[HDNG]IN UNIVERSITY:[EHDNG][PARA][GRPH]A3[EGRPH][STAT][BULL] Catered: 2,128 places [BULL] Cost: ú70(30wks) [BULL] Self-catering:[PARA]493 places [BULL] Cost: ú60-65(30/43wks)[ESTAT][PARA][BOLD]Availability:[EBOLD] The percentage of London students living in college [PARA]accommodation varies enormously from college to college, but [PARA]for those that the colleges don't accommodate, there's a limited [PARA]number of catered places in the University's 8 intercollegiate [PARA]halls, self-catering flats in 3 blocks and its 132 places provided [PARA]through a head tenancy scheme. [ITAL]The catered halls are all [PARA]centrally located and of a generally high standard (except the [PARA]not-so-hot Lillian Penson Hall which is for postgraduates only).[EITAL] [PARA]As a rule, they are only really available for 1st years and others [PARA]who can claim special consideration (such as overseas students [PARA]- particularly at International Hall). 2 of the halls are for women [PARA]only and 1 just for men, and at these guests have to sign in.[ITAL] The [PARA]self-catering places in 3 blocks of flats are even more limited. [PARA]They are cheap (by London standards), but, 2 of the blocks (in [PARA]Rotherhithe and Colindale) are not central enough to be ideal.[EITAL][PARA][BOLD]Amenities:[EBOLD] Conditions in each catered hall are different but, [PARA]mostly, it's single rooms with shared bathrooms and [ITAL]minimal [EITAL][PARA]cooking facilities. There is also a selection of other amenities [PARA]including bars, TV rooms, function, meeting and study rooms, [PARA]libraries, launderettes, payphones and so on. Depending on the [PARA]hall, you may be able to enjoy the delights of a squash court, [PARA]dark-room, music room, bike sheds, gardens, videos and in [PARA]College Hall (one of the all-female blocks), there is a hairdressing [PARA]salon. In some halls, there is the chance to share rooms, [PARA]sometimes even for mixed couples. Self catering flats are [PARA]typically shared by 5 students. Each flat has single bedrooms, a [PARA]bathroom and a kitchen.[PARA][BOLD]Car parking: [EBOLD][ITAL]Not recommended; spaces are limited.[EITAL][HDNG]EXTERNALLY:[EHDNG][PARA][GRPH]A3[EGRPH][STAT][BULL] Ave rent: ú60[ESTAT][PARA]London Transport (buses, tube and trains) splits the city into [PARA]several 'zones' which are concentric circles from the centre. [PARA]Zone 1, for example, is the area within a radius of about 21/2 [PARA]miles of Trafalgar Square. Zone 2 is the next 3 miles and so on. [PARA]Obviously, rents get cheaper in the outer zones, but then travel [PARA]costs to the centre go up accordingly.[ITAL] [EITAL]Travel costs should be [PARA]taken into consideration when looking at rents because a [PARA]Travelcard from Zone 3 to the centre costs more than ú15 a week.[PARA][BOLD]Availability:[EBOLD] [ITAL]Contrary to popular belief, it's really not that difficult to[PARA]find accommodation in London, just buy a copy of the Evening [PARA]Standard and there are hundreds of places. It is however a [PARA]challenge of epic proportions to find anywhere that is both [PARA]affordable and inhabitable. There's very little housing in Zone 1 [PARA]even for yuppies, and students come a lot lower in the pecking [PARA]order. Zone 2 is a bit better, particularly for single rooms in [PARA]shared flats or houses in places like Wandsworth, Putney and [PARA]Fulham and wherever the tube system is lacking. Zone 3 is [PARA]relatively promising, but the catch is that it can take upwards of [PARA]an hour to get to the centre. Zone 4 and beyond are not popular [PARA]for the same reason, but, as they say, homeless students can't [PARA]be choosers. Although there are many thousands of people [PARA]living, quite literally, in cardboard boxes on London's streets, they [PARA]aren't students. In fact, many students manage to find very [PARA]comfortable flats for almost reasonable rents. There is also a [PARA]growing number living in squats. To be safe, students coming to [PARA]London should work out where they're going to stay first.[EITAL][PARA][PARA][BOLD]Housing help:[EBOLD] The University accommodation office with 8 full [PARA]time staff is [ITAL]a formidable service with the formidable task of [PARA]handling the housing requirements of the University's students[EITAL]. It [PARA]offers a bulletin board, vacancies list and accommodation [PARA]counselling. They can't check out all the places they advertise, [PARA]but they do dish out the head tenancy properties (see above).
