Accommodation
Accommodation advice for prospective students
APPLICATIONS FOR 2012 NOW BEING ACCEPTED
You will need to be 18 no later than Sunday 9th September 2012 to qualify to live in Joseph Stones House.
If you are offered a place to study at Leeds College of Music, you will no doubt wonder where you are going to live. The following information and advice is to assist you in your choices, but please remember that the only influence the college has is in allocating rooms in Joseph Stones House, not in arranging any other accommodation. This will be your own responsibility. Joseph Stones House is the name of the “on site” halls of residence, owned and managed by UNITE (a private student accommodation provider) not by the college. It does not accommodate under 18s.
How to apply for accommodation in Joseph Stones House
The college allocates 150 rooms through the application forms and UNITE allocates 40 rooms on line, via the website www.unite-students.com.
You can also apply for a room by contacting the Administrator at Joseph Stones House on 0113 2471722 .
Forms are available from the end of February of each year.
Please return your completed application form as quickly as possible to:
Anne Best
Welfare Coordinator (inc Accommodation and International advice)
Leeds College of Music
3, Quarry Hill
Leeds LS2 7PD
If Leeds College of Music is not your first choice for study or you really think you may not get the required grades, then do not apply to live in Joseph Stones House. You will be asked to sign a tenancy agreement before results are out and you could end up being tied in to a year long agreement whether you are living there or not. There will be a few places available at the end of August due to withdrawls and there will always be plenty of places near by to live in if JSH is full.
If you have been allocated a college nominated room (as opposed to a UNITE Direct Let) and unfortunately you fail to get the grades you require, you will be charged an administration fee of around £50 from your deposit for a withdrawl and the balance will be returned. This does not apply to the Direct Lets with UNITE, where you will lose all your deposit if you withdraw but your room can be reallocated, if it can’t then you may be tied in to the tenancy for the year paying rent.(Should serious personal reasons prevent you from taking up your place then these will be considered on an individual basis)
Rooms are allocated on a “first come - first served basis” mainly to first years, but a few of the International students and second and third years are allocated places.
If you do fail to get a place in Joseph Stones House or decide you want to live somewhere else, then there are several alternatives you can try. Below are the names of privately run Halls of Residence used by students at the college.
The Plaza (UNITE) : www.unite-students.com
Opal 1/2/3 : www.opalstudents.com
Broadcasting Tower : www.broadcastingtower.com
(These 3 are all within 15mins walk away from college)
Liberty Park : www.libertyliving.co.uk
Carr Mills: www.carrmillsleeds.co.uk
iQ Leeds: leeds@loveiq.co.uk
(These 3 are a 10 min bus ride away)
UNIPOL
UNIPOL is a reputable, well established, charitable trust, partly funded by the two universities and various colleges in Leeds (including Leeds College of Music) and exists to help students find a place to live. They are a non profit making organisation and provide free and comprehensive services.
Many of our students use UNIPOL and a number of places are available to our students with unconditional offers in their halls near to college ie Mill Street and New York Street.
Students with conditional offers can apply to live in places that are a little further away in the city centre or require a short bus ride or walk.
If you do not get a place in Joseph Stones House, we strongly recommend that you use UNIPOL. Not only do they have their own accommodation, but also houses, flats and rooms let by private landlords who have signed up to the UNIPOL Code of Conduct.
SHARING A HOUSE
If you choose to share a house rather than live in halls, please do not sign a contract unless you are sure you want to share with the other occupants or you have checked that there actually are other people moving in to the house with you. This applies whether you go through UNIPOL or look by your self.
Many rooms are let with the tenancy stating that tenants are “jointly and severally liable” This expression means that jointly all tenants sharing the place are liable for the payment of all rents and all liabilities of each other which may fall on them during the tenancy, as well as any breach of the agreement.
