[HDNG]IN COLLEGE:[EHDNG][PARA][GRPH]A1[EGRPH][STAT][BULL] Self-catering: 1% [BULL] Cost: ú24(52wks)[ESTAT][PARA][BOLD]Availability:[EBOLD] The self-catered places are in the South Acton Housing Estate (12 mins by the 207 bus from Ealing), where TVU has an arrangement to accommodate 70 students (mostly 2nd years) in 24 minimalist flats. There are plans to build 325 new places at the Slough campus, on stilts above the car park.[HDNG]EXTERNALLY:[EHDNG][PARA][GRPH]A3[EGRPH][STAT][BULL] Ave rent: ú60[ESTAT][PARA]London Transport (buses, tube and trains) splits the city into several 'zones' which are concentric circles from the centre. Zone 1, for example, is the area within a radius of about 21/2 miles of Trafalgar Square. Zone 2 is the next 3 miles and so on. Obviously, rents get cheaper in the outer zones, but then travel costs to the centre go up accordingly.[ITAL] [EITAL]Travel costs should be taken into consideration when looking at rents because a 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 find accommodation in London, just buy a copy of the Evening Standard and there are hundreds of places. It is however a challenge of epic proportions to find anywhere that is both affordable and inhabitable. There's very little housing in Zone 1 even for yuppies, and students come a lot lower in the pecking order. Zone 2 is a bit better, particularly for single rooms in shared flats or houses in places like Wandsworth, Putney and Fulham and wherever the tube system is lacking. Zone 3 is relatively promising, but the catch is that it can take upwards of an hour to get to the centre. Zone 4 and beyond are not popular for the same reason, but, as they say, homeless students can't be choosers. Although there are many thousands of people living, quite literally, in cardboard boxes on London's streets, they aren't students. In fact, many students manage to find very comfortable flats for almost reasonable rents. There is also a growing number living in squats. To be safe, students coming to London should work out where they're going to stay first.[EITAL][PARA][PARA][ITAL][GRPH]A3[EGRPH][STAT][BULL] Renting: 99%[ESTAT][EITAL][PARA][BOLD]Availability:[EBOLD] [ITAL]There's plenty of housing at a price. [EITAL]Bear in mind that many students are mature or local to London and don't need the University's help in housing themselves.[PARA][BOLD]Housing help:[EBOLD] The Administration Department runs an [ITAL]excellent[EITAL] accommodation service with 4 full time officers. They have contacts with over 600 local landlords and last year housed about 1,500 students from the Ealing site within 4 miles.[PARA][PARA]
