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Freshers Countdown… 2 Weeks to Go!

A Guide to Furness College

Following on from last week’s Lancaster Guide post… here is your Furness College Guide! This post will cover general information about Furness College, which is mainly it’s accommodation and location information, events that take place within the college, and college-run sports teams. Prepare to learn about all things Furness and read on to find out about all the great things that you can get involved in through your college during your time at Lancaster.

ACCOMMODATION

By now, most of you will have been allocated your accommodation and you’ll have started to find out who will be living in your buildings. Unfortunately, you won’t find out your flatmates until a few days before you move in, but you don’t have much longer to wait! You’ll be aware of Furness accommodation types as you’ve already applied and the accommodation page on the website will tell you more. However, for a brief run through, the “posh” buildings (ensuite accommodation) are the buildings with numbers

All of Furness accommodation is on central campus and is only about a minute walk to the central amenities on campus: Sultans, Spar, Costa as well as the Furness Common Room. The College buildings themselves have the offices of the Furness SCR (for example admin and welfare); the TV Room where all our Chill Factor events will be taking place in Freshers’ Week; the porters’ office where you can get your post and of course our own bar… Trevor! Trevor is the best place on campus to enjoy a tea or a coffee during the day. At the end of the day, it’s a place to relax and socialise. The bar also serves a wide range of wines and ciders! Various events are held in Trev over the year, such as GinFest and Trev Quiz.

PEOPLE

The SCR are your Senior College Representatives. The Senior members of the college have a role in managing the college and work closely with the JCR to make sure that the college runs smoothly.

The Porters are your first port of call for almost anything. They provide safety on campus, are available for urgent needs and also to collect your parcels. The Furness Porters are some of the loveliest people you’ll meet, and it’s a good idea to get acquainted with them as soon as you can!

The JCR are your Junior College Representatives. They are there to represent you, organise social activities and keep you informed and aware of all college activities and events. 

For more information go to the People page to view images of what these college members look like so that you have a couple of friendly faces going into Freshers Week!

EVENTS

Even though Furness is the smallest college, it definitely never gets boring! Over the year, the college hosts almost weekly events that welcome all participation ranging from sporting events and competitions to quiz nights and bar crawls – you name it, we do it! Here are a few examples…

TREV QUIZ! The quiz is Furness weekly event that is not to be missed, each week the quiz has a different theme or special topic so anyone and everyone can take part! The quiz runs every Sunday and it is the perfect way to start the week

15 HOUR BAR CRAWL! The Furness 15 Hour Bar Crawl is the college’s notorious event that happens twice a year. You will soon become familiar with Lancaster town centre, and the bar crawl will only help you grow your local knowledge! It’s a great way to bond with the whole of the college, and it is a really enjoyable event for all! It is a ticketed event and it does sell out fast, so keep your eyes peeled on the Furness Facebook page to make sure that you don’t miss out!

SPA NIGHT! The Furness Mountain Retreat was a popular event run in 2018 by Socials Officers Fran and Alex alongside the Welfare Team, and it proved to be a success! A super relaxing event involving face masks and yoga that is sure to make a comeback!

EXTRAV! Furness’ end of year themed festival has been a sell-out event for the past 3 years, rivalling other colleges! Last year’s Extrav theme was Lost College and you can check out some of the pictures from on Instagram (@furnesscolllege). Will you be part of this year’s Extrav?

FURNESS SPORT

Starting university and making new friends can be pretty daunting, so why not become part of a Furness sports team! It is the perfect way to socialise, keep fit, and get into the college spirit during your time at Lancaster! Taster sessions and trials for each sports team will be happening in Freshers Week or just after, so keep reading to find out more!

FURNESS NETBALL is so much fun to get involved with, all the girls on the team have so much fun in training, matches and in their socials (check out the team’s Instagram account for more: @FurnessNetball)! The Furness Netball team is great for anyone, of all abilities and whether or not you’ve played before.  Netball trials are held on Sunday the 7th of October, and the girls can’t wait to see you there! There is a Facebook event page if you would like to see more about the event and show your interest.