Individually each tenant is responsible for payment of all rent and liabilities falling upon the tenant, as well as any breach of the agreement, until all payments are made in full. (So if a tenant leaves and is not replaced you will all have to pay their share). There are some landlords willing to issue individual contracts, but you need to check carefully.
It is extremely difficult to be released from a contract, whether in halls or shared houses, unless you can find someone to take over your room. If in doubt, don’t sign!
The main problem areas when sharing are smoking, tidying up, noise and shared bills. Make sure all names go on the bills, not just one! Also dietary requirements (due to choice or religious beliefs) may lead to disagreements. Make sure you have a chat to your potential housemates before you make a decision. You will require a Council Tax Exemption Form if your house is solely occupied by students. This can be obtained from room 406.
OVERSEAS STUDENTS
For overseas students above 18 years of age who do not get a place in or don’t wish to live in Joseph Stones House, it is advisable to use the services of UNIPOL.
UNDER EIGHTEEN
Due to the specialist nature of the college, some students on Further Education courses come to study from other parts of the country and abroad, whilst still under eighteen. As Joseph Stones House does not take under eighteens, parents and prospective students should consider very carefully the implications of living away from home, especially if they may be sharing with older students!
Students under eighteen (whether from the UK or abroad) have a limited choice of where to live due to current British legislation. UNIPOL are now able to accommodate students under 18. They are supported on an individual basis and parents need to contact the Tenancy Support worker for assistance in finding somewhere suitable if their child is under 18.
They can also apply to Liberty Park and Carr Mills (details given previously). Again contact must be made directly to all the halls, not through college.
Early application is advised for Liberty Park as it takes in under eighteens from a number of colleges as well as a normal quota of older students.
It is the responsibility of the parent or guardian of any student who is under eighteen and living away from home, to ensure that the accommodation chosen is suitable, appropriate and safe.
DEPOSITS
When arranging rented accommodation you will be expected to sign a contract, in most cases for twelve months, and to pay a deposit of between £75 and £250. This is refunded at the end of the rental period unless you have caused any damage or loss to fixtures or furnishings.
As part of the new Housing Act, deposits paid on Assured Shorthold Tenancies signed after April 2007 will be protected (this is the tenancy most students acquire). The scheme will ensure good practice in deposit handling so that when a tenant pays a deposit, and is entitled to it back, they can be assured this will happen. Further details on the Deposit Protection Scheme and how it works are available on the Government web page or UNIPOL site.
INSURANCE
If you live in Joseph Stones House and usually in any of the other private halls, you will generally get a basic insurance as part of the deal, but we strongly advise that you insure your personal belongings, particularly if you will be bringing musical instruments, equipment, a computer, tv etc. Endsleigh have policies designed for students at a reasonable cost or you may get cover through your parent’s house insurance. Please check.
TV LICENCE
If you intend to have your own TV in your room, you must buy your own TV licence. If you watch TV programmes on a laptop, mobile phone or any other device that receives television programmes, you need to be covered by a TV licence. There are often detector vans patrolling in those places perceived as student areas and large fines are levied on those who don’t have a licence.
Please be warned!
RESIDENTIAL BURSARIES FOR FURTHER EDUCATION STUDENTS
Some Further Education students may be eligible for financial assistance with rental costs from the Residential Bursary fund (Further Education students are not eligible for student loans).Please refer to the college booklet entitled “Funding Your Studies” and read very carefully the information and advice to see whether you could qualify.
NB. Student Loans do not go in to the bank until you have been enrolled into college(enrolment triggers the payment system.) In order for you to receive your room keys the first accommodation payment is normally required before enrolment (round about the end of August). This is standard procedure by all private accommodation companies. Please ensure that you have enough money to cover this and you are not relying solely on the loan!
For further accommodation advice please contact
For further accommodation advice please contact Anne Best on p.best@lcm.ac.uk tel: 0113 2223514 or write to Anne Best, Accommodation Advisor, Leeds College of Music, 3 Quarry Hill, Leeds LS2 7PD.