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Living in halls A to Z

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Bicycles

Most halls have bicycle storage. Bicycles are not permitted inside the halls of residence. For more information about site-specific transport please see the webpage for the relevant hall.

Cars

All sites are served by public transport. We strongly advise you not to bring your car to halls. You are not allowed to bring a car to Great Wilkins, Varley Park or Welkin Hall, and at other sites parking permits are required.  

Cleaning

Communal areas are cleaned weekly by site staff but this does not include vacuuming or washing-up. You are responsible for keeping your own room clean, and for keeping the communal areas within your flat/unit tidy and safe. This includes emptying the bins regularly. Further information about cleaning arrangements can be found in your kitchen.
If your room is en suite you will also need to clean the shower, hand basin and toilet.

If you do not keep your room acceptably clean you may be billed for professional cleaning.

In communal kitchens you should:

  • do your own washing up
  • clean the sinks and kitchen surfaces
  • clean grill pans after every use
  • not leave food lying around
  • not let the rubbish or recycling bins overflow
  • defrost fridges and freezers at least once per term.

In shared bathrooms:

  • clean the bath and shower after using them
  • always make sure the shower curtain is tucked inside the bath.

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Communal living

Please respect other students and the communities around the halls of residence and keep noise levels down. Any antisocial behaviour will not be tolerated by the university.

Complaints

Our aim is to provide you with the highest standard of service at all times. However, we know that things can and do go wrong. When this happens, we need to know about it so that we can put things right quickly and efficiently.

Most complaints can be resolved immediately, but if your complaint is complex we may need more time to investigate. We aim to deal with your complaint within two working weeks.

Make any complaints, comments or suggestions to the site manager at your halls of residence.

Council tax

Students living in halls are exempt from paying council tax.

Doctors

You are strongly advised to register with a university doctor or local doctor as soon as possible after you arrive. For more information see Register with a doctor

Electrical appliances

All electrical equipment is subject to approval from our staff. You need to ensure your equipment is safe to use.

Kettles, cooking equipment, electric blankets and heaters are not allowed to be used in study bedrooms, and neither is any appliance consuming more than 500 watts. Fridges or mini fridges are not allowed in bedrooms unless there is an evident medical need and in such cases will be supplied by the University.

Please do not plug in too many appliances. Only a four-way oblong extension lead with neon indication and an in-line fuse rated at five amps (Duraplug or similar) may be used. Cubic type adaptors and coiled extension leads are prohibited.

Do not make holes in furniture or fabric to accommodate wiring, and please remove all plugs from sockets if you vacate the room for any length of time.

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Emergencies

If there is an emergency contact the emergency services on 999.

If possible contact a member of site staff immediately after you have contacted emergency services.

Electoral register

Eligible resident students will automatically be placed on the electoral register in October which entitles you to vote.

Fire regulations

You and your guests are required to familiarise yourselves with all fire regulations. Fire and evacuation instructions are found in each flat – please read them carefully.

The following regulations must be observed at all times:

  • Keep all fire doors, which include your kitchen, bedroom and flat entrance doors, closed at all times.
  • Don’t attach anything, such as posters and photos, to the doors.
  • Don’t cover, remove or deface any safety signs.
  • Don’t cover or interfere with heat/smoke detectors.
  • Don’t bring any furniture into the halls.
  • Report any faults with fittings or furniture to your site office immediately.
  • Cooking or heating food or drink in the bedrooms is not allowed
  • Candles, jossticks, tea lights, electric bar fires, fan heaters, oil lamps or fireworks are not permitted in the buildings.
  • There are not allowed to be more than six people in a bedroom at any time.
  • Use of chip pans or similar is prohibited.
  • Take care when cooking with a wok, frying pan or using the grill and keep all equipment clean so that it does not smoke and activate the fire alarms.
  • Don’t overload electrical circuits.
Heating

All study bedrooms and communal areas are centrally heated during winter and the cost is included in your rent. If the heater in your bedroom or communal area is defective, please report this immediately. Further information about how the heating works is in the bedrooms.

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Insurance

Your personal possessions are insured up to the value of £4,000 while you are living in halls. Your cover is included in your rent.
Optional top-ups are available which enable you to tailor the insurance cover to suit your particular needs. Further information will be provided when you move in.

Internet

There is networked internet access in most study bedrooms and it is included in your rent. To connect your computer you will need an Ethernet cable and to change some settings on your computer. Instructions on how to configure your computer to access our network are on the free Information Services CD-ROM, along with free anti-virus software.

Alternatively, you will find all this information on the Information Services website.

Robert Tressell Hall: When you arrive you should be able to connect to the service straight away – but you will require an Ethernet cable. If you experience any problems please speak to reception staff.

