First-class students
New development can offer luxury university living, writes Paul Drury
The residential prospects for a Scottish student starting university this week are a world removed from the seedy sitcom set-ups of The Young Ones and Rising Damp. We have come a long way from the creepy landlord, played by Leonard Rossiter, and the chaotic living room occupied by Rik Mayall and his underbelly of undergraduates.
As if to emphasise the gulf in accommodation expectations, a new development has opened this month in Glasgow which carries the delicate touch of British style icon Sir Terence Conran.
At the Ballet Studio in Glasgow’s West end, lucky learners have their rooms kitted out with products from the Conran Shop – table lamps from Flos, Gubi mirrors and Working Girl lounge chairs from Deadgood.
There’s Dyson products for cleaning up, Dualit in the kitchen and Sonos Play:1 speakers. The development off Great Western Road is a collaboration between Conran and student accommodation specialists hello Student.
Suddenly, Big Money has woken up to the fact there’s big money to be made from a burgeoning student population. With three universities in Glasgow alone, an estimated 50,000 young people are on the look-out for somewhere to stay in the city.
Residential status at the Glasgow Ballet School offers access to a gym, cinema and outdoor area.
You don’t need to worry about bills as all utilities, including wi-fi and council tax, are taken care of in one payment. Clearly, this luxury take on student life is not within the grasp of everyone. The cheapest single room accommodation, the Classic Studio, comes in at £169 per week, or £8,112 over a 48-week academic year.
If you moved into the most expensive apartment, the single room Deluxe Student, you would have to find £249 per week or £12,699 over 51 weeks (these are all sold out for the coming term).
If this appears pricey, the country’s educational establishments themselves have come in for criticism recently after it was revealed the cost of campus accommodation has increased by 5 per cent.
At edinburgh University, a single room in its dearest halls of residence costs just over £1,000 a month, though you get two meals a day.
Founded by Sir Terence Conran in 1974, the Conran Shop describes itself as ‘one of the leading lifestyle retailers in the world’. A spokesman said: ‘By talking to residents, researching and questioning how to make things easier, more enjoyable and more convenient, we are able to provide students with their perfect home away from home and to create spaces where students can blossom.’
For more information, visit www.hellostudent.co.uk, email book@hellostudent.com or call 02922402733.