Cardiff Accommodation - Aberdare Hall (Halls of Residence at Cardiff University in general)

Member Name: pillipala_2

Product:	Halls of Residence at Cardiff University in general
Date:	14/05/02 (2951 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Close to uni/city centre, Secure, Larger rooms than other residences

Disadvantages: Constraints of set meal times, No all rooms have internet connections, Visitors must be signed in and out

Aberdare Hall is an all- girls hall situated 10 yards from the main university campus, and within easy walking distance of all university buildngs and the bustling city centre. It was established by Lady Aberdare around a hundred years ago, to promote the further education of women. It has 127 residents, and as such has a friendly community feel. The hall is well liked by UK and international students alike and enjoys a refreshingly cosmopolitan atmosphere.

Unlike other university run halls, Aberdare Hall is run by a small group of dedicated staff, headed by a Warden. This allows for a strong pastoral aspect to the care received by students. The hall offers both Catered and non-catered contracts, allowing students to decide which is best for them. The food provided is prepared on-site by a team of caterers employed exclusively by the hall. Special diets are catered for to the best of the staff's ability.

I lived at Aberdare Hall for two years from September 1999 to June 2001, and thoroughly enjoyed my time there. I was given a room in the Garden wing, the newest of the three wings, overlooking a pretty tree lined avenue (rooms on the other side of the building overlook the hall's garden). Some rooms have internet connections and all are spacious, fully furnished and immaculately presented.

The hall has a library, laundry room and two common rooms with a television and piano in each. There is also a beautiful oak panelled communal dining room where meals are served.

Unusually, students living in the hall have first refusal on their room for the following year, allowing them to spend the whole of their degree there if they so wish! Many do decide to do this, owing to the environment which is perfect for study, especially in the later years of a course.

Of course, as with any residence, there are disadvantages to living in Aberdare Hall; incoming calls come through the porter and are announced over a ta
nnoy system, but residents soon become accustomed to this! Meal times are quie short, usually lasting little over an hour, which does contrain students a little, but the food is good and not having the inconvinience of cooking is well worth it. The only other real disadvantage is that the dining room is sometimes hired for outside functions, meaning that student mealtimes are sometimes moved.

Aberdare Hall doeas 'enjoy' (?) some stereotypes which are banded about by students living in other halls, including that it is run by nuns, that there is curfew and that men are not allowed inside! None of these are true however.

I would reccommend the hall to any female student keen to live in a secure, multi-national environment.

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