Thrills and spills of studying in London

[stoneysongs]

A thread for supporters of DC heading to London unis - was originally going to be UCL which seems very popular this year, but expanded at @Needmoresleep's excellent suggestion.

For chats about moving in, what to take, living in London, whether an Oyster card is worth bothering with, how to do a big shop, where to park at drop off, the dreaded search for 2nd year accommodation etc etc etc

Tagging people I've spotted from the ex Oxbridge thread but all welcome including those with DC currently in London who can share their wisdom and anyone thinking of it for 2025 or beyond

@catmomof3
@lifeturnsonadime
@PotentialUCLmum
@CoffeeMugShot
@space99
@FebruarySmith
@mynameisnotmichaelcaine
@Summertimer

By way of intro I have a DD going to UCL to study BASc Arts and Sciences.

Oh @Summertimer he's done the right thing getting it checked out. I am so glad he is OK and back doing some work.

We had our weekly chat with DS last night, he's fine, already talking about coming home for a few days at reading week. He says a lot of his friends are local to/ live in London so go home at the weekend so this weekend was a bit quiet. I'm guessing a lot went home to recover from a very busy freshers week!

He's already talking to some people about accommodation for next year which seems v early for London but obviously will let him get on with the conversations!

I'm a bit annoyed about a couple of things going on in his halls though. His kitchen isn't fit for purpose, the oven door is broken so they are all having to go to other kitchens to cook. This has been the same for the last 2 weeks since he has been there. They have complained but it's not being sorted. Also Wifi was down over the weekend.

He has also had 'signed for' post go missing with a meal voucher in it. No trace of it at all.

He's not the best at 'complaining' but I don't think I am able to do anything like speak for him to sort any of this out. Frustrating.

Mine sent me a picture of the oven they were using to bake in at the weekend at the other halls. Absolutely no decals on any of the knobs so they’d no clue as to the setting or the temperature for their bakes. Peak student life 😂

Signed for post should be insured. The sender needs to claim it on their postal receipt. It is frustrating when stuff like this happens but you need to let him work it out at his own pace I guess.

At least the oven has a door!

Honestly it's shocking for the price they are paying per week.

Glad he’s on the mend.

It isn’t good enough, I agree.

thanks, it's annoying it's got to go through the insurance though.

Very late to this thread - if you go to the big stations (eg Kings Cross) staff will help you pair your railcard and Oyster, it does save a lot of travel money.

@PotentialUCLmum

Would this sort of thing help?

https://www.yourspares.co.uk/parts/bosch/cookers-and-ovens/universal/parts/ys78123M415201/bosch-universal-stainless-steel-cooker-oven-temperature-thermometer-gauge-300176c-600176f-UFIXT-1-001886.aspx?utm_source=google&utm_medium=shopping&utm_campaign=Google%2BProducts&gaw=agid:,c:&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwjY64BhCaARIsAIfc7YYu4PH0fcS7F-QZsX7dCyGTlwp-e5f6jQrW4nqpzrSbv_LCUjNCJ44aAl0rEALw_wcB

Thanks. I did suggest something similar, but the idea was rejected on the basis that “it’s not my oven” I think we can chalk that up to peak teenager behaviour also 😂

@RockaLock Mine applied to South Kensington but still ended up at Kemp Porter. So did many others he knows. My DS is quiet as well but said others on his floor seem nice. He came back home over the weekend though. Once lectures start they will be busy and will make friends eventually.

Being a landlord in central London is a nightmare. Tradesmen simply cannot afford to live or work here. I calculated that my builder needs to pay £250 a week for CC, ULEZ and parking permits before he even sets foot in the property. Throw in the hour's driving into London in rush hour and then actually finding a parking space.

What I love is tenants who solve problems for me. So an email with a photo of the problem, a photo of the appliance number - usually found on the side of the door - or of the appliance make an model, and then links to what they would like to buy, and a request that I repay them. They get it delivered to them (or if a big item like a fridge, set a delivery time that suits them.)

In the friendly and helpful email I would add that they are concerned that this is an h&s issue. They might burn themselves, or the property, by getting the temperature wrong. There is then a written record that the landlord/letting agency has been warned.

It also helps if you bunch together problems. If the previous tenants failed to report much, or broke a lot, and there was a quick turnaround, things will not be spotted. Putting it all together in a single email makes it a lot easier for the landlord to send in a workman to do the lot in one visit. Photos always help.

That may be true for small-scale London landlords re: getting tradespeople, but I would absolutely expect a university renting out hundreds of rooms to have their own maintenance team, or at least access to a good list of reliable people.

Things not working properly should 100% be reported by our DC, and I would expect them to be sorted and to encourage our DC to keep complaining if nothing happens. As people have said, the rooms are not cheap at all.

My DS said that out of 14 washing machines in his halls, 5 are not working. It's simply not good enough IMO. I know they may have let some rooms out over the summer for various things, but I would fully expect everything to be in good working order for the start of the new academic year!

@Summertimer I'm glad your DS seems OK.

At least one good thing about London is that there are plenty of hospitals close by!

Cheers, I’m squirming at the lack of contact today though. I know he’s probably just getting on with life, but I crave an update post investigation of the shower by maintenance

I agree. Sadly DC is not in London, but in a different country....

100% agree. DC has discovered that no one else bothers the washing machines on a Sunday so has taken to using all 3 at the same time to cut down on the time spent doing laundry. I'm in quiet admiration really!

Thank god your DS is okay!
I guess with they are away, no news is good news, however agree on an update post investigation of the shower by maintenance would be nice.

@PotentialUCLmum That's very smart and efficient 👍👍👍

For those with kids at IC; what are the chances of getting the accommodation they prefer? We live in London and are only interested in University hall for first year if DC is based close to university, eg South Kensington.

Thank you, I’m everso touched by everyone’s lovely replies.

So, a discussion via txt earlier and he said that a new door had been ordered and the other one removed. No mention of costs so I said keep me informed because the thing collapsed and hurt him so I’d be annoyed if someone tried to make him liable.

More importantly, he’s feeling ok and bouncing back.

@Mangojuice81 for Imperial you put down 5 room choices, and then get allocated one at random.

So I suppose if you only put down S Ken rooms, then in theory you should stand a reasonable chance. But it's not guaranteed, I think it's something like 70-80% actually get one of their choices.

You can turn down the accommodation offered, so if you were offered somewhere else you don't have to take it.

Great. Thank you for clarifying. There is no point for DC to put the ones in North Acton as they may as well commute from home; not sure about Paddington one; but I think that’s closer.

We only got to see the one close to the main building in Eastside. Do you get a chance to see the other ones before you have to choose?

@Mangojuice81, I think on the open day you just get to see those closest to the uni but we did also visit the North Acton block one weekend. They wouldn't let us see a room but the concierge showed us inside the block and we had a mooch. We also met a research post grad who gave us the low down.

To be fair, the North Acton blocks are much cheaper than the south Ken accommodation and all are modern and en suite. It's only a few stops into town and the tube station is right next to the blocks and runs all night on Friday and Saturdays. However you have to factor in additional transport costs. There isn't a lot going on at North Acton either but the blocks themselves are meant to be quite sociable and dc join uni clubs and societies. There's a uni run bar cafe there and a gym.

I think it's common to commute from home if you live in London from year 2 onwards due to the cost of private rentals in London.

Thanks. The plan will be first year in halls; hopefully in South Kensington and second year and onwards commute from home. We won’t be paying accommodation if they are in Acton as there is no point; apart from the social aspect which is no guarantee either.