Student Castle Oxford, oxford

Student Castle looks great on paper - modern furnishings, a good location close to the business school, and rooms that initially seem worth the premium pricing. Unfortunately, the actual living experience has been far less professional than expected. The management team often comes across as dismissive rather than helpful, and there seems to be very little willingness to genuinely work with students when problems arise. Instead of trying to make situations easier, processes constantly change, communication is inconsistent, and even simple issues become unnecessarily difficult to resolve. One major issue has been the air conditioning in my room, which has been malfunctioning for over 2months. Despite multiple complaints and repeated maintenance visits, the problem still hasn’t been permanently fixed. Every time, a different explanation is given, but no real resolution follows. Paying for a Luxe flat only to live in what feels like a boiler for weeks is not acceptable. There have also been unannounced visits to rooms, which feels intrusive and unprofessional. On top of that, common rooms are not cleaned regularly despite this generally being expected in accommodations at this price point. Ironically, the most helpful and respectful staff members have consistently been the night guards, who actually take the time to listen and help students wherever they can. They have honestly been the best part of the experience. Overall, while the building itself is modern and visually appealing, the service, communication, and management standards do not justify the cost. Definitely not the value for money that is advertised.

I stayed here for the entire month of February, and it absolutely does not deserve the money they charge. Staying at a hotel would have been much more comfortable and even cheaper. I chose this place through my language school because it was my first time here and I thought it would be safer. However, I truly regret not staying at a hotel instead — it would have cost me nearly £300 less. When I first arrived, I couldn’t sleep for the first ten days because of the constant train noise and ongoing machine sounds. I was sleep-deprived for days and it seriously affected my mental health. When I said I couldn’t tolerate the noise anymore, they emailed me saying I could change rooms if I paid an extra £100. Meanwhile, I know that other students were allowed to change rooms for free. This was completely unfair. There were also room inspections without any prior notice, which was very uncomfortable. The shared kitchens were extremely dirty and not cleaned regularly. The study areas were far too noisy — it was almost impossible to study there. When I first moved into my room, it was not properly cleaned. Neither the bed sheets nor the furniture were clean. On my last day, around 10 a.m., someone banged loudly on my door. I was sleeping at the time, and security even tried to enter the room. It was extremely rude and shocking. The management usually sends emails about everything, so they could have informed me in advance about this as well. In short, I definitely do not recommend this place.I stayed here for the entire month of February, and it absolutely does not deserve the money they charge. Staying at a hotel would have been much more comfortable and even cheaper. I chose this place through my language school because it was my first time here and I thought it would be safer. However, I truly regret not staying at a hotel instead — it would have cost me nearly £300 less. When I first arrived, I couldn’t sleep for the first ten days because of the constant train noise and ongoing machine sounds. I was sleep-deprived for days and it seriously affected my mental health. When I said I couldn’t tolerate the noise anymore, they emailed me saying I could change rooms if I paid an extra £100. Meanwhile, I know that other students were allowed to change rooms for free. This was completely unfair. There were also room inspections without any prior notice, which was very uncomfortable. The shared kitchens were extremely dirty and not cleaned regularly. The study areas were far too noisy — it was almost impossible to study there. When I first moved into my room, it was not properly cleaned. Neither the bed sheets nor the furniture were clean. On my last day, around 10 a.m., someone banged loudly on my door. I was sleeping at the time, and security even tried to enter the room. It was extremely rude and shocking. The management usually sends emails about everything, so they could have informed me in advance about this as well. In short, I definitely do not recommend this place. Kısacası tercih etmeyin çok kaba pis ilgisiz gürültülü bir yer .

The on-site staff are very friendly, and the gym facilities are quite good. Unfortunately, these are the only real positives of the accommodation. Laundry is expensive, and it is a recurring issue that residents find their wet clothes removed from the machines and thrown onto the floor. The rooms themselves are in poor condition. The furniture is extremely cheap and breaks frequently. The bathroom ventilation hardly works, which leads to mold developing quickly, and the bathroom door cannot be kept open. On top of that, the window can only be opened a small crack, which makes airing out the room nearly impossible. When I first moved in, the room hadn’t even been cleaned — there was still rubbish left from the previous occupant. The mattresses are exceptionally uncomfortable; everyone I know has had to buy an expensive topper just to make them usable. Additionally, the communal kitchens are not cleaned centrally and become very messy in a short amount of time, making it unpleasant to cook there. Overall, the accommodation is definitely not worth the money.

I’ve lived at Student Castle for ~9 months. I think it can be a great place to live in Oxford under the right situation; however, if you happen to be put in the wrong one, college accommodation is a better and cheaper option. Pros: Very convenient location, helpful and kind security guards, and secure package system. They have air conditioned room options for those that are used to that. Maintenance is quick and helpful. Laundry room is hardly ever full (just don’t do your laundry at prime times on the weekends). You can pay a one-time fee to get your personal room cleaned, which is unique among long-term rentals in Oxford. Lots of common spaces and amenities that are kept clean. The room walls are pretty thick. I’m a light sleeper and face that train station, but the trains sounds never bother me, nor can I really hear my neighbors through the walls loudly enough to keep me awake. Cons: Student Castle is expensive. More than college housing, and while the rooms are modern and nice, they are small for the price. Additionally, unless you pay a good amount extra to have a kitchen in your room, you have access to a shared kitchen. However, this kitchen is quite literally never cleaned, not even before moving in. All Oxford college accommodations clean their kitchens daily or weekly at a minimum. The fridge was full of open raw chicken, and the shelves were sticky when I moved in (which was before anyone else in my hall had). I also had neighbors who did not clean up after themselves, and despite multiple complaints, they would still not clean the kitchen for me. You can pay £35 to get the kitchen cleaned once; however, it will be only you paying it. That cost is not split among residents, and dirty residents are not the ones that typically want the kitchen cleaned. My neighbors were also extremely loud and would throw parties in our shared kitchen / hallway most nights a week. While the walls are thick, the doors are not. You can hear everything from the hallway. The security will come and tell people to be quiet past 11pm, but very little is actually done for repeated offensives of breaking community guidelines. You cannot switch rooms. They are always full. If you have issues, you can be put on a waitlist, but only people with serious maintenance issues tend to get to switch rooms. This doesn’t bother me specifically, but a lot of my friends are very put off by the frequent room checks and renovations done to the rooms while you’re actively living in it. At one point, we were getting one email a week saying our rooms would be entered, one of which was to sand and paint the rooms with our stuff in there. Again, didn’t bother me since I was in class during these times, but it bothered others so worth a mention. I think it’s important to note that a lot of my neighbor issues stemmed from the fact that it is not just Oxford students that stay in Student Castle. There are lots of students from short-term language programmes here. That is not necessarily a bad thing, but they have very different schedules, leading to parties in common rooms at times when others have exams, etc. The age ranges in the building vary wildly, too, from 18 to 30. You can be closer to 30 with 18-year-old neighbors who are living outside their parent’s house for the first time. Again, not a bad thing, but I think it’s something one should be aware of when making accommodation decisions. Overall, I think Student Castle can be a great place to live. Just take note of the full situation, so you know what you’re signing up for.

I enjoyed living at students Castle for my three years. The team were always so helpful and lovely and I would recommend. The tiny one at the reception called Jodie was always nice and really helpful. Good to see the place taking initiative to employ people from all backgrounds 🏳️‍🌈