I got a reply to my email to student accommodation:
Dear Dylan
Thank you for your email.
The waiting list was intended to give you an idea of the position of your application on the list; we will be continuing to issue room contracts to applicants over the coming week. This is because rooms have been offered to applicants, but not all of these room contracts have been accepted – those which are not accepted by their deadline will be re-offered to the applicants on the waiting list. We are anticipating issuing some more room contracts to applicants during this week and will provide another update to students still on the waiting list on Friday. If we have been unable to offer you accommodation in halls by Friday we will provide you with further information on seeking private sector accommodation. If, however, you do not wish to wait, and would like to receive the information on private sector options now, please let us know.
Kind regards,
Rachael
Student Accommodation