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.

Another London resident here who hasn't had their phone or anything else stolen in decades. And two DC who commuted by tube/bus to school 40 minutes each way every day from 11-18 and never had theirs' nicked either.

Main thing to worry about is that all the teens (and presumably students) use Lime bikes a lot now and none of them wear a helmet.

I have a ton of ironing DD's clothes today and packing them. She's hardly at home this week so the rest of the packing will be down to me 🙄😅.

I'm also going to do a little basics shop for her so we don't have to buy loads when we get there. I'm really worried about how we will fit everything in my Dad's car 🤣

I have never had my phone stolen either, but then thieves probably recognise I am likely to be carrying a battered old Samsung. I know/know of people who have had their phones taken recently and they are all young professionals likely to have the latest iPhone.

That said I went through China Town at 10pm last week and and spotted a group of young men on hire ebikes looking menacing, as if ready to pounce. China Town is a hot spot as it gets very crowded, but so to are tourist and station areas. We all instinctively checked that our bags were zipped.

Met police advice:
www.met.police.uk/cp/crime-prevention/personal-safety-how-to-stay-safe/mobile-phone-advice/

Apparently phones are often shipped to China where they are used for spares.

A decade ago DS was walking home from school through a quiet street in central London and people came up to him demanding his phone. He was confused and offered them his elderly brick. They must have felt sorry for him as they let him keep it. Even back then, teenagers having their phones taken off them in quiet streets and in parks was reasonably common. A friend's son had the foresight to ask if he could remove his SIM. They let him.

Vacuum pack bags are your friend here. Dunelm sell them for £3 for a couple. It takes the volume out of items like duvets, pillows etc so they take up less space. I actually vacuum packed a load of clothes for DD so they would fit into the case- like joggers etc. they were surprisingly crease free at the other end.

@PotentialUCLmum We've already used them for the bedding and towels. Clothes she doesn't want in vaccum bags because in her words the less ironing the better 🤣

I went to UCL in 2009, amazing opportunity to live in central London for 3 years but can't imagine the costs now - you are close to everything and can get anything you need delivered, so I wouldn't go overboard. One top tip for any students who will be looking for part time jobs whilst they're there (a non-negotiable for me to afford it!) is to try and get a job at one of the outside caterers, I got paid amazingly well and worked at a lot of very fun big celebrity events a couple of times a week to top up my loans!

For parking in London I can pay with my card? My Dad is saying to bring pound coins and 20p's 😂 I was just going to pay by card.

@catmomof3

I think that the area around UCL is payment by phone, but do check.

https://www.camden.gov.uk/cashless-parking#

Each borough seems to have its own parking contractor and I have ended up with a bunch of apps on my phone.

Ringo and PaybyPhone seem to be the most common. From Square Miles link, RingGo is used by Camden. Load your card and your car reg on it before you set off. Otherwise you risk finding yourself at the curbside trying to get a glitchy app to work. Some boroughs/apps don't ask you to buy set times, but instead require you to "start parking" and then "stop parking". Given how expensive London parking is make sure you don't forget to "stop parking" when you leave. And, if applicable, don't forget to pay for congestion charge in advance, or if you have an older car, don't forget to check if it is ULEZ compliant. Most of London is 20 miles an hour, easy to forget if you come from elsewhere, with cameras everywhere.

So my dd started yesterday and did her first commute.
It went really well and she said most of her course seem to commute from home so she's happy. Looking forward to next week when she starts proper lessons and she can meet some others

@TheSquareMile @Needmoresleep

Thank you guys for the links. Hoping we don't need to actually park and my Dad can unload and they have trollies available so he can drop me and DD off and leave. Otherwise he needs to go park and come back and carry everything as I still don't have the energy after my cancer treatment.

When UCL say trollies is it supermarket trollies?

@catmomof3

Do you know in which street you will need to park?

@catmomof3 at Ramsay Hall the trollies were like luggage trolleys, ie flat bed ones, so not like supermarket trollies. Last year we had to take stuff from the car directly to DS’s room and your DD will have to queue to get her keys (that took 10 minutes for DS at Ramsay Hall last year as it was busy) so your Dad will be parked outside for at least 15-20 minutes. But he won’t be the only one!

Good luck with it all and I hope your DD has a fantastic time!

@TheSquareMile No lol. Her halls is outside double red lines. Hoping they open the gates by the Halls for people to unload and move on. If that's the case and they have trollies my Dad can drive home right away if not he'll have to go park. I think there is somewhere around the corner.

Oh that's good to know. Might need two trollies at this rate 🤣

Well getting closer to move in day for DS, haven’t seen too much of him since results day, he’s been travelling, came back briefly and been visiting his girlfriend at her uni. He has now committed to be here at 3pm today 🤣, to sort out packing and we’re booked into an 11 am drop off on Saturday.

He’s basically indicated he wants us to dump his stuff & go! Given that it’s a long drive & it’s my birthday Sunday we’ve booked a hotel south of the river (got to give a boy his space) , I wonder if he’ll remember to text me to even acknowledge my birthday!

Hope everyone’s preparations for UCL and elsewhere go well. It feels like a real transition from where I am, particularly given my son’s background but I’m relieved he’s ready to go!

Can anyone advise re; travel costs? Due to the TFL cyber security problems, ds can apply for a student 18+ Ouster yet. An adult weekly travel card is £50 for zones 1-3. Can we turn up in person at a tube station and get them to apply the 30% discount to a normal travel card?

The current advice from TfL is just to keep your receipts and they "may" refund the difference.

Which doesn't inspire me with any confidence whatsoever that they will

I don't think they would apply the discount at a tube station ticket office (if there are even any offices open these days) but it might be worth a try.

So DS1 for some reason wasn't getting any emails from the Imperial students union, and by the time he found out about his hall's freshers "mixer" events (from some random WhatsApp group he's been added to) they had all sold out

Then he dithered about booked the college-wide fresher events - and they have all sold out.

He is an idiot, but on the other hand, especially for the halls events I do think they should have enough capacity for everyone to be able to attend!! If there are multiple events, maybe limit how many people can buy tickets for or something.

But anyway, can someone please reassure me that he will still be able to make some friends!!

@RockaLock, ds is in the same position (but I don't think he tried very hard as he's not keen on forced socialisation). I too think these events should be open to everyone in their particular hall. Ds does, luckily, have a number of people he knows from school in his allocated hall plus one on his actual course. I've told him he does really need to make an effort tp get outside of his comfort zone.

Thanks, @Lightsabre, it's good to know there is at least one other student there similar to my DS! He does have 1 boy from his school in his hall - not someone he was particularly friendly with, but he didn't hate him either, and a familiar face is always good.

Yes, the halls events should definitely be open to everyone in that hall. Oh well, DS will just have to sit in his room on his own or go to the gym or something while they are on.

Moved DD in today, made her room all nice and cosy. I left to get the train home and she went and helped her friend unpack at her accommodation. She has come back to hers and is struggling to socialise with people in her accommodation. She went to the common room and she said people have already formed their own little groups and she feels awkward. It's horrible seeing your child struggle and not being able to do anything. Hopefully she'll find her people elsewhere.

It's early days @catmomof3. Does she have a pack of cards? Something simple at the shared kitchen table might help to break the ice?

She actually posted in the group chat she had a footlong subway cookie to share in the common room with anyone. She's an introvert but bless her she is really trying.

Well my DS is at UCL too and also an introvert and I haven’t heard a peep out of him, so have no clue whether sat in room on own or having a nice time. Don’t know whether it’s better or worse to know as obviously I’m just imagining the worst case scenario. Blimey it’s tricky being a parent.