Accommodation information for specific students

Students with disabilities and long-term medical conditions

Spread across our campus, we have 30 rooms with adapted facilities for students with disabilities and long-term medical conditions.

Wherever possible, the University will adapt facilities to suit individual requirements. Provision can be made for carers and for students requiring other assistance; for example:

• installation of equipment for storage of medication
• arrangements for catered meals
• ground floor accommodation
• flashing/vibrating fire alarms.

If you have a guide or registered assistance dog, it is welcome and facilities can be provided for it.

If you have any accommodation requirements relating to a disability or long-term medical condition, please contact the Accommodation Office as soon as possible to ensure that these can be addressed in good time before you arrive.

The information you provide will be treated in the strictest confidence and will only be shared among the Accommodation Office, Disability Services, and, when adjustments are necessary, maintenance staff.  

Disability Services can also advise you on non-accommodation matters. 

Students who are under 18

In line with current safeguarding legislation, the University has an Under 18s Policy (PDF).

Every year a few applicants are under 18 on arrival in September but turn 18 during the first year. Although the University does not have the legal responsibility to act in a parental capacity to these students (the legal term for this is “in loco parentis”), accommodation is provided, all staff in regular contact with under-18s are checked by the Criminal Records Bureau and particular attention is paid to the wellbeing of younger students.

If you are going to be under 18 at the beginning of the academic year, you and your parents/guardians should read the following guidance.

Guardianship

English law defines those under the age of 18 as not being adults. As far as possible the University will treat students who are under 18 years of age in the same way as other students. You will be subject to the University’s normal rules and regulations and you will be able to access the majority of the campus facilities and opportunities offered in the same way as all other students.

We do, however, need to emphasise that the University is not legally responsible to act in a parental capacity to you as a student. For this reason the University requires you to have a legal guardian who must be resident in the UK. This person can be your parent, a relative, the local authority, a care worker or someone registered with a recognised or accredited guardianship organisation. If you are applying from outside of the UK, the University can help you find an AEGIS-accredited guardian. Please contact the Student Affairs.

As the University will not be responsible for you in a parental capacity we will not monitor how you spend your leisure time, manage your finances or intrude unnecessarily into your daily life or your reasonable privacy. However, the Student Welfare Officer will arrange a meeting with you soon after you arrive to discuss any issues regarding your welfare. You may also find it necessary to use our coordinated student affairs that offer professional information and advice to all students.

Accommodation for under-18s

As far as possible, taking into account availability and when an application for accommodation is made, under-18 students will be offered a place in accommodation that:

• is University-owned or managed
• is grouped within a designated hall 
• includes access to senior residents who are CRB-checked
• has 24-hour security cover.

Contract

Until you turn 18, the Accommodation Agreement will be signed between the University and your parent/legal guardian, who will also be responsible for the payment of your accommodation fees and will be notified of any breaches of the agreement. As soon as you reach the age of 18 you will be required to sign a new agreement with the Accommodation Office. This agreement will be in your own right and notification to your parent/guardian of arrears or breaches of the agreement will not continue.

Students returning to study after a break, including postgraduate students

We have a limited number of postgraduate rooms available in Whitelands College and give preference to first-year postgraduate students. We also accommodate undergraduate students who have returned to study after a break within the postgraduate halls.