Allensbank House is part of the Liberty Living (used to be Unite) student accommodation group and…read moreyou can apply to live their through your university or through Liberty Living itself (although this will be more expensive).
I stayed in Allensbank during my first year of university. Situated around the corner from the Heath University Hospital and Dental Hospital, it is very popular with medical students, but any student in Cardiff can apply to live here. The halls consist of six blocks; two are dedicated to UWIC students, two to Cardiff University students, and the third for students who apply for accommodation straight through Liberty Living (this mostly consists of second year up and medical students, post-grad and international students).
As such, there is a chance to mix with a range of students from Cardiff, rather than just those from your own university. The halls officers also organise events for its residents so there is an opportunity to meet even more people from the other Liberty Living buildings in Cardiff.
Each block has 6 floors, with 2 flats on each. There are 5 private, ensuite bedrooms to each flat, and a shared kitchen/living area fitted with modern appliances. The bedrooms themselves are a nice size, and may I just mention again that they come with ENSUITE BATHROOMS - no sharing! The place has an electronic entry system, is security monitored, and there is a member of staff on site 24/7. There are laundry facilities on site that only cost a few pound to use, and there are vending machines and a pool table in the common area by the office. All the utility bills are included in the rent, which is great for first year students, but does make managing money even harder if you move to a house in your second year as there's a big adjustment to be made!
There are, however, two quite important negatives about this place.
The first is the fire alarms. The fire alarms are very sensitive, and can go off if you leave the bathroom door open while you're showering! This is a good thing, though: it's nice to know that they'll work in the event of a real fire. However, the alarm system is easily abused, and it can be set off by anyone, at any hour of the day. You might get lucky, and have no mischief makers living with you while you're there. This is unlikely, though. Students like to drink, and when they're drunk they do do stupid things, and you may well find you're dragging yourself downstairs in your pjs at 4am on a weekly basis.
The second is that, unless you're a medical student, it's quite unfortunately located. There is a bus stop just up the road, with regular buses into town. However, if you're a UWIC student you will have to get a bus into town and then get a bus to your Campus. A lot of students at Cyncoed choose to walk, which takes about 40mins. There is no parking on site, and next to know street parking nearby either, which is a big draw-back, especially since there are few supermarkets close by. There's a tiny coop and spar within walking distance, but otherwise you'll be going by bus or taking a taxi. You'll need a taxi to get to and from town on a night out too, and constant bussing and taxiing everywhere does add up.
Apart from those two things, Allensbank House is a pretty good place to stay and I would recommend it. Unless you like walking. If you can't get yourself up and ready in time to leave at 8 for a 9am lecture, you might want to consider halls closer to your uni.
