London School of Economics

London

Official Passfield Hall 2013-14 Thread

Hi there!

This is the official Passfield Hall thread for 2013-14. Feel free to ask us any questions about staying at Passfield here.

FAQ

Q: How social is Passfield?

A: Very! Passfield has a reputation as one of the most social halls. The hall houses ~220 residents which means everyone knows each other; floors are smaller and closer knit; one meal a day is provided for at the canteen; and the doors and walkways between the three buildings all connect to the communal areas of the hall. This all means that the hall has an excellent community feel.

Q: What are the buildings and rooms like?

A: Passfield is a converted Georgian building and therefore has features not found in most student halls. Many of the rooms enjoy ceiling to floor windows and are high-ceilinged. Moreover, Passfield is actually made up of a main building and two sub-buildings which are all connected by a large garden in the middle; recently, we have received a multi-thousand pound grant to help make the garden even nicer and work on it should be completed by the time new residents move in!

Q: What does the committee do?

A: The resident-elected committee holds weekly meetings where it organises social events and helps to manage certain parts of the hall. Over the past year we have organised trips to places such as Oxford, football tournaments, club nights, theatre trips and parties. A recent example of other hall work includes offering welfare advice to those preparing for exams and the purchase of a Ping Pong table for the common room. Two weeks' worth of freshers events will be organised for incoming students when they arrive.

Q: What's the surrounding area like?

A: Passfield is in arguably the best location of all the LSE halls - Bloomsbury. We are about at 15-20 minutes' walk away from campus and no more than 30 minutes' walk from almost all the parts of central London you could possibly want to be at. Despite this inner city location, being in Bloomsbury means that Passfield is flanked by two garden squares, as well as being surrounded by some excellent shops and facilities such as the University of London library and union. Nightlife and entertainment wise, Passfield is within a short distance of Camden, Kings Cross and Soho - it's impossible to get bored living here.

Further Links:

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There is a brief video on Passfield that can be found here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fmM8F7MK3Y

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Please join us at our official facebook group where you can ask questions and find further information (including photos!): https://www.facebook.com/groups/634249449921729/

All the best,
Passfield Hall Committee 2012-2013 :hello:

(http://www2.lse.ac.uk/intranet/students/currentHallResidents/passfieldHall/whosWho.aspx#tabbedarea_T14_3)
Passfield committee logo small.png

(edited 11 years ago)

Reply 1

apt9

Thought I might as well bump this as I got an offer for a single at Passfield today :smile:

London School of Economics

London

Reply 2

whyeverynameisus

Are all the room offers at passfield given out by now? :confused:

Reply 3

PassfieldHall

Original post by whyeverynameisus

Are all the room offers at passfield given out by now? :confused:

Hi! They shouldn't be. The accommodation office allocates rooms in rounds on the basis of a lottery system. Getting your application in early is always a good thing but, as long as you make the deadline, you should have an equal chance of securing a room. :smile:

Reply 4

whyeverynameisus

Original post by PassfieldHall

As an international student, is that because I have chosen 40 weeks leads to my offer to bankside?...Do you think I should reapply? Thank you for replying though :wink:

Reply 5

rightofcentre

How are the single rooms in comparison to the shared rooms? I definitely picking Passfield as my first choice but I'm wondering whether to go single or shared.

Reply 6

PassfieldHall

Original post by whyeverynameisus

As an international student, is that because I have chosen 40 weeks leads to my offer to bankside?...Do you think I should reapply? Thank you for replying though :wink:

Hi there. I'm not quite sure how the reapplication process works, but I think you're probably right about the contract length - Passfield only offers 32 week contracts. That said, the hall offers luggage storage and the opportunity to stay in your room (at an increased rental cost because Passfield becomes a hostel to generate additional revenue) over the breaks. By all means reapply if you think these arrangements can work for you (most international students here seem to do fine with the short contract length). Marking a preference for 32 week contracts and a willingness to stay in a shared room on your hallpad application seem to be the best way to secure a place. Thanks for the question. :smile:

Reply 7

PassfieldHall

Original post by rightofcentre

How are the single rooms in comparison to the shared rooms? I definitely picking Passfield as my first choice but I'm wondering whether to go single or shared.

