UEA Accommodation Info

Has anyone picked en suite village? Is it a hassle to get to uni? Is it less lively than en suite campus?

Has anyone picked en suite village? Is it a hassle to get to uni? Is it less lively than en suite campus?

I was thinking about applying for a two bedroom unit, since I'm not too keen on sharing kitchen with 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 other people (aren't food allergies just lots of fun?). I'm a bit worried about the small number of rooms, though. Does anybody know if the two bedroom units are usually in high demand?

I was thinking about applying for a two bedroom unit, since I'm not too keen on sharing kitchen with 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 other people (aren't food allergies just lots of fun?). I'm a bit worried about the small number of rooms, though. Does anybody know if the two bedroom units are usually in high demand?

I think all of the accommodation is in quite high demand but usually those are less popular for undergrads as they are slightly more expensive. I'd certainly recommend getting in touch with UEA to discuss your allergy as it possible it may give you higher priority for that type of flat. Not sure, but certainly work asking about it!

I hope you don't mind me asking but what foods are you allergic to and how bad is it? Do you have to avoid eating the foods or is it that you can't be anywhere the near foods?

I did get in touch with UEA, actually, asking whether my allergy was something I should mention in my accommodation application. They told me that they can't control what's kept in the kitchen since it's a communal area, and perhaps I'd be better off looking at private accommodation off-campus. Which I don't want to do, because moving to another country is scary enough as it is.



Don't mind at all. I'm allergic to lots of things, tbh, but my peanut allergy is the only one that causes anaphylaxia and potential death, which is why I'd rather not have peanuts anywhere near the food I'm going to eat. I can be around peanuts without feeling anything, but it's enough that the slightest amount of peanut protein comes in contact with my mouth or lips to cause a very strong reaction. I'm thinking that if I only share kitchen with one person, it's only one person I have to ask to keep peanuts out of the kitchen. And if that doesn't seem reasonable to them, well, it will still be a lot easier to keep my food separated from theirs than it would be if we were, say, eight people sharing a fridge.

Well that's disappointing from UEA . I understand they of course can't say that they can control it, and have to be careful what they say legally, but I would have thought common sense would dictate that sharing with less people is easier, so they could consider it when placing you.

As I mentioned those types of rooms I believe have a bit less demand so hopefully you should be OK with getting one. Incidentally someone I used to live with had a severe peanut allergy and lived in ensuite campus for his first year. He never had any issues with his allergy and actually, spent a large amount of his time in a different flat so in effect had two sets of people who had to bear his allergy in mind. I'd imagine the main thing will be keeping cooking utensils and things separate, in case someone were to not wash them properly, you could consider keeping them in your room to make it easier. Personally I'd imagine that if they are nice people (which is hopefully highly likely) your flatmates will be more than happy to avoid peanut containing foods and be very careful with ones that may have traces. No-one I met in my entire time at UEA would have had a problem with that. The closest to an issue we had with my housemate was someone once asked him if he'd like a cherry bakewell not realising it uses peanut oil. He of course declined.

I can understand you wanting to share with as few people as possible due to peanut allergy. My concern with the 2 bed units would be you missing out on the social side of halls. Have you considered applying for halls but asking to share with as few people as possible. This link might be useful for you in deciding which order to list your preferences: https://portal.uea.ac.uk/documents/6207125/6357051/Residence+Type+room+comparison+2016.pdf/3c2ad3c7-23bf-410f-8314-571c2a2dde8a. I looked in a couple of the halls on open day, one which was the Ziggurats was accidental (long story). I noticed that the cupboards which you can use to store food or other kitchen items can all be locked. They're a decent size as well so you could keep all your things in the cupboard. This page has the links to all accommodation options, click on any of them and then 'Facebook gallery' to get an idea :http://www.uea.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/accommodation/options. If you ask the accommodation office, they might be prepared to put a notice up in the kitchen to let other students know there's someone in the flat with a peanut allergy. Due to how many people have peanut allergies, you'll find that your flatmates will be understanding. It'd also be worth you asking accommodation office to put up a notice telling other students what to do if you do have a reaction. The accommodation office is right in saying that they can't control what's kept in the kitchens but by being honest with your flatmates about what you are ok and not ok with, you'll find that sharing a kitchen won't be a problem. For example, if you're ok with someone eating peanuts at one end of the kitchen table and you the other end, tell them.

Hope this helps.

If you're not into parties, then maybe going for 2 bed unit for first choice, then the accommodation which has smaller flats for 2nd & 3rd. It would be worth you asking to share with as few people as possible due to peanut allergy. Also ask about the notice for the kitchen saying what isn't ok for you.

If you do get placed in 2nd or 3rd choice accommodation, avoiding contamination in fridge and freezer would be easiest by you keeping your food in lidded containers. Don't buy them until you know how much space you have, possibly use the bottom shelf of the fridge especially if that has the draws designed for keeping salad stuff in. I think students from outside UK (seen your comment about moving countries) have an earlier move in date which will give you first choice of fridge & freezer space.

Yeah, people are usually very considerate about allergies, so I'm not too worried. Only thing is that people who don't suffer from any allergies rarely think twice about what they eat. I've had people eating snickers bars and peanut butter sandwiches around me, and when I've pointed it out, they've actually gone, "Oh god, I'm so sorry, I didn't remember this has got peanuts in it." In peanut butter. So I'm more worried about those kinds of things than about the *******s who'll eat peanuts around me just out of spite. (Although they exist, too. I once had a classmate who brought peanuts to class just because he didn't like me. Very nearly got kicked out of school for it.)

Anyway, I hope you're right about the two bedroom units not being in very high demand and that I'll get one, because it really would make my life easier.

Can anyone tell me if there are multiple 'green' flats for each type of accommodation? e.g. Are there more than just the one green flat in the En Suite Village? Also, do you know what sort of people tend to opt for the green flat choice? Thanks!