FURNESS FOOTBALL is a great way to socialise and gain a great group of mates. The football team is competitive but are known for their good sportsmanship and great socials! The football trials are held on October 3rd, the Wednesday in Freshers Week, so look out for more information in group chats… And follow the *unofficial* Instagram @furnesscollege_fc for more.

FURNESS BAR SPORTS is a great way to get involved and to get into the college spirit. It is super informal and super social. The bar sports taster will be held on Saturday, October 6th, so the Saturday of Freshers Week to conclude your first week at Uni, ah!!!

FURNESS TABLE TENNIS is a great way to get involved in table tennis for people of all abilities. Whether you’re a beginner and want to improve your game or if you’re a more advanced player and would like to play competitively Furness College welcomes all to the college table tennis team.  The table tennis team trains twice a week and has an intercollege league every Wednesday. Trials are going to be held on the 8th and 9th from 6:15pm. Contact Daniel Head or Emre Ceyhan if you have any questions!

*Sports trials are mainly to test people’s levels of ability in order to place people in the right teams, and are absolutely no pressure at all and should be seen as fun!

There you have it! That’s the lowdown on the college that you’ll soon be calling home. Hopefully this has helped you all, and that you’re just as excited about joining as we are about having you! As always, send us a message if you have any questions at all!

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Freshers Countdown…3 Weeks to Go!

A Guide to Lancaster City Centre

Hey there Freshers!

Obviously, moving out of home and into university is huge, no matter where you’re from, but moving to a new city, and for some of you, a whole new country, is bound to be slightly daunting. To help, we’ve created the ‘Guide to Lancaster’, with all the important information on what and where you can find all you need in the city centre. Brace yourselves, folks, this is going to be a long one!

Transport

There are various buses which can be used to get to the city centre. The main bus stop on campus is the underpass, but there are others located all over campus. See below:

Recently the Lancaster routes have been changing, but any 2, 3 or 4 bus (usually the U2, U3 or 4) will take you to the city centre, though the2 and 4 buses will take about 15-20 minutes while the 3 should only take 10. The easiest stop to get off at in town is Common Garden Street (which is just off the high street) or the bus shelter.

Taxi Companies:

  • 848848 Radio Taxis: 01524 848848
  • 32090 Taxis: 01524 32090
  • Coastal Taxis: 01524 60000
  • A1 Taxis: 01524 35666

32090 Taxis are based at 9 Church Street, around the corner from Mcdonalds and a few minutes from the Sugarhouse.

Lancaster’s Railway Station is on Meeting House Lane, with available bus travel to the university.

 

Supermarkets

Lancaster’s main supermarket is Sainsbury’s, located on Cable Street in the northern part of the city. It’s easy to find, as it’s 30 seconds from the bus shelter and opposite the Sugarhouse. For those living on campus, there is a free bus service to and from Sainsbury’s that runs on Wednesdays (term time) from 11:00am to 6:00pm, though you may be required to show your receipt on the return journey.

As for alternative supermarkets, you can find:

Sainsbury’s Local (Penny St)
Tesco Express (King Street)
Farmfoods (Parliament St– opposite Sainsburys)
Booths (on the corner of Scotforth and Hala Road)
Oriental Food Store (Common Garden Street)
Iceland (Nicholas Arcade)

There are also various corner shops dotted about, and an Asda and Aldi nearer Morecambe.

Shops

Although Lancaster is not exactly the next Arndale Centre, there are still plenty of places to find what you need.

For clothes, the main stores include: Topshop, Topman, New Look, River Island, Primark, JD, Accessorize, Next, Marks & Spencers and TK Maxx. For you bookworms, there are two Waterstones, as well as stores such as Boots, Superdrug, Lush, Pandora and Clintons, etc. There are also budget stores (perfect for us students) such as Wilkinsons, Poundland, and B&M.

