Thread 43 - GCSE Covid Cohort ..November 22 Remember Remember

[OrangeCinnamonLatte]

This is a support thread for our young adults post GCSEs 2020, regardless of their educational setting, and their results ( or life updates for those who went into work or have had results earlier). It is respectfully requested that all are supportive and helpful to each other. If you want to start a debate, e.g state vs private, uni vs employment please don't within this thread.

Some of us have been here since first thread back in yr10, some will be new. Everyone has been friendly and helpful in the past. Everyone is welcome. It is hoped this will continue. We were previously on the secondary board and then further education, now we shall be here in 'Parents of Adult Children' gulp

Our DS/DD may continue down various pathways ( employment, apprenticeships, higher ed). Be warned there might be lots of 'Uni Freshers' chat this time of year. My experience is that everyone is welcomed wherever, whatever their child is doing we have some in work, gap years , apprenticeships etc too. Lots of contributors with different experiences and always sympathy and advice to be had

Previous Thread

Oh that's very hard - lots of virtual contact for now then, but I agree it's not the same. (Hard for you too, doing the worrying.)

@Seeline , that sounds really difficult, could you encourage her to try the 7ni welfare services?

@Zebracat I'll see how she goes. She's usually quite willing to contact people for help/advice, so it's something to keep in mind. I think she was partly in shock last night - seems to have come from nowhere!

ah @Seeline just when things were going so well for your DD, that is hard to take. Is the train any quicker for you?

Sorry about the bike @craggyrat - you did everything right by buying a cheap one plus 2 locks, so annoying.

What a fantastic experience for your DS @Delphigirl Amazing photo.

@crazycrofter glad to hear the laundrette has been found and used :-) DD now using twice a week so didn't even bring any washing home weekend just gone :-)

Re accommodation for next year - does anyone have any idea the amount to budget for bills (give the rise in gas & electricity)? Despite my best efforts to get DD to wait, she is panicking that everyone else is looking now and as Lenton is so popular they want to sort something soon. She has promised not to sign anything or pay deposit without talking to us first. I've had a quick look myself and some of the adverts say bills included but when you look it's only Water & Internet. But I've also looked at sites the uni recommends and some are all bills included and will be so much cheaper than DDs current charges in halls.

For info Nottingham Uni have posted that if current students want to stay in halls next year it will be the same price for them as this year..

Loving the photos @PhotoDad keep them coming.

Hope you manage to get invoice sorted @Piggywaspushed - what was the invoice for as you mentioned to Crazy that her link for was accommodation? DDs system showed that she owed £2312 for Tution Fee but it has since been paid automatically by Student loan company. Took a while to show it had been paid though. I checked through the student loan loggin that it had been and then seem to take 2 weeks or so to show on her uni finance account.

@icanbewhatiwant glad your DS finally got back to uni - quite the trek :-)

My next task for DD is to purchase an advent calendar. I'm planning to send her some Christmas decs and post them to arrive at the end of November. Now she has sussed out how easy it is to collect parcels I am allowed to send post... Although I haven't told her I am going to do this, thought it would be a nice surprise.

Sorry to hear about dd @Seeline that’s so sad 😢 she’s not having an easy first term is she. I hope she’s able to make one or two good friends by the end of the year.

Dd really wants ds to come with us on Sat when we visit her. I sent him a link about Wollaton Hall being in one of the Batman films and said we’d visit it on Saturday and he was uncharacteristically impressed (“that’s actually sick!”)! He never quite watched all the top 200 films as planned during study leave but he’s watched most of them! So now I know how to get him to come places with us… most places will have featured in a film at some point?!

Thank you for the reminder Heifer, re accommodation I have texted DS to tell him not to sign anything without showing us, and to look very carefully at the utilities situation.

For those with fans of football / panini stickers (aren't they supposed to grow out of these aged 10?) - there is a panini stickers advent calendar 😁

Expensive but as I am saving approx £1.5M per week on DS's chocolate shreddies and ketchup habits (never in the same bowl I hasten to add), I thought it would be nice.

Sorry to hear that Seeline and Craggy. Both pants.

@Seeline sorry to hear that, just when your DD is starting to properly get into university life. It is really tough now, but in the long run, better to split up in the first year and not invest university years in a home relationship than split up further down the line. That does not help the hurt now though.

Poor dd Seeline. She hasn't had an easy time

@Heifer look really carefully at properties that say bills are included. They are often on a fair usage basis. If that limits the actual amount of fuel used that's not so bad, but obviously can mean extra bills mount up -especially if not all housemates are as careful as others. However, some put a monetary limit which in the current climate can be used up very quickly, again resulting in quite a lot of extra bills.

