Do you have any advice for other parents...

A place for parents to share tips about what they felt and did when sending your loved ones off to University!

Whether you're feeling proud, sad, or just relieved, the community is here to support you through this exciting and challenging time.

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Did you secretly pack their suitcase without them noticing?

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How to cope with empty nest syndrome (or celebrate it)?

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How to save money on tuition, books, and care packages?

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How to keep in touch with your kid without being annoying

Remember, you're not alone in this journey. You're part of a community who are here to help each other out.

Reply 1

dirtmother

8

Good idea!

I've had two head off (although admittedly one has full time support outside college hours including sleep-in staff) and no empty nest syndrome yet although in both cases I would have liked to hear a bit more about how they were getting on. WhatsApp has been great for just seeing they are still alive without bothering them.

I sent Cakecards from Sponge, and sent OS Explorer maps and the odd postcard.

Reply 2

Newchat

Hi - yes I do have some advise for parents - its about rental property and utilities. My daughter has just finished her 3rd year at Uni. She lived in a house with one other friend. When we originally took out the year long lease the letting agents offered us a 'Bills Package' to pay for gas/elec, internet, water etc. I thought the price was rather steep and so decided to organise all this myself, setting up accounts with the appropriate companies. I'm pleased to say that my daughter and her housemate saved over £2,000 over the year as compared to the 'Bills Package', so definitely worth doing.

OP

Original post by dirtmother

Good idea!

I've had two head off (although admittedly one has full time support outside college hours including sleep-in staff) and no empty nest syndrome yet although in both cases I would have liked to hear a bit more about how they were getting on. WhatsApp has been great for just seeing they are still alive without bothering them.

I sent Cakecards from Sponge, and sent OS Explorer maps and the odd postcard.

Cakecards are such a good idea, I have never heard of them before!

The feeling of wanting to be more involved seems to come up quite often, it's always a tricky balance of letting me have their own time but also wanting to still be there and experience it alongside them. WhatsApp is a great way though to do that, do you have a family group chat with them? :smile:

- LT

OP

Original post by Newchat

Hi - yes I do have some advise for parents - its about rental property and utilities. My daughter has just finished her 3rd year at Uni. She lived in a house with one other friend. When we originally took out the year long lease the letting agents offered us a 'Bills Package' to pay for gas/elec, internet, water etc. I thought the price was rather steep and so decided to organise all this myself, setting up accounts with the appropriate companies. I'm pleased to say that my daughter and her housemate saved over £2,000 over the year as compared to the 'Bills Package', so definitely worth doing.

Wow that's a huge saving over the year and really good advice! A lot of students take what they hear at face value when it comes to bills included packages as it does seem like a good deal but you really do need to break it down, as you did, to make sure you are getting a good deal.

From my personal experience, private halls with bills included were usually a better deal than private renting with bills where landlords can set prices and make more than needed which isn't fair!

- LT

Reply 5

dirtmother

8

"From my personal experience, private halls with bills included were usually a better deal than private renting with bills where landlords can set prices and make more than needed which isn't fair!"

Worse still, I have seen that there is an ill defined (and likely unreasonably) 'fair use' policy resulting in additional charges and withholding of deposit return.

Reply 6

jonathanemptage

21

You've got to be strong for them they are likely struggling or are going to struggle with very similar feelings (but they might not show it the same way.). So now is probably the most important time to support your child, since they were born or started school. You need to encourage them to give it time when they phone and say "I hate it here and want to come home." but if they do leave support them in that decision too.

Reply 7

dirtmother

8

Understanding how student finance works is important with the whole 'give it time' thing as there are a variety of cut off points to take into account (sometimes it doesn't pay to 'give it time' in practice, even though in principle that's a good idea)

Reply 8

McGinger

18

Bath Uni is running a series of online 'parent advice sessions' from October - on a range of relevant topics - https://www.bath.ac.uk/topics/information-for-parents/
Useful even if your child isnt thinking of applying to Bath.

OP

Original post by McGinger

Bath Uni is running a series of online 'parent advice sessions' from October - on a range of relevant topics - https://www.bath.ac.uk/topics/information-for-parents/
Useful even if your child isnt thinking of applying to Bath.

Such a good idea! If you manage to get to an open day it's worth checking if they offer a parents talk as well :smile:

OP

Original post by jonathanemptage

You've got to be strong for them they are likely struggling or are going to struggle with very similar feelings (but they might not show it the same way.). So now is probably the most important time to support your child, since they were born or started school. You need to encourage them to give it time when they phone and say "I hate it here and want to come home." but if they do leave support them in that decision too.

Couldn't word it better if I tried! :heart:

Do you have any advice for other parents...

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