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

Crikey@Delphigirl he must be horrified. So many of these natural events these days.
we still have a very unsettled girl, but she is now engaging with me and with the resources available.

@Delphigirl how lovely to have him back safe and full of his trip. Sobering timing on the earthquake.

Thanks! That's a big house!!

I know! 2 bedrooms per floor, with a bathroom on each floor.

6 girls and one (poor) lad; 4 flatmates in total from DD’s current flat, so she can’t have been too awful to share with so far!

DD’s housing concerns are now something very confusing about having registered as a four but maybe wanting to be a six … but I think she’s happy as a four (if six it would be the girl she barely knows plus two friends of hers). They’ve found one place with four en suites, but she realises she’ll probably have to share a bathroom - alas she’s been spoiled as an only child whose parents have had an en suite for the last eight years.

The contracts seem to be mostly by room, no joint and several liability, and they seem to be realistically able to aim for under £100pppw WITH bills. Despite the large student population Preston seems to be much more a buyers’ market than a lot of places.

She has still done no washing and claims the laundry isn’t even in her building (it totally is, unless they’ve done some serious misadvertising).

That’s a very good price @DontCallMeBaby . Dd and friends are looking at two that are £80 something without bills but these seem to be anomalies so I’m wondering what’s wrong with them! They mostly seem to be £130 plus with bills. And I thought Nottingham was supposed to be cheap!!

Delph so glad he's back safely.
No news from ds1 re housing.
Ds2 watched football at school yesterday. The utter glee, excitement, teachers jumping up and down made me so happy.

Hi all, DS (Notts) is apparently going to start looking for houses this week. Looking for one with five other lads, I dread already to think what the state of it will be! Originally it was going to be eight of them with two girls added - the girls have withdrawn because of another friendship group (or they rethought the advisability of all those boys!).

Do any of the fellow Notts parents know which estate agents the students tend to use? I forgot to ask DS but would like to start having a look myself to prepare for contract and costing questions! TIA

@blinkbonny unipol, Purple Frogs, Uni2rent so far

Unipol have a good reputation in Leeds and I know they handle several Nottingham properties too.

thanks everyone. I’m sorry to hear about those with DC who are struggling - @Shimy @ZittiEBuoni please do post when you need support, we are all potentially in the same boat with our kids in these stressful times for them. but pleased to hear that your DS1 is finding his feet Shimy.

Oh goodness @Delphigirl , how incredibly sobering.
@Zebracat, really glad she is engaging.

What a shock for your ds @Delphigirl . It must really bring it home to have literally just been there 😢

Dd and friends are trying to get a house that is £83 or £113 with bills included. After our discussions about the likely cost of bills I'm thinking that the inclusive figure is pretty reasonable? She just needs to find out about any cap. It includes internet and TV licence too. They viewed another one that they preferred but it had already gone when they rang up straight after their viewing!

Have you seen that they have announced a rail strike for the 16&17th of December. Just as all the students are heading home for Christmas.

Argh - that kiboshes ds's plans big style

Both my boys have booked their train tickets for Christmas & of course now there are strikes both days.

Thanks @crazycrofter , will start having a poke around since I am anticipating being given next to no time to agree to back whatever choice they make !

Thanks for the rail strike heads up. DD needs to get to Gatwick on the 16th for a flight to Prague.Five of them going so I can't even drive them all. She's pricing up a taxi 💰

@mummyinbeds for 5 a taxi might work well but, depending on where she is going from, a coach may be better. Coach/taxi better than car as they can use bus lanes and who knows what might happen to traffic.

Thanks to everyone for the heads up about the forthcoming strikes. DS1 is planning to come home on the 16th so I ve warned him now. I hope everyone's dc managed to reschedule and arrive home on time.

Does anyone know what happens if the strikes go ahead & you can’t travel in the day you’d bought your ticket for? Will the railways honour it on the following non-strike day?

Usually, you can get a full refund or re- arrange without charge.

I am collecting Ds, no trains this time. Back in sept. I booked time off work knowing Ds finished on 9th Dec. I assumed he'd want to stay a few days after term ended. So I had planned driving down south on the 8th. Staying with dm a few days, then driving to Brighton on the Sunday (an hour on from dm) to collect Ds. He's just messaged to say he wants to be home for midday kick off for the Ipswich game on 10th and that everyone else is going home during the week, so he will be on his own 🙈 I didn't realise his housemates would go home so often. The 2 lads go home every weekend. The 3 girls go home some weekends, so Ds usually has at least one there with him. They all went home part of reading week too, Ds didn't have a reading week, they did different parts of the weeks though, so at least one was there with Ds. When ds1 was at UEA most of them stayed every weekend.

@Monkey2001 National Express has already hiked prices up. It's a pain cos they all have 16-17 railcards which makes it pretty cheap. Now they're going to have taxi cost one way and a single rail ticket to get which costs about the same as a return 😟

We will be picking DS up as trains are very tricky for his journey (2 trains, 2 buses to get home). But we have various train journeys to events planned - a funeral, a concert and today I managed to book tickets for the PDC World Darts Championship which DS was very pleased about.

He is finding a lot of people go home at weekends too.