Student Castle Durham, Durham

If you’d like to change your room once you’ve moved in, they’ll do their best to accommodate you (providing they’re not fully booked). Any moves will incur a £50 admin fee*. If you’ve moved to a cheaper room, any excess rent you’ve already paid will be taken off the next instalment. If you’ve already paid for the whole year, they’ll simply give you a refund of the difference.

The student loan shouldn't be late, however if there is a problem they will need a letter from the loan company showing the amount and dates of payments and four week's advance rent before you move in in September. You can get in touch with the Student Loans Company.

PMG schemes offer 51 and 46 weeks contracts.

To find out how much each room costs, go to the location you’re interested in and you’ll find all the details there.

All your utility bills (including super-fast broadband and WiFi) are included, as is contents insurance for your room.

Come and talk to the team- they will always work with you to find the best way for you to pay your rent. If your payment is seven days late and they haven't heard from you, you'll be charged a £30 admin fee.

This depends if your room is ready, so it’s best to contact the scheme directly. You would need to pay for the extra days beforehand.

Debit card, credit card or bank transfer are all fine – make your choice when you complete your booking.

For their sites in England, if you have a UK guarantor then you can pay in 3 instalments in September, January and April. The 1st payment will be due 12 days before your licence starts. If the 1st instalment of your Student Loan is paid after this date then they can accept a payment of 4 weeks rent 1 week before you move in, with the balance paid when you receive your loan. The sites in Scotland can align payments with when you receive your Student Loan. Please contