Rachael Alvey

Coming to university, it was massively reassuring that Loughborough was highly ranked for student accommodation, as I had heard many horror stories from other universities.

Halls (and hall committees) at Loughborough are one big community. Halls always provide a welcoming atmosphere and opportunities to take part in various activities that really make your student experience special. Each hall’s committee puts on so many social events to help you meet people outside of your flat, which was very helpful for me. By playing IMS (hall sports) or getting involved with Action and RAG (two charity societies), you can meet people from your hall and other halls with similar interests too. There is always something for everyone. 

For my first year, living on campus was a no brainer as it allowed me to meet so many more people than if I had lived in town in private accommodation. For my second and third year, I decided to return to halls too - the ease of access to campus facilities and the overall atmosphere around the university made it difficult to leave. With accommodation in the student village, you’re just ten minutes from any lecture halls on campus, and only five minutes from the library. This means I’m much more likely to use the library as a study space rather than trying to work in my own room or a coffee shop, which is important as it provides me with the atmosphere and study books I need. Being able to easily meet friends just minutes away and not worry about walking home in the dark (as campus is well-lit) was a massive bonus!

The open banquet tables mean you can sit with a different group every day if you want and as you start to recognise faces from seeing them every day in the dining hall you become more inclined to talk to them. 

For me, catered halls were a great choice for another two reasons. Firstly, it gave me routine. Set mealtimes helped me to eat meals at normal times and also meant I would structure my day around my meals making my work time more effective. Secondly, it was a really easy way to get nutritious meals. If I got to the end of a long day of lectures, the last thing I’d want to do was cook myself a meal. Catered halls meant I had food on demand and there were veggies and fruit options available with every meal.

I have so many great memories from my time in halls. For my 21st birthday, we booked out the BBQs in Cayley and had a BBQ with punch for my friends. The weather was beautiful and everyone had a great time. Each hall has its own BBQ area which are great in summer and the barbeques I have had whilst in halls have never failed to disappoint. Another favourite memory for me is hall day. This is hands down the best day of the year for any hall. Last year, Claudia Parsons had a slip and slide and invited other halls committees to race on it. The weather was sweltering so the water was a welcome escape from the heat.  

Becoming hall chair allowed me to meet so many people who loved their hall as much as I did, and the competitions and rivalries between us were a massive source of fun. After being Cayley Hall Chair, I went on to become the President of the Hall Students’ Federation, and then the Student Union President! Joining the hall committee is fantastic experience for gaining skills to use in the workspace. In these roles I helped to institute more alcohol-free nights during freshers as well as advising on the planning of freshers from a halls’ perspective to make it even more amazing.

For those who are feeling home sick, the hall warden can provide pastoral support as well as hall welfare reps directing them to further help if needed. You can turn to them for anything. The cleaning and hall management teams are also really friendly, very thorough and quick to report and respond to any maintenance issues.

I prefer having shared bathrooms as it means if you host a social event in your corridor you don’t have to designate someone’s room as the guest toilet. Shared bathrooms also meant we didn’t have to clean the bathrooms ourselves! Always make sure to lock the door though – I accidentally walked in on a flatmate showering!

I think everyone’s concern about living in halls before joining is that they won’t get on with their flatmates. I was very lucky that all seven of us got on so well that we stayed together again for our second year and I still live with several of them now in my fourth year. Even if you don’t get on with your flatmates (which is quite rare), you will always find people you do get on with in your wider hall, your degree or sports and societies. A flat can just be a place to sleep if the social side of it doesn’t appeal to you, and if you’re uncomfortable and want to move too, contact the Student Accommodation Centre.