Is there a list?

mhoc

My daughter is going to uni and is going to be (hopefully) in halls of residence in self catering accomadation. Is there a list somewhere of all the stuff she will need to take up with her.

I have a sickening dread it is going to cost us a fortune. There is quite a bit form m-i-ls house that she can take but I think it will still end up as a huge buying spree

If they are self catering do they have a communal kitchen and if so how thye store their food and kitchen equipment without other people borrowing things?

She has only got in via clearing this week so we have not had any time to get ourselves ready

Mary

Snow_Angel

Hi - I've lived in halls with shared kitchens. So here's the deal. They have a fridge where you put your stuff and if people decided to "borrow" it, then you put a polite note saying "don't do it again" or ask everyone in the flat who did it. Sometimes it doesn't happen at all. I, to be honest, have been lucky with all my housemates. How many people will she be sharing with? It's usually easier to keep a check on these things if there are less people sharing. Sometimes the kitchen cupboards are lockable (e.g. with a small padlock). best thing is to ring the accommodation office at uni and ask them what the exact circumstances are. Also, does a cleaner come in and do the kitchens or do they keep it clean themselves (and the bathroom for that matter?). If not, a good idea is to get a kitty at the beginning of term between them and sort out cheap cleaning stuff.

Also, does she have any relatives who are thinking of buying her a "going-to-uni" present? Maybe you can ask them to give her food hampers or shopping gift vouchers for say Tesco or Asda?

Also, she may be able to store cans/bottles of food in her room in a box under her bed etc if she's worried about her housemates taking it. But that may not happen - it is a bit of an adventure admittedly! You never know who you'll end up living with. I'm absolutely sure she'll be fine. if not and she's unhappy or doesn't get on with her flat mates - then the accommodation office can always switch her into a different flat after she moves in (some people do end up leaving in the first few weeks when they realise it's not for them, so that's always an option).

Good luck to you both

ffeindadifyr

Has she visited the uni during clearing. I know most unis will pay travel expenses to visit... I highly recommend this as I have worked in the clearing office at my Uni for 4yrs and the amount of stressed that is lifted by parents and kids visiting the campus is huge.

Once you're there you will get a tour of the campus/department and maybe even the accomodation (although - the choice of accom. is probably restricted by now) - Ask questions... although unis are desperate to fill places now they want to make sure that the people coming will make the distance and won't drop out!

Can you tell us which Uni she's thinking of going to?

mhoc

She is going to York St John and only decided to go through clearing on Monday. They have a special open day on Wednesday for people going through clearing. So I will have to give her a list of things to check, this she will loose on the train. The first time we will go up is on the day we take her. She wants to live in the halls and wants to have ensuite self catering but I suppose she might have to take whats given her at this stage and like you say move later in the term if she wants.

She has a rail pass so the train fare is no problem. Mind you she does not even think like a student. She says she will take a taxi from the station if she cant see the signs to it!

Mary

nearlyrich

Don't buy expensive stuff, my daughter had her toaster "nicked "for a laugh by some weirdo who thought it was a great joke to round up all the kitchen appliances and put them in one kitchen after a night on the beer.

We did a couple of threads this time last year about useful things to take, some of the things my two bought they used a lot some things never got used... from memory a pop up laundry bin was good, a case of beer for the first night was good, propped open the door and invited people in for a chat and a beer, don't buy loads of pans because everyone brings them and the £2 from Tesco type are fine for warming up a tin of beans (if there is no microwave).

I got my two a starter shop including big pack of washing powder, large bag of rice, pasta, coffee etc. In halls they don't have a lot of room to store stuff.

Don't worry it will all be fine and she will sort out what she needs!

Joey_3

As for food going missing from the fridge freezer, a great investment is a permanent marker pen. It's a shame that you have to do it but it's gutting when some of your food goes "missing" - we found it was people from other floors coming to take it rather than your own flatmates. Just by writing your name on everything in marker pen, it really helps stop people stealing it - sounds silly but it's like the Derren Brown thing, if you leave a wallet but draw a circle round it - no one will touch it as they know someone has claimed it and is keeping an eye on it.

Make sure she has some nice towels, and a dressing gown - essential for fire alarms at 4am and random wakings up during the night.

I kept tins and packets of food under my bed in Halls, my Mum provided me with a box of "essentials" from Tesco which was soooo helpful, and I continued to use the box all through University life.

Saucepans, plates, cutlery etc. were mainly passed down to me by family and friends - you don't want anything too fancy as it encourages people to use it or even steal it.

Also at least two, preferably three different duvet sets as you can really change your room by changing your bedding, and silly things like that make a huge difference at Uni (it also means she won't have to worry as much about fighting for the washer when everyone else wants it).

Joo111

Just a quick reply,

there are quite a few lists out there, try typing in 'what to bring to uni' into google.

also as for cutlery etc, think of it as only needing to last that year, buy the cheapest stuff as a)it will either ruined by owners bad cooking b) ruined by flatmates of owners as they will have already ruined thier own or c)stolen at end of year/left in someone elses flat or room/ or broken!

Try to make sure your offspring goes off to uni thinking that all thier housemates will be great and wont steal thier stuff, if they do then deal with it then.otherwise thier new flatmates might be slightly offended as they werent given a chance.plus it kinda automatically makes you assume all flatmates are bad and will steal your stuff, dont forget you might want to borrow thier sometimes!

