an appt to go into the branch for after he actually leaves for uni, phoned up a number and was told perhaps he could get an earlier appt at a branch closer to home, phoned them and was given an appt about one day earlier! Then told they don't take appts after 2.30 in the afternoon but he could try just going into the branch and they might see him. Off to local branch, told they don't even whatever particular kind of adviser is needed to do this kind of thing (surely it's not rocket science?!) and redirected him back to main branch. Just pants!

Am very tempted to get him to change bank and start a whole new account. Not sure what Barclays even give for student accounts, maybe nothing.

Nat West in July let my twins just conver their existing account to a student one without having to go into the branch but that woud be because they were already customers so would have done the ID in the past. I notice they have not been given a cheque book or paying in book (they had a cheque each to pay in this week). They had to specifically apply to replace their existing debit card with a chip and pin one. They deliberately have not yet applied for any over draft nor credit car as hoping to manage without. nat West used to give free student rail card but it's just a bus card now with a third off and I suspect they are much more likely to be using rail than coaches. Never mind.

I know they have both booked their arrival time at halls and that one has done the university on line registration process and the other has yet to do it - he wants to do it after he's had his hair cut today something to do with the photo ID I suspect. Let's hope he likes the hair cut.

Yes, DS already has an account with Barclays into which a fair bit of money is paid as he has been working since 15 so I really don't understand the huge palaver over changing to a student account! The only thing stopping me from getting him to open a Santander account (with free rail card) is the hassle of having to tell student finance the new bank account no (and the university as they are giving money for obligatory kit for the course, and his current work, and the DDs etc)

God, there's so much to do here still. Ds wants to see his friends as much as possible before he goes. He's staying up late and sleeping in so there's little time to crowbar stuff in. He's out this pm on a non social thing and kindly giving my dm a crash course on using her new smart phone tomorrow. But his room is a tip, his clothes are all over the place, mixed up clean and dirty. He uses the washing machine himself but doesn't remember to do it in time. His iPad is also missing and doesn't work properly. His laptop has battery issues and won't work unplugged. His phone has a problem with the microphone so no one can hear him. This is a boy who has to use keyboards for exams etc. All these things need to be done in about a week and a half! He is going to get such a crash course in practical stuff next few weeks. No wonder they get fresher's flu!

To get some practice in before living in SC accommodation, and for him to earn some money as I don't have a cleaner atm, DS is doing the hoovering, floor mopping and dusting. He's had two lie downs so far (!) but the house is looking better.

10% off code for anyone using Royal Mail Parcelforce 48 to send boxes is SV7

Lol at the lie downs Behind

Unfortunate events DD has been with Barclays for years. We asked them to change her to a student account when she turned 18. They changed her to an adult account. Went in and asked them to change to a student account and they've put her back to a young persons account. How difficult can it be!

Just got back from dropping dd1 off and updated my budget. Dear sweet lord. Having transferred all the budgeted money to her account in August, it had not occurred to me that dh was paying for everything every time he took her shopping (whereas I was getting her to budget for purchases out of her money, allocate it, spend it...) That was an expensive weekend...
She seems fine so far - they had an orientation day yesterday and she has joined a few things and put her name down to volunteer teaching swimming to kids w disabilities at the pool she wants to get a pt job at She's in a 4 bed residence apartment on campus. Two other first years and a third year (whose dad made lots of passive aggressive comments about how awful last year's girls were and lack of cleanliness, so his dd has obviously not lived off campus at all). She's getting on well with one of the other girls particularly but is getting out and about and meeting lots of people. First day of classes today. Eek!

Glad the drop off went well and all looks good so far. Hope ours goes smoothly. 2 weeks today.

Massive palaver vwith Santander Student a/c here

DS hadn't had a current account ever, so opened one when he was filling in the Student Finance form. Have tried twice to upgrade to Student account (wants the rail card) and been declined - because they have to have had the current account for at least 6 mths - except no one told us that when he opened it...
Anyway, a very kind person at the branch is trying to sort it for him. It's been a right PITA!

Did another lot of shopping today; we were like a pair of packhorses, traipsing through town.

Most people seem very organised. We were lucky not to have student bank account problems and I made them upgrade the account in July anyway. One is now abroad in Europe until the weekend and the other is out but I don't think they are going to take very much with them when they leave.. They are fairly minimalist other than the one who will be taking his bike and musical instruments.

I'm more concerned/interested in my next grandchild than the university starting or even my other son moving out - it just feels a bigger deal. It is due this week.

Oldie, were they able to update before they had their UCAS letter that came out on results day? All the Student account stuff I looked at said it couldn't be done until that had been received.
I wonder if it was because your DT were upgrading existing accounts?

Do you know if you're having a DGS or DGS?

DS got his on results day by email.

My sons at my pushing applied on line at Nat West back in July just after the A level exams because you can apply with just your UCAS application number so that may be why the banking went okay. Anyway they all sort it out eventually and one of my sons is constantly debating if my "early bird catches the worm" advice is good or not. His view (which is not necessarily wrong if it works for him) is that delay gives you more time to mull over choice (as I've told him, we also have "fools rush in where angels fear to tread" which could be his motto on this - now his hair is cut presumably he can get the picture taken and do the registration on line although as I mentioned it yesterday that meant he decided not to do it yesterday so I think it's best I leave him to it)