Accommodation issues

[FallenMadonnawiththeBadBoobies]

I don't know whether I am being unreasonable here or not.

My daughter has had a rough time over getting into uni. She was given a conditional offer for Loughborough, lost the place due to the government's cock up, and then was reinstated when predicted grades were used. Unfortunately, that meant she was at the back of the queue for accommodation and only found out that she had a place on campus last week.

She has a fairly severe nut allergy and is a vegetarian, so is desperate for self catering, but she has been given catered accommodation. When you ring up the accommodation staff, they say that there probably will be self catered accommodation available, but we have to wait until the day she moves in, go and see them in person and they will see what they can do at that stage.

To be honest, both she and I are at the end of our tethers with all this. Why on earth can't they sort it out before we get there? Why can't they look to see what is available the day before she moves in? She will need to take other things with her if she is to be self catered.

I think with remote working it's hard to get hold of the person who can talk with any authority on anything. I'd get on Twitter and Facebook and and @ the university until you got a definitive answer

That's a good point about them working remotely, Gymntonic. DD says one of the people she spoke to was a student themselves, so no authority whatsoever.

@Lboro_campus
Is this the people maybe?

Apologies that's their Twitter.

I'm useless. But you get the idea

Did she mention her nut allergy on her accommodation application? When my DD applied for accommodation (not loughbrough) she had to fill in a separate form in addition to the normal application and include a Drs letter detailing why she needed self catered accommodation.

Hope you can get it sorted ok.

To be fair, sorting accommodation must have been a nightmare this year.

Everyone who met their offer on results day was sorted out, then everyone who applied via Clearing before the U-turn, then everyone who had their offers reinstated.

Some universities are also trying to house students from the same course together, to bubble up as a household.

It must have been a nightmare to sort out, and all while working from home.

As she's at the back of the queue, I think you do have to take what you can get to a certain extent. DD knows several people in a similar situation, who have been told to sort their own accommodation privately.

Even if catered, they will be able to cater for those with allergies surely?

Is there a loughborough university parents/student Facebook / WhatsApp/ whatever group? The one for my daughter's place is starting to show posts for students/parents whose students, have decided to defer/withdraw/study from home. They're trying to sell on accommodation contracts. Might even try posting herself under a non identifiable name asking for wherever she wants to be?
In the meantime, if she can, there's no harm in trying to fake it til she makes it; knock on doors suggesting they book a table in a bar (sd permissable, I think, almost anywhere), join campus tours and tell anyone who asks that she hasn't met her flatmates yet and does anyone want a costa, sign up for department society and ditto costa - everyone will be keen to meet course mates etc etc

Sorry for taking so long to come back to the thread.

Yes, we did mention the nut allergy right at the beginning.

I agree, it's been a nightmare for them to sort out and, to be fair to Loughborough, they did hold her place on the basis that we were going to appeal, and I know plenty of other unis didn't do that.

DD is a little concerned about making a massive fuss about it, so I think we shall have to take what's offered and see what's available further down the line.

Thanks you for your suggestions, Gymntonic. I'll have a look to see what there is on-line

There will be lots of people who drop out in the first couple of weeks, so your DD should be able to get a place in the right kind of accommodation then. She should keep on top of the accommodation office though.

Symapthise, my DS is coeliac - but he was put in accommodation with a girl with a wheat allergy in his first year, so it all worked out OK.

Get in touch with the student support/disabilities support. We needed to change ds accomodation to ensuite (not Loughborough) and prior to them getting involved all we were getting was ' oh he can go on a waiting list ' they recommended a room change and it was sorted out a day later