In the second year of uni your daughter will have chosen who to live with and will know what things are needed for the kitchen etc, it coul;d even be split by all the housemates.

as for quantity i personally would suggest just bringing what si needed for everyday use, and small amounts. e.g. 2 big plates 2 small, 2 bowl, 4 of each fork/knives/big and little spoons 4 glasses and a few mugs. you can get some preety good cheap flying pan & pots etc stuff from tx maxx, but if you have a few old ones at home send her off with those,as it cuts down on cost.
also try primark and a big ikea trip for things such as a laundry baskets etc.

a few weeks before i went to uni, i made all my ,meals/did my laundry etc for a week, and made note of everything i used (eg a measureing cups, fairy liquid, softener).

Having said all this, and assuming your daughter hasnt lived away from home, she wont really know what and how much she needs till shes been there and done it all for a while-she can always buy it along the way!

hope ive helped at least a bit!

so much for this being quick! :rolleyes: (bored at work)
xoxoxo

Snow_Angel

Just a thought - a good place to get kitchen stuff like cutlery, plates, saucepans etc are charity shops and boot sales. I always browse round them (got a lovely gas stove kettle yesterday for £2!). Or like Joo111 said, take any spares from home or ask relatives/friends if they have anything lying around that they don't use.

faithless

Tbh, I found Ikea was cheaper than charity shops!
I'd say go to Ikea (Wilkinsons or Tesco Value is quite cheap if there isn't one by you) and either get a multipack of plates and dishes, or buy 4 of big plates and dishes (4 - for feeding friends, and for when you leave the washing up til later).
Also get some mugs and glasses (Value @ 4 for 80/90p) -they will probably get broken. A sandwich toaster (cheap Tesco Value one) is awesome for cheap fast food, and is a good present, e.g. if a relative wants something to buy a leaving present for her!

Buy her some store cupboard essentials, so you know she's always got something to eat - cans of soup, beans, tomatoes, and rice and pasta, possibly some packet pasta.

Most kitchens come with kettle and toaster, but get her to check in case.
My parents bought me a microwave, which was great, but not essential.

anfieldred

was a few threads like this last year, here goes...

Firstly, make a list of essential things you need daily when cleaning/cooking? ie can openers, measuring jugs, baking trays etc.

Asda smartprice do cheap sets of pans for about £6, cutlery sets with 6 forks/knives/spoons/teaspoons for a few pounds, and asda plates sets consisting of 4 big plates, 4 small ones and 4 bowls.
I dont work for asda btw, i jsut did this myself for 3 years at uni and it was the cheapest.

Split it up into kitchen, bedroom, cleaning items that might be needed.

Kitchen:
Chopping board, cutting knives, wooden spoon,food bags, measuring jug, baking tray, oven gloves, tea towel, pans, plates/bowls/ cutlery. Glasses/cups (again asda smartprice 4 pint glasses 99p), tin opener, teabags, sugar jars. Things like toasters/kettles are usually provided but check with the halls first. Some supply ironing boards, but you need your own iron. Usually you get your own cupboard in a kitchen then share a fridge/freezer. Bin bags are always needed, i personally went through cupboards at home to see what we had in, and made a list and tried to get as much as possible , this helped me so much. Things like life long milk in cartons came in handy, may not be as nice, btu theres times when the shops have shut or your milk has gone off, you can use that.

Cleaning:
You probably alraedy know, but multi purpose cloths (tesco value or asda smartprice), surface cleaner (sinks/taps etc), polish. i also reckon get something that makes a vacuum smell better, most of them in halls smell of sick/food spilt on the floor, ive had ones smelling of fish, sick and indian food in the past in halls.

Bedroom
Bedding, pillows, quilts etc. Bed sheets, a mattress protector to make bed more comfortable. A small lamp (ikea have cheap ones/ so do wilkos in homeware section) . Things like cushions, bathmat (if bathroom is in bedroom). Plenty of towels, washing machine tablets (machines in halls generally are not that good), a washing basket (try poundland or similar stores, they do some decent ones that last a year for £1!)

Do it like you were going on holiday, what items would you take? ie toothpaste, toothbrush, hairbrush etc. (minus the suncream).

Most of the things can be picked up really cheaply, i had a low budget last year and managed to pick up lots of things from the value/smartprice sections of tesco/asda. Things will get broken/damaged, so its probably best that its not expensive.

You'll probably forget something, I forgot my pillows last year, and had to buy a replacement from poundland until i got my own ones back.
Smaller things such as a notepad and pen will come in handy to keep by the phone, stock cupboards will plenty of tinned goods/pasta as this keeps for a while.

If i think of anything else ill come back and post more
Although i bad mouth halls, i stayed in one of the better halls in Liverpool and still found things to be substandard.

It only takes a few hours to make a big list and go through what you need/already have. You'll be surprised how often you pick things up when going out to the supermarkets.

DrFluffy

Staples to take with you for your first day in hall: a few bottles of wine, a few beers, A BOTTLE OPENER, tea, coffee, milk cakes and buscuits...

The quickest way to make friends and influence people!

Outside of that, my advice is to take the bear minimum. It is a pain to transport, and she will probably be able to pick up the basics for next to nothing in her uni town, also, you'll find that a lot of people duplicate things like kettles etc (which are usually provided anyway).