Opal Court

PROS of Opal Court: The large ensuite room is nice, plenty of storage and nicely sized, including a double bed and a very long desk. Bathroom is decent, you have what you need and the shower is good. Bring your own bedside lamp and bath mat. A dustpan and brush and a broom is provided but if you prefer hoovering your room then you will need to bring your own, or reception have one that you can borrow. The communal kitchen is nice and modern. Although the kitchens aren’t small, bear in mind that you and your 5 flatmates won’t all be able to cook in there at the same time if you’re only cooking for yourselves. This isn’t really an issue though as I’ve found people cook at different times anyway. Laundry is good, it’s £5 for a wash and dry but the space available inside the machines is decently sized and you always have the option to bring your washing back to your room and air dry it by the radiator if you’re wanting to save money. Location is very good, less than a 4 minute walk to campus, 15 minute walk into the city centre, 10 minute walk to the train station, 10 minute walk to Morrisons and 5 minute walk to a Tesco Express. Subway and a burger van that sells kebabs and other fast foods are just outside the building too. Reception and maintenance are helpful when you need anything and are friendly. Collecting parcels is a super easy process so you can order things online with ease. However, just a heads up, if you receive a letter you won’t be notified, you just have to keep ontop of your mailbox which is right by reception, so remember to check it every now and then if you regularly receive letters from your bank, the doctors, etc. CONS of Opal Court: The heating isn’t the greatest during really cold days. It’s set on a time limit and will turn itself off after 40 minutes or so. Even when you continue to switch it back on, the room never feels completely warm. The heating seems to disappear very quick. I would recommend bringing a portable heater with you for the colder months (but first check if that’s allowed). The walls between you and your flatmates are super thin, meaning you will hear them quite clearly if they’re talking loudly on the phone or something. Although this depends on how considerate your flatmates are. Overall, it’s not been a bad stay. I would recommend it purely for the location and room alone. I think the cons I mentioned are quite common amongst many student accommodations so don’t let this put you off entirely. Although if you’re on a tighter budget I would recommend looking at other places first, as a large ensuite room from September 2021 will be £166 a week. This in comparison to other places definitely brings it over to the more expensive side.