Accommodation.
Hi all, I thought I would make a thread to offer some advice to everyone who's looking at accommodation in Coventry because I wish I had something like this when choosing.
I'm Arun, I study Automotive design, and I have stayed in two Liberty Point owned properties, and I also have experience of the other accommodations in Coventry. These are MY opinions and my experiences from the accommodations, people will have different opinions of different places!
Liberty Point.
Pros:
- Great sized rooms - The rooms are fairly big, especially if you opt for the larger premium rooms, which are huge, they also come with a double bed. It is en-suite, the bathroom is a fairly good size, quite easy to clean due to the tiled floor. The single beds are not bad, you get used to it after a while, very large desk space which is ideal for most Art type courses as you use up a lot of space, and somewhat sufficient storage space with the under bed storage you have, I found the wardrobe to be quite small.
- Secured Site - The site is managed by security from 6 pm til 9 am, its quite good knowing that there is security around you such as secure gates, cameras etc, however if there is any incident they will most likely call the police and let them deal with it.
- Short distance from the university - The uni isn't very far away at all, you can crawl out of bed, shower have a quick bite and be there fairly quickly if you're running late. It's also roughly a two minute walk from Far Gosford street which has a few shops, and a Dominos where you will probably spend a lot of money...
- First years only club - It's not an official club by the way... Anyway, it is only open to first years, so you will get the chance to POTENTIALLY talk to a bunch of people that are in the same as you and POTENTIALLY, huge emphasis on that word, make friends.
Cons:
- Kitchen - The kitchens are really outdated, I feel that they are due a refurb, a lot of the equipment seems to vary depending on what flat you're in, for instance you may have a small chunky TV, or a equally small Flat Screen TV, you may have a great new fridge or an old fridge. Same goes for the cooker although from what I've seen mostly all of them are terrible, they're really really slow, old and small. The living area next to the kitchen is quite adequately sized however. Also you get one cupboard each in the kitchen, which means that you really don't have a lot of space. Also one Fridge/Freezer between 6 people really isn't ideal at all...
- Security - From my many encounters with security I find their leniency and procedures vary. Sometimes I am made to feel like a child, when I am in my own flat at university. After 11:30 you are not allowed to make loud noise, which seems incredibly reasonable, however if they come up to your floor, hear any noise, they will often come in and quite rudely speak to you. However one or two Guards have asked nicely and for good reason as the music was loud. Also they will not let you bring anyone in after a set time, if it's past 12 midnight, you aren't allowed to bring anyone to YOUR flat. Ridiculous.
Furthermore they are very slow to open any doors which people may need to get out of and also slow to open the gates to let cars in, or if you're collecting a take away or simply getting a taxi.
- The stupid revolving door. - This door will be the most annoying thing ever in life to you. It's stupid to get in and out of the place with it there, the poor old fobs will often not work leaving you confused and bewildered trapped in a green revolving trap. Seriously though, it is very annoying and you can barely fit in there with any bags, and if you wish to try to enter through the other doors on the other side (which you have no access to) you cannot open them, and the security will not open the gates for you.
- Unsociable - The place is like a ghost town, people seem to avoid each other, there isn't really a friendly atmosphere around the place, I don't know barely any people who live in the same place as me! It doesn't feel like the official university halls.
- Price - The price of Liberty Point at 5,500 can be a killer to you if your student finance is quite low, make sure your finances are correct if you decide to live here.
- The office - The previous Liberty place I lived in, had an office that ran 24/7, meaning you can collect any parcels you wanted at any time. However here, the office operates from the morning until around 5-6. So if you are in Uni from 9/10 until the afternoon, it's really hard to get your parcels. I often come back to then see the office has been closed for lunch. Everyone seems to go on lunch at the same time... The office can sometimes be closed 2-3 times a day, for such a long period it makes getting anything you need from there such a hassle. Furthermore they do not offer a lot of services, if you need to do things to do with the accommodation they will just refer you to the student centre.
- Inspections - The previous Liberty I lived in, was private, nobody was allowed to enter your room without your consent, the staff could not barge in at all and no inspections of your room were conducted. I can understand the procedure of inspections in any accommodation. However I found the process of inspections here, ridiculous. They will specify a very long time as to when they are inspecting your room, a few days sometimes, so from Monday - Friday for example. They will then... regardless of your state, i.e if you're in the shower, just knock, say room inspection and walk in at their own leisure.
- Signing people in. - Again I understand the procedure, however it is painfully annoying signing every person in, specifying how long they are going to stay, it's a very annoying thing and often lengthy, however its protocol.
- Common room closure - The common room closes at 12, you wanna play pool? Too bad, you better go make your own table in your kitchen because you aren't allowed up at such times to utilise the equipment, haha! Although it is free, the pool table is on its last legs, terrible condition.
- Laundry - With the electronic system in place, if you want to do a wash, you must top up either 5, 10, 15, etc. There is no use of coins, it is all digital and this is often very annoying, especially if your wash will equate to £6, and you have to top up £10.
- Noise - Honestly if you live in C Block, you will be bombarded with noise outside your window if you live in the outward facing rooms to the uni. People outside smoking certain things... often make so much noise talking and playing music that it can wake you up, its so annoying, your chances of living in that specific place may be slim but hey now you've read this you may end up there ironically haha!
- Parking - Okay so you're a student, barely money as it is, and if you can get good insurance at home, lets say around about £1,100, and then you have the car the license and insurance, if you wish to keep your car at Liberty you have to pay around £550, which is about half of your insurance in that instance, it is far too high. Also if you wish to insure your car in Coventry, the area isn't the best and I've had some sky high quotes.
In conclusion Liberty has much more cons than positives in my eyes, the actual place isn't too bad, and if you can get past a few annoying things, and really push to socialise, it may be a okay place for you.