Keys

When you arrive you will be issued with a key for your study bedroom and/or unit. Please keep your keys safe and do not give them to other residents or friends.
Remember to lock your door even when you are going to the kitchen or bathroom and to keep the front door locked at all times.

It is not possible for you to get spare copies of keys cut, so if you lose your keys you will be charged for having a replacement cut for you.
You must report loss or theft of keys to staff on site immediately.

Laundry

There are token- or coin-operated laundry and drying facilities at each halls site. Information about how to use the facilities, including washing and drying costs, is displayed in each laundry area. If you experience a problem with any of the machines, please advise one of the halls staff straight away.

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Meals

Catered halls

You receive a hot and cold breakfast buffet and an evening meal as part of your accommodation costs. Meals are served Monday to Friday during term time.  The service does not include weekends or the holidays.

Breakfast (7.30–9.30am)
Includes cereals, muesli, croissants, fruit, toast, fruit juices, yogurts, and a selection of traditional hot options and hot beverages.

Evening meal (5.30–7.30pm)
Daily choice of three main courses, selection of vegetables and salad bar,  choice of fruit, yogurt or dessert, cold beverages, tea or coffee. Also includes soup, jacket potatoes and snack items.


Our meals include vegetarian options and will discuss any other special dietary requests. If you cannot make the evening meal due to academic or university-related reasons, food can be arranged if you organise it in advance.

For more information on special diets or any other query please email catering@brighton.ac.uk.

Pets

No animals of any kind may be kept in halls of residence unless they are a service animal for a disabled person.

Post

See the web page for individual halls of residence for details on postal addresses and delivery.

Posters

Don’t pin or stick anything to the walls – it always leaves a mark. Please use the pinboard provided. Charges will be made if you mark the walls.

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Repairs and maintenance

Notify the site office within 24 hours of any problem needing repairs, and report it immediately if is potentially dangerous. To report less serious faults, please complete a maintenance form, giving full and accurate details of the issue, and hand it into the site office.
You may be charged for repairs if you caused the damage.

Safety and security

Please keep your study bedroom locked and windows closed when you are not there. It is also your responsibility to ensure that the front door to your flat/unit is locked.
Do not let anyone into your building or home if you do not know them. If you do and they cause a disturbance or damage, you will be held responsible.

There are CCTV security cameras at some halls sites and a security team on call at all sites. If you discover anyone who you believe is trespassing or presents a potential threat, please report them to site staff.

There are overnight security officers on site from 9.45pm until 7.00am, and their main responsibility is to ensure that the site is safe and secure.

The university works closely with Sussex Police and we have our own assigned police liaison officer, who works regularly within our halls of residence and with all students to increase their safety. You can contact the officer via university email and the Virtual Local Action Team (VLAT) on the community pages of studentcentral.

Smoking

Due to the law, smoking is not allowed anywhere inside the halls of residence, including in your own bedroom and only permitted outside in designated areas. The university will fine students who smoke outside of permitted areas.

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Special requirements

We have rooms suitable for wheelchair users and students with hearing impairments. Further adaptations to halls units can usually be made to suit individual requirements. However, this may not be possible where major structural adaptations are required.

We can arrange for funded helpers to live in halls to support you if you are disabled. If you would prefer to rent private accommodation, the Accommodation Office will try to identify suitable properties.

Sports facilities

All residents of halls in Brighton and Eastbourne have free access to the university’s fitness, sport and wellbeing facilities at the following off-peak times:

  • Weekdays 7.30am – 12 noon and 2.00pm – 4.30pm
  • Weekends 8:30am – 5.00pm

You can also upgrade to a full annual membership allowing greater flexibility.

For a full list of sports facilities, courses and sports clubs see Sport Brighton

Subletting

You are not allowed to sublet your room. This includes sharing your room with someone or allowing relatives, friends, boyfriends or girlfriends to use it.

Transport

For more information about site-specific transport please check the webpage for the relevant hall or see our page of useful contacts for sources of local transport information.

Transferring rooms

If you are not happy with your room allocation after you arrive, you can put your name on the transfer list in the Accommodation Office. This scheme allows you to swap rooms with a student from another hall. As some halls are more popular than others it is not always possible to move to the hall of your choice. You will be charged a £25 administration fee if you transfer between halls under this scheme.

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Television licence

If you decide to bring a television, you will need to arrange for your own TV licence. Quality of TV reception cannot be guaranteed. You will also need your own TV licence if you watch TV on your laptop. For details visit TV Licensing: Students

Visitors

You are responsible for the behaviour of any visitor you invite into your accommodation.

Daytime visitors are allowed, as long as there are never more than six people in any study bedroom at one time.

Overnight guests must be over the age of 18 and are allowed to stay for a maximum of two nights out of every seven. It must be agreed with site staff and your guest must be signed in at reception and given a visitor’s pass. You must be on site with them at all times. 

 

 

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