~Introduction~

I am writing a review on the Lafrowda accommodation at the University of Exeter. I am a first year student and have been living there since September. The Lafrowda accommodation contains some of the largest numbers of students on the Streatham campus in Exeter.
It is also the cheapest accommodation the university offers and the buildings were constructed in the 1970's.
The flats are occupied on a 40 week term basis and are available to undergraduates, postgraduates and exchange students.
Lafrowda is made up of many blocks of flats clustered together on the edge of campus. The Flats are situated less than 5 minutes walk from campus and are maybe 15 minutes walk from the town centre. The flats are situated with Rowe House Accommodation, close to the Lemon Grove Bar.

~The Accommodation: Outside~

The Blocks are grouped in clusters with communal lawn areas in each cluster. There is planting and creepers at the foot of each block. Concrete walkways lead up to the doorways and across the lawns for easy access. The flats give easy access along a one way street to Cornwall House, which includes; The Lemon Grove Bar, Ticket Office, Toilets, Small General Store, Laundry Room, Music Practice room (must be booked), RAG office, Italian bistro, Photocopier, UPP accommodation office and societies' boards.
Dotted around the sites are numerous recycling and waste disposal units and bike racks.
The Blocks themselves are a typical 1970's style, with small grey breezeblocks and brown wooden doors and windowsills. Each block has a different coloured panel below the bedroom windows. However the buildings are looking very tired now, with flaking paint and windows and doors which don't fit properly.
The Planting and grass is keep up to a good standard, however the creeping plants up the walls are getting out of hand.
Parking on the road outside the flats is on a permit holder basis, most cars parked there are lecturers I think. Students are not permitted to park here without a permit, usually only given to disabled students. Parking is very limited; however there are a few paid parking places near Rowe House.

~Accommodation: Inside~

Lafrowda blocks are split into two types; 'standard' and 'Enhanced' with different prices for the two different standards of living. I myself chose standard simply on price.
The accommodation is split into shared flats or 3 to 12 people.

~Bedroom~

Each person has their own room which contains telephone and internet connection. There is a bed with mattress, wardrobe, sink and mirror with a light above. A desk with two pulls out draws and a chair, three shelving units above and left of the desk. There is also a wall to pin posters etc. to, above the desk.
Carpets are either dark blue or brown. The walls are not plastered and have the same bare breezeblocks as the outside. The ceiling is Artex white.

~Toilet and shower~

The flat consists of these rooms along a corridor along with a communal toilet(s) and shower/bath and a kitchen.
I was staying in one of the smaller flats for 6 people so there were two toilets, a shower and bath.
The larger flats have a bigger kitchen and another shower.
The facilities are adequate, however clean the shower leaves much to be desired. It is warm and temperature can be altered. There is a helpful hook on the back of the door for clothes. Both toilets and showers can be locked from the inside.
However our toilet is constantly breaking and leaking and numerous times has leaked out the door and soaked the carpet. Not very Hygienic!
The Bath tends not to be used as its rather grimy and there are two drying lines above the bath, so people tend to dry clothes above it instead.

~The kitchen~

The kitchen consists of :
Television on a stand above fridge
Small fridge
Two small freezers
An individual lockable cupboard for non-perishable food items
A cooker
Microwave
Table and six chairs
Recycling boxes
Two waste bins
Kettle
Three cupboards and work surfaces.

The kitchen is adequate for my needs but not somewhere I like to spend more time than I have to. The chairs are plastic and uncomfy and it's not really big enough for more than 2 people to cook in their at once. The fridge is no where near big enough and the microwave is ancient. We complained and recently got a new one.


~The cleaners~

We have a cleaner who comes 2 times a week, once for a full clean and the other for a light one. We also have a man who comes round and empties the kitchen bin every day.
The cleaners seem to come and go and are not very sociable. They do not speak to us and treat us with contempt. They spend ALL morning cleaning; they are really quite slow and inefficient. Their job is to clean the toilets and bathroom. Clean the kitchen and hover the corridor. The kitchen is often neglected in sweeping and mopping the floor and the consistency of the standard of cleaning is not great. Often the cleaners will not come for a couple of weeks until we complain and then they do.
The cleaners also clean at really inappropriate times, i.e. cleaning the kitchen at 8.30 before a 9am start.

~Living experience~

I have found noise nuisance is a real problem in Lafrowda, the walls and windows are not very sound proof at all and noise carries easily from the flat above, people outside and the kitchen down the hallway.
The fire alarms are a real problem; many flats have malfunctioning fire alarms which go off for no reason ALL the time in the middle of the night! Three nights in a row this is starting to wear thin!
The state of repair and upkeep of the flat is poor, due to the age of the buildings they are constantly needing repairs to gas, electric, internet and heating. Disruption is nearly continuous!

~Price~

The good thing about these flats is that, for Exeter, they are REALLY cheap compared to other University Accommodation:
* 355 single standard at £73.01 pppw
* 272 single enhanced at £88.41 pppw
However this has gone up from when I stayed there at standard from £64 a week. Its rumoured the flats have been taken over by private investors.
This money is payed straight to finance at Exeter through the website and their is a £300 deposit to pay at the start of the year

~Conclusion~
The flats are very close and convenient to campus and very cheap. But the price reflects the standard of living of the accommodation and I would pay a little more if you can for better accommodation