Kingston University Clayhill Halls of Residence (Halls Of Residence At Kingston University in general)

Member Name: rachieb123

Product:	Halls Of Residence At Kingston University in general
Date:	30/06/09 (320 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Parking, bus shuttle, campus security

Disadvantages: price and sometimes location

I lived at Clayhill halls of residence which is situated in Surbiton. As far as I am aware, these were the most expensive halls to stay in (I paid £97 p/w) as they were all ensuite rooms. The blocks are made up of three floors, (ground, first, second) and contain three flats each with four rooms. Room 1 for some reason is a lot bigger then the others; I was lucky enough to get this room!

The university provides a bus which ran every 20 minutes, which took you to the university. The bus service ended around 10pm usually, however cabs in Kingston and Surbiton don't cost that much if it is split between a few of you. I would say that travel to and from these halls really isn't a problem. It is about 15 minutes walk into Surbiton, which houses some shops, a Sainsburys and a Weatherspoons. It is also only about a half hour walk to the university, should you not want to catch the bus. An added bonus for me was that there was parking at the halls and you could apply for a free permit to park there for the year.

There was a communal area in the halls with a computer, pool table, sky tv etc, however I never used this so I cannot really comment other then to say it was there.

In regards to the rooms, they were all pretty basic decor, mine contained a desk, shelves, wardrobe, bedside table and a single bed. The bed actually lifts up and has masses of storage under it which is good. The carpets were all navy blue. Each flat is provided with a Henry hoover, mop etc so it is pretty easy to keep your room clean (although mine was often messy!). All the rooms have doors which lock when they are closed, so your flatmates cannot enter your room without your key. Likewise neither can you so don't forget it, otherwise it's a long wait for security to let you in.

The campus has 24 hour security and in the day hall managers work on site. In my experience the team working there were really efficient at dealing with complaints about tenants who were noisy at say 4am. I understand this is expected in halls but if you have work in the morning it's not fun! Often the security will talk to the person involved and ask them to be quiet, complaints are annonymous (although if it's your next door neighbour I guess it doesn't take too much guesswork). If it is not resolved they get a certain amount of strikes (received complaints) before they are evicted.

The halls are located in the middle of a housing area, so there are lots of homeowners living nearby, therefore I never found the area to be unsafe. I would always be wary walking at night in Kingston anyway, but no more wary to be walking by the halls of residence. There is also a big field on site which can be used by residents, although not for barbecues we found out!

The university was also running counselling drop ins at the halls of residence when I was there, which I thought was a great idea because not everyone wants to walk into the doctors surgery and be heard asking to see the counsellor.

Finally, I had a good experience at the halls, despite some unruly neighbours and a few flatmate arguments! I felt it was a great introduction to the student life. I'm giving it a 4/5 because of the price which I felt was a bit too much, also the halls are located next to a train line so some people delt with noise from trains. Also there is a sewage works not too far away in Berrylands, so sometimes it can be a bit pongy!

Summary: A good intro to student life, because not everything is perfect!