University of Reading Stenton Townhouse Tour

I was in Stenton Townhouses (Newington Block) in my final year at Reading. I remember there not being a great deal on townhouses when I applied so I decided to film a quick tour. This is a video that shows you what to expect if you're going to Reading and staying in townhouse accommodation!
Hope that you guys find this helpful!

[@bethanywakeman3523]

Hi I am also hoping to come in September and am between Stenton en-suite or townhouse just wondering if through the application for accommodation do you rank order preferences/choices and how many choices do you have to put? If so did you always get your first choice?? Thank you SO much for this video it was really helpful!x

[@georgieb6042]

Hey! That's great that you're hoping to come to Reading in September! Both Stenton halls and the Stenton townhouses are really lovely accommodation. With Stenton (and similar to Mackinder, Childs and Bridges) flat sizes can also vary from 8-10 people, where as the townhouses are 12 if that's something that is a factor for helping you choose. From experience, I would recommend both as good choices for your first year. When I was a fresher, townhouses were more for returners but in recent years, they have been pushing and introducing townhouses to freshers too. In this case, I would go with which ever layout you prefer best, as the halls are basically next to each other, location doesn't differ very much and you'll have access to the same study room and fresher's events/JCRs. With the application process, you can have up to 5 choices. I was lucky to get my first choice in my first year (Windsor Hall) I know a few people who also got their first choice but I also know a few people who didn't but still enjoyed where they ended up. In my final year, I again got my first choice with Stenton Townhouses and as I was with the university's disability service, my first choice was fairly secured when I put in my application to return to halls (this can be a big deciding factor for securing your first choice, particularly if you are a returner going into halls). I hope this has helped! Sorry it's a bit wordy! Let me know if there is anything else you'd like to know :)

[@egli.ch0558]

you received a new subscribe!i love this video and btw what are u studying?🥰🥰

[@georgieb6042]

Thank you! I was studying Classical Studies when I was at Reading!

[@coalyboi7939]

I'm confused. The reading excel sheet says there is a shared bathroom in the Stenton Townhouse but in this video I see personal bathroom?

[@coalyboi7939]

Never mind lol im blind

[@georgieb6042]

Haha no worries! But yeah it is shared bathroom but you only share with one other person! ☺️

[@alacakus8856]

How much does this accommodation cost?

[@georgieb6042]

Hello! Sorry for the slow replies. I can't remember off the top of my head how much I paid, but it's split into three termly instalments. One just after term started in September, another payment after Christmas at the beginning of January, and one final payment after Easter. If you wish to find out pricing, they are all up to date on the university halls' webpage :)

[@StudyinAbroadwithDiksha]

Very nice information ,have you completed the course

[@georgieb6042]

Thank you! :) I did yes, I graduated back in July 2019, so a little while has passed since then!

[@rachelasante8924]

hi im coming to reading in September I wanted to know if you think the townhouses are suitable for first years ?

[@georgieb6042]

Hey! The townhouses are really great fun, as you do get to meet so many people. I believe that you can request to be put in a townhouse with other freshers. I was in townhouses for my final year (last year) and we had a mixture of students from all different years. We had one fresher, a quite a few second years, a couple other third years like myself, and then some fourth years too. I know that there were some townhouses that did have more freshers but I think the majority were returners coming back into halls. Would definitely recommend them though, especially if you are thinking about staying in halls after first year. They're similar to halls like Child's, Mackinder and Stenton, main differences are the bathrooms (townhouses are shared rather than en suite), kitchens/communal areas (no lounge area in Mackinder, Child's, Stenton) and the wardrobe sizes. You've also got the corridor style layout in Childs, Mackinder and Stenton. Hope that helps :)

[@rachelasante8924]

Georgie B Hi thank you so much have you had any issues in terms of cleaning up or sharing your food etc ?

[@georgieb6042]

@@rachelasante8924 No worries! We all shared things in our townhouse. In my first year, I wasn't in townhouses, I was in Windsor which is a catered hall. We all had our own milk and snacks which we labelled. Most of the time, people will ask to borrow things. There were occasions where sometimes people might forget to ask to borrow something but I never really had too much of an issue with that. My best advice would be to keep some snacks and some long life milk in your room just in case someone borrows some milk and you don't have enough for breakfast/tea etc. The clearers were mostly good. If you're in shared halls like Windsor, our bathrooms were cleaned pretty much every day. In all the halls, the cleaners do one massive deep clean once a week. Bins are always emptied in the mornings, only at the weekends do they pile up a bit but there are always spare bin bags around so you can change them over til the cleaners come back on Monday mornings :)

[@rachelasante8924]

Georgie B Thank you Thats such a good idea I still have to apply for 5 more I think what other halls would you recommend that are self catered ?

[@georgieb6042]

@@rachelasante8924 It completely depends on your budget, where you want to be on campus, if you're looking for shared bathrooms, premium or standard ensuite. Definitely go along to one of the open days and visit days as you'll be able to get a look around the halls and get a better feel for them :) I'm definitely biased but Stenton townhouses and Stenton halls are really good location, especially if you find a lot of your lectures are based around the main quad of campus

[@coalyboi7939]

What would you say is the best accommodation for the price?

[@georgieb6042]

Hi! Sorry for the slow reply! I personally would say that for me, Stenton Townhouses were the best accommodation for the best price, but that is purely based on what my own personal needs and requirements were. I think it will depend from person to person, definitely worth looking at your budget for accommodation and going from there. For example, by choosing catered accommodation, you'd be saving a lot more and it's a good value for money as you have money to spend on all the catered supported outlets on main campus and the London Road campus. Hope that helps!

[@coalyboi7939]

@@georgieb6042 thanks

[@esiandoh6841]

Hey! I wanted to ask about the refurbished rooms at St George, do you know or know anyone who has a shared bathroom there? How was it for them, was waiting time long? How do u deal with people who take too long, many thanks

[@georgieb6042]

Hey! I'm not too sure about the new rooms at St George's, but they have got a couple photos of some refurbed rooms here! www.reading.ac.uk/ready-to-study/accommodation/accommodation-sc-ensuite-rooms/st-georges-hall.aspx I would definitely suggest emailing the accommodation team as they'll have all the up to date information on refurbished rooms/halls. With regards to shared bathrooms in halls, I was in Windsor in my first year, we had 14 people in a flat and 4 bathrooms to share. Usually I never had an issue with people being in the shower/bathroom when I needed to use it. Everyone at university has different time tables and personal schedules so more often than not, the bathroom is likely to be mostly free when you need it. Sharing bathrooms definitely wasn't and they were cleaned every day by the halls cleaners as it was a communal space! Hope that helps!

[@zanearwhirl]

In the same floor, are there all female or mix gender? Thank you.

[@georgieb6042]

You can request to be in a single sex flat on your halls application. Our townhouse was mixed and our middle floor (my floor) was all girls. Definitely recommend mentioning this on your application to halls or ringing the accommodation team, they’re really lovely and will be able to offer more info!