@Heifer which sites have you been looking at?

@crazycrofter so far just unipol.org.uk.

This was recommended on the uni website - "Good places to start your search are: • accommodationforstudents.com • unipol.org.uk/nottingham/accommodation • student.spareroom.co.uk • Rightmove

This is the document there are listed on.
guide-b-finding-a-new-place-your-guide-to-househunting.pdf (nottingham.ac.uk)

@seeline - thanks for the heads up. On the houses I've looked at I can't see anywhere it mentions if there are any clauses on the gas & electric bills that are included but that is definitely something DD will need to ask!

I'm not looking too closely tbh - don't want to do the work for DD, but am trying to get a gist of costs so I can help her decide what her weekly budget is, as no point in looking at houses that cost £* if she can only pay £ per week. So far they look ok as definitely cheaper than living on catered campus.

DD and her friends definitely want to live in Lenton as it's closest to the Medical centre where a lot of her lectures are and bio labs not that far away.

Yep. This was the issue DS had/has with ex shark/landlord.

Bills included is great if landlord is upfront and the fair usage is actually fair.

Certain uni towns tend to do certain things. Never heard of a house in Lincoln that isn't bills included.

@Seeline That's rough. Can you met midway by public transport for a nice lunch at the weekend?

@Heifer DS has signed for next year with bills incl. The contract stipulated that @£2k was identified as fair use for the house for four. It also said heating has to be on part of every day to stop pipes freezing whether they are there or home for the holidays.

Wow what a way to spend a gap year @Delphigirl looks incredible!

@singingstones where have you seen the world cup stickers calendar? DS would like that I think.

@Seeline sorry to hear about DD, I’m sure it’ll be for the best, it happened to my DS the day after we dropped him off but he seems to be doing well.
Good tip about fair usage policies on the bills included, I hadn’t thought of that.

DS has found some people to live with next year and they’ve found a house, I’ve been emailed a form to fill in regarding being a guarantor. Someone upthread, sorry can’t remember who, mentioned needing to be a home owner which we are not. I can’t see anything in this form I’ve been sent though

Here you go @Fiddlersgreen

Panini FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Official Sticker Series - 1 x Advent Calendar (Surprise Calendar), Multicoloured (34384) amzn.eu/d/4wLHJNA

@singingstones thank you, I should have thought of Amazon!

I know they're evil tax dodging whatnots but I do get a lot of stuff from Amazon, I'm ashamed to say 😔

I do too, it’s just so convenient and I’m very forgetful so do a lot of last minute ordering

What a load up ups and downs. Amazing photo @Delphigirl and what a promising future for DS @Comefromaway

So sorry for your DD @Seeline and that’s crap about the bike @craggyrat

DS hasn’t even spoken to people about house sharing yet. He knows of people who have gone to look at houses but hasn’t thought too much about himself apart from the fact that him and his gf have said they will live separately which I think is a good thing.

He is coming home this weekend and even suggested going to see his grandparents which was a pleasant surprise. He says they can meet the gf. Must be serious…

I'm sorry to hear about the stolen bike @craggyrat and the breakup @Seeline .

DS is home. I'm off work this week and went and picked him up this morning. Did a half hour sort out and tidy of his room with him, he had got a bit overwhelmed with it all despite trying (dyspraxia makes it hard). It didn't look too bad when I walked in but there was a lot of clutter on shelves, under the sink etc. Now listening to the thud, thud, thud of him playing darts in the dining room, he has been playing there for many years, its noce to hear it again. He's got a busy week, orthodontist appt, hockey training and a match, A level certificate presentation evening, plus several meetups with friends planned, as well as all his DSA support sessions online. Going back on Sunday. He has been studying this afternoon.

Just catching up on everyone’s news, good and bad…

Ds came home late last night. Was quite chatty about everything which is a nice change. At the moment he’s not planning to share with current flatmates next year (though he gets on with them all). He’s probably going to share with a friend from home plus a few people he has met through him.

@EspeciallyD and @279Nouveauxnoms - lovely to have DS home or coming home! Am v jealous! Although 3 weeks tomorrow we will be heading off down the A1 - going two days early to Christmas shop.

He now has a new bike. Tiny folding shopper he can probably store in his pocket it is so small but does the job. Have been impressed by how he has dealt with his little ‘crisis’. I think he has a trial with firsts swimming team later today so that’s exciting.

Best of luck to mini Craggy!

🤞 Craggyrat!