Thanks for the question. All room sizes are a little different, but on the whole those in shared rooms get more floor space per person than those in singles and, generally, shared rooms seem to be a little nicer. I would encourage you to opt for a shared room if you are on the fence. I was placed in a shared room this year that is spacious and attractive, and I'm living in a shared room again next year because I enjoyed it so much. I think it's important not to expect your roommate to be your best friend, but instead someone that you can live and cohabit comfortably with; with that in mind, you'll get on fine and save loads in rent. Opting for a shared room should also increase your chances of being placed in Passfield because we have a relatively large number of shared rooms. Perhaps also check the box on hallpad that says you are willing to be placed in a different type of room to your preference - just in case you are allocated a single at Passfield instead.

Hope that helped. Please feel free to ask about anything else!

Reply 8

rightofcentre

Original post by PassfieldHall

Thanks, put in my application yesterday for a shared and I ticked the box for any room. Hope I get a place!

Reply 9

PassfieldHall

Original post by bright88

Hey,

I just submitted my application form. I put high holborn as my first but all my friends have been saying how bad HH is. I kinda wanna change it now.

Passfield seems really attractive to me in terms of the social aspect and so on. I just wanna ask if it is in a safe area cuz i know it is quite close to camden town. Camden town can be a quite doggy place.

As an international student, i was gonna chose a 40 weeks contract. But I might just stay in the hall for only easter holiday, not christmas. Is it possible for me to stay in Passfield only during Easter? Extend the contract?

Another thing i am awared of is that Passfield does not have liftsss?! I have got quite a lot luggages. Are all the single rooms on the top floors???

thank you so much!!

Heya. Passfield is in a safe location. Camden is about 15 minutes’ walk away (which is further than you might think in central London terms) and the hall itself is definitely not in a dodgy area - perhaps look up the address on street view for the best idea. We've only had one incident of stealing near the hall in the entire year - which is pretty good for 220 residents staying over the course of 8 months. I would add that I've never felt particularly unsafe in Camden during the time I've spent there. It's chaotic on a Friday or Saturday night, but pretty harmless. Crime on the whole is low in central London.

With regards to staying over Easter - it is entirely possible, but you won't be able to technically extend the length of your contract. This is because Passfield becomes a hostel over the holidays in order to raise funds and subsidise our rent. Instead, you can choose to pay the nightly hostel rate (which I think is about 20-30% more expensive) and live in the hall over the holidays as a guest. This is fairly common and you won't be the only student to do this over Easter.

Finally, Passfield does have limited lift access to the LG, G, 1st and 2nd floors of the main building. This covers most residents, but there's no guarantee that you'll be placed in a room that has lift access. Don't fret though - the committee and other staff will be on hand to help carry bags and move people in.

Hopefully this has helped answer your questions – Passfield has lots in place to help international students move in. You indicated an interest in living in a single room - do note that the hall has a roughly 50/50 split of people living in singles and shared bedrooms and keep this in mind when/if you apply to the hall.

Reply 10

icycreamy6

Is it possible to put Passfield single as my first and Passfield shared as my second? Or is it not sensible to do this? Thanks.

Reply 11

PassfieldHall

Original post by icycreamy6

Is it possible to put Passfield single as my first and Passfield shared as my second? Or is it not sensible to do this? Thanks.

Hey, I'm not sure. I think it might make more sense to put Passfield shared/single as your single top choice and then mark the preference that shows you don't mind being placed in a different room type. But if you're really keen (of course you would be :biggrin:

) then maybe putting Passfield twice will increase your chances. Perhaps contact LSE accommodation, as Passfield isn't involved with where applicants are placed.

Hope that helps

Reply 12

lyw1234

hey

just got a single room at passfield. but just heard that there is no hot water and heating system!! is that true??

Reply 13

apt9

hey I was just wondering if Passfield get particularly shirty about people blue-tacking up posters/photos etc in their rooms?

just wanted to check before I went out and spent 20 quid on posters

Reply 14

londonsky

Original post by apt9

hey I was just wondering if Passfield get particularly shirty about people blue-tacking up posters/photos etc in their rooms?

just wanted to check before I went out and spent 20 quid on posters

I lived in Passfield last year, and I had no problem putting up posters with blu-tack (as long as you remove them from the wall properly afterwards) :smile:

. I believe every room has a fabric board too, so if you bring some board pins then you can also pin photos and things up on that.