You will be advised of your arrival date in your offer of accommodation; this is the date we will expect you to move in. Your keys can be picked up from your residence reception on your arrival day.  If you are not sure where your reception is, you can find this information on the website of your undergraduate or postgraduate residence.  

If you’re moving into University-owned accommodation, you can request to arrive early (there will be limitations as to the earliest possible date), and you will be charged the relevant daily rate. Please contact us via our online form in the application portal to request an early arrival, by emailing allocations-enquiries@ncl.ac.uk or calling us at 0191 208 3333.

For managed partnership accommodation, you will need to contact your residence directly to request an early arrival; please see the “reception” tab on your specific residence page for contact information.

Early, late and weekend arrivals

If you expect to arrive to our University-owned accommodation outside normal reception opening hours you'll need to contact our Estates Security Office on +44 (0) 191 208 6817. Security Officers will arrange to meet and give you your key and you will be asked to show a copy of your Accommodation Acceptance with details of your room allocation.

If you’re staying at one of our managed partnership sites, you’ll need to contact your accommodation directly in advance; contact details for your residence and the out-of-hours team is available within the location section of your residence webpage.

Although it is tempting to bring as many of your belongings as possible, you should consider the amount of storage space available in your room and communal areas – filling most of the cupboards with your things before anyone else arrives might not be the best way to meet your flatmates!

Bedding and crockery isn't automatically included in your accommodation, but you may have the opportunity to purchase items when you accept your accommodation contract depending on where you will live. For more information, refer to our Accommodation Overview (PDF: 75KB) which details what each residence provides. 

You can order essential things such as crockery, bedding, etc. online from various retailers (such as Tesco, Asda, Next, Wilko, John Lewis, etc.). You can also do so via UniKitOut (with a 10% discount with the code NU10).

Some items can also easily be purchased once you’ve arrived, such as stationery, books, food, etc. There are plenty of shops in town, and you will be able to find most of the things you need there.

Typically, the things that new students find most useful to bring with them are:

• Documents – ID, passport, bank card, etc.
• Your National Insurance number
• Clothes (don't forget your fancy dress!)
• Necessary medicine, plasters, etc.
• TV licence - if you'd like to watch TV as it's being shown on any of your personal devices (TV in your bedroom, PC, laptop, tablet, phone), or use BBC's iPlayer, you'll need to be covered by your own licence!
• Hygiene products (toothbrush, hairbrush, soap, etc.)
• Towels 
• Bedding (pillow, duvet, sheet)
• Tea towels
• Laundry basket
• Cutlery, a pot and a pan - although to make moving in easier, we'd recommend that you buy these once you're in Newcastle!
• Coat hangers
• Laptop/desktop PC
• Chargers
• Alarm clock
• Things that will remind you of home – e.g. photos of friends and family, a cuddly toy 
• Items to personalise your room with – cushions, bed throw, battery-operated fairy lights, photo frames

Generally speaking, we wouldn’t recommend bringing anything that might take up too much space, be a potential hazard (either to you or the property) or cause disruption to your flatmates and neighbours. Some examples are:

• Your pet (sorry!), no matter how small 
• A drum kit
• BBQ
• An inflatable pool
• Candles 
• Kettles, toasters, microwaves – your kitchen will be equipped with electronics which have been tested and proven to be safe
• Portable heater
• Mains-powered fairy lights
• Mini fridge (if you need a mini fridge for medical reasons, please contact us)
• Furniture - your room and flat will be fully furnished 
• Vacuum cleaner - your University-owned residence will provide you with this (for Managed Partnership residences, please check with them directly)
• Ironing board - as above