Accommodation at Essex

If you have not yet arrived on campus or have left and wish to return at some point during the summer term, you can make a term-time short-stay booking and we will continue to guarantee to offer you a room for the period of your intended stay.

If you wish to come to campus during the summer break, you can make a vacation accommodation application.  Vacation accommodation is also available for students who are not able to travel home as their country is on the UK Government red list. Check out the University travel information for more details regarding travel restrictions.

Accommodation applications are open for new students for the 2021-22 academic year. The guarantee deadline for undergraduate students is 20 August 2021 and 31 July for postgraduate students.

If you have made a term-time short-stay booking, you will receive a room offer within three working days.

If you have made a summer vacation booking, then offers for these will start to be sent out in mid-June.

If you have applied as a new student for the 2021-22 academic year, we will begin sending out room offers from the beginning of June. You will only receive a room offer, once any conditions have been met, which include exams results. Therefore, some students will not receive offers until later in the summer. 

Please make sure you check your email account regularly for updates and accept any offers within the given deadline.

Students arriving for the new academic year 2021-22 that need to self-isolate, will be offered a period of free accommodation before the start of term, so you can join us and be ready to begin your teaching at the start of term. We will contact you about this when you book your accommodation.

We will offer support to all students who need to quarantine, and will provide further information on this and what is included by the end of July, early August. Further information relating to travel restrictions and Covid-19 testing, is available on the University travel pages.

You will need to apply for this accommodation in addition to your full year requirements and an application form will be able here nearer the time. You will also need to order a quarantine pack. Details on how to do this will also be available here nearer the time.

Please then make sure you read the guidance on self-isolating, so you are aware of what support services are available to you, including how to order food deliveries. However, if you do have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact our Student Information Team. 

If you live in University accommodation and need to self-isolate due to COVID-19, appropriate arrangements will be made by our dedicated Residence Life team to provide you with advice and practical support. Information regarding how to self-isolate, who to inform and how we can further support you will be made available for you, with further information in your Welcome Book.  

Protecting the health and wellbeing of our students while delivering a high-quality education guides everything we do. Despite very positive signs that the vaccination programme is limiting COVID transmission in the UK, we cannot guarantee that we will be unaffected by pandemic-related restrictions at any point during the next academic year.

Our approach to planning for the academic year 21-22 will ensure that we will be able to offer all of our students a transformative, campus experience; with flexibility to adapt to periods of heightened COVID security if needed. Our priority will always be to ensure your safety while supporting you to continue with your education - irrespective of any further disruption caused by the pandemic 

We will comply with all Government guidance, and in addition to this will make our own additional judgements about what works in our campus environments. We have all learned a great deal from our experiences of the last year, and we will be ready to flex our approach to  if the circumstances require.

Our housekeeping team will be busy undertaking enhanced cleaning, to ensure your accommodation is as hygienic as possible. All kitchens will be cleaned weekly, and shared bathrooms cleaned 3 times a week. We will be regularly cleaning all high level touchpoints in accommodation entrances and communal areas. We will also clean all lifts daily.

Hygiene is a key factor in controlling the virus, therefore it is important that all residents play their part in ensuring your accommodation remains safe. To help with this, we will also provide you with how-to guides and advice on hygiene. 

The University takes the health and wellbeing of our students and staff very seriously and this has been one of the focuses to ensure students can study on campus – safely.

To protect our community on campus we have introduced the following measures:

• Enhanced cleaning and sterilising regimes
• Social distancing in line with UK Government guidance
• Signage and floor markings in key locations to help you move around our campuses safely

We’re asking you to wear face coverings in all public campus areas where social distancing is difficult to maintain or in specifically designated locations. 

We also have a comprehensive system of Covid-19 testing on campus to help keep everyone safe.

We’ll also be introducing training for all students, to make it easier for everyone to understand our expectations.