Beyond this, Lancaster is great for independent stores, and don’t miss the chance to check out the market that takes over town on Wednesdays and Saturdays – you can even find some of the market stalls on campus on Thursdays and Fridays! However, if you’re still missing some go-to shops from home, Preston and Manchester are only a train ride away!

 

Night-Life

Usually the most popular place for students is the Sugarhouse, which opens Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. This place is run by Lancaster University Students Union and only opens to students of Lancaster and Cumbria (though you can bring a non-student friend with you as long as you are able to sign them in at entry). Don’t worry about getting to sugar either, the Sugarbus comes periodically to take you there and bring you back to campus. The times are listed below.

To find out more on the Sugarhouse, click here. 

Other popular clubs include Dalton Rooms, Hustle and the brand new Generation Bar which is taking over from Chupito. Dalton Rooms is located in Dalton Square, and popular for its Lollipop Mondays (soon to become Skint Mondays) and Cheese-on-toast Thursdays. To note: Glow Rooms is part of Daltons, just to clear up any potential confusion.

Hustle is located next door to Wetherspoons on Spring Garden Street and is popular for its cheap drinks, ball pit and DJ Wez. You really have to experience Hustle for yourself before your mind is made up about it.

As for Lancaster’s bars and pubs, the main ones (and popular for students) are Wetherspoons, The Crafty Scholar, Hogarths (for all you gin lovers), Sphere, The Study Room, Mint, Pendle Witch and many more! If you don’t get a chance to visit these bars during Freshers Week, you definitely will at the Furness 15 Hour Bar Crawl in November!

 

Food

I bet you’re all wondering where the best places to eat are, hm? Unfortunately, Lancaster is lacking in the Nandos and Wagamama department, but there are still plenty of places to go!

In terms of fast food (and post-night-out scran) there’s the standard Mcdonalds and KFC (also Subway, though there is one on campus which opens until 4am). There are also plenty of takeaways, such as Starvin’ Marvin, Simply Delicious, among others who are always open until early hours, as well as Dominos, Golden Jade (Chinese food), Nice n Spicy and Bombay Balti (Indian Food) who all deliver to campus.

If you’re looking for restaurants, you can find a Bella Italia and Pizza Hut (though the latter is nearer the north of town, behind Farmfoods). There are some lovely independent places, such as Mollys and Paulo Gianni’s (if you’re feeling Italian). Pubs such as the White Cross and Merchants, as well as the Study Room and the Crafty Scholar all serve delicious food. And you can never go wrong with a W  etherspoons.

There are plenty cafes around town, alongside your standard Costa and Starbucks, and if you like Greggs, you’ve come the right place. For treats, Patisserie Valerie and Kaspa’s desserts are new to town!

 

Things to Do

If you’re looking for things to do or see around Lancaster, here are some things to start with:

  • Go to the cinema (Vue, Church Street – £4.99 for a student ticket)
  • Visit Lancaster Castle (Tours being held in fresher’s week – click here)
  • Williamson Park (for the beautiful views, walking up the Ashton Memorial and the mini zoo – with meerkats!) Go here for more info.

Below is a map of the city centre. The arrows point the direction of the one-way system around town. You’ll want to keep this in mind when driving.

City Living

Obviously, you don’t need to worry about moving off campus before you’ve even moved in, but here’s some info for when you start looking. For those moving into town, there is off-campus accommodation known as Chancellors Wharf on Aldcliffe Road. Find out more about it here.

However, if you’re planning to move into a shared house, the more popular letting agents are LUSU Living (who are part of Lancaster University Student Union), Yellow Door Lets and Student Housing Lancaster. If you need some extra help finding a place when the time comes to it, Lancaster University Homes is a website dedicated to helping you find safe, legitimate off-campus accommodation that has been approved by the university. Check out the website here.

And that’s about it for now folks. If we’ve missed something you want to know, or if you have any questions at all about the uni or Furness College, message the Furness Facebook page and we’ll do our best to answer them. And hey, this is just the basic stuff, there is so much more of Lancaster to discover for yourselves…roll on October!

Guide to campus coming soon…

#MightyFurness