Rating: 3/5
Callice Court.
Pros:
- HUGE PLACE - This means there are a LOT of people, I often hear it being referred to as the 'hood' accommodation. But being a very large place, there are a lot of people there and this means it's more sociable, there is a larger sense of a student feel there as there are just a lot more students roaming around. There's a lot of parking there also, and its secured by a gate etc.
- Awesome key card - You don't have any old regular key, you have a key card for entry to the premises and this also offers access to your room, hotel style.
- Common room - The common room has sofas, sitting areas, a ping pong table, your mail is stored there (with parcels at the reception), and also it has an upstairs (I know right, an upstairs!!!) and there you have a pool table, TV to which you can connect, and windows you can even draw on... and its open 24/7.
Brand New Blocks - They have made some changes to some of the blocks, now looking a whole lot better, more modern, sleek and enjoyable to live in, try get a spot there if you can, they look great.
- Close to uni - Possibly one of the closest places to uni, gotta be in your business lecture for 10? I guess I'll wake up at 09:50 then.
Cons:
- Mix of years - Callice is open to all years, so you could run the risk of living in a flat with busy unsociable third years and then you, which can make it hard to socialise with them as you all have different priorities and you don't have someone experiencing the first year with you.
- No security - It is quite easy for anyone to just waltz in there, if someone has opened the door, a tailgater could just come in possibly looking to use the common room because theirs at liberty is closed now..., although its pointless, as they cant get into your block or room, so you're safe from that point of view.
- Parcels - Parcels aren't 24/7, you have to collect them from the reception in their opening times, and again this can be a huge pain.
- Small...everything - I found the rooms to be quite small there, the kitchen to also be quite small too, although its perfectly habitable, I think if you want a bit more space you may want to opt for elsewhere. The beds are fairly well sized, the bathroom is tiny, but at least you get an En-suite.
All in all Calice is pretty good, if you're willing to pay a fair bit of money and deal with a slightly small room it's a great place to be.
Rating: 3.5/5
Victoria halls.
Pros:
- Amazing looking. - It just looks great, modern, new, nice, looking at the place and thinking 'I live here' must be a nice feeling. You can escape from the Coventry area into some really nice place which makes you feel good.
- Kitchen. - If you haven't done it already, go and check out their kitchens on their site. Stunning modern new clean looking kitchen and also living room. Leather sofas in there, and again the kitchen looks amazing. And you also have a nice TV in there.
- Security - The usual in security, gated, safe blah blah And not to mention their staff is there 24/7.
- Call other flats, for teh lulz - You can call other flats in there, or even management from your hallway, its quite convenient, I guess.
- Modern sleek room - Although its smaller than the liberty rooms by a little bit, the rooms are amazingly nice, they look great, again, single beds, so get used to it guys. Also it's En-suite.
- Studios - Don't like people?! Have a studio! Live by yourself, quite highly priced, however it's nice to have the option there if needs be.
Cons:
- Signing people in - Yeah just, yeah...
- No onsite parking - Not good if you bring a car and you're concerned about it's safety.
- Monthly inspections - These are of both your room and also the communal areas, decide if you can live with that.
I really like Victoria Halls and I'd recommend it. It's a Good distance to the university, just in front of Liberty, and also its closer to the city centre so lugging those bags from Sainsburys won't be too much of an issue. Great nice looking place.
Rating: 4/5
Singer Halls.
Pros:
- Party Central - Definitely the most sociable of all places, its cheap and cheerful, the place is always really buzzing with life, the people there are always friendly, you get a 'You alright' and a smile, meeting people there, they just seem happy!
- Cheap - Although it isn't en-suite, it's really good for the money, there are little houses dotted around that make it seem like a little estate for students
- Large rooms - Okay eliminate the bathroom from your en-suite room size and BAM, you're left with a large room, it has a little sink and mirror in there if you need to have a quick freshen up, the rooms are a great size, always open to be personalised with posters and what not, there's a lot of storage space.
- Not too far from the uni - Its just behind Victoria halls, not too far at all, its close to practically the only worth club going to...
Cons:
- Small kitchen - Its a really narrow kitchen, small space to eat, not ideal for pre drinks but we are students and we make it work! There seems to be a fair amount of storage there though. And the white goods seem decent.
- On site management - On one occasion I ran into security, they patrol the whole of singer, and the most they really do with noise complaints is just ask for ID and you get an email about the noise.
- Shared bathrooms - Safe to say this just depends on who you live with and how clean they are, there is a bath there which isn't offered by the other accommodations, separate shower room etc, however if you aren't a fan of the idea of sharing with others, it probably isn't for you
Almost everyone I have met at singer really enjoys it, its cheap and can be ideal if you want to save a chunk of money by sacrificing an en-suite. It's really friendly and not too bad in terms of a commute.
Rating: 4/5
Others worth mentioning.
Priory halls.
Do your own research on this place, I didn't think it seemed necessary to mention it as I haven't experienced the place, from what I know its quite old and not the best place to live.
Rating: 1/5
Study inn.
Again i have never visited one, however it looks really really good, if you can bare the price which is quite high, you get A LOT for your money. Including your room being cleaned, nice fresh bed sheets fitted, a gym, a conference room, great modern setting, if you can justify the price I'd definitely say it seems like a great place to live!
Rating: 4/5
Liberty Park.
Huge similarities to liberty so just bare that in mind, a mix of years in this one, however I feel its quite far away and the commute mustn't be great.
Rating: 2/5
I hope this has been of some help to you and if you read the whole thing, congratulations because that was long.
Drop a comment if you wish to know anything else.
Good luck with everything and I hope this helps with your choice!!!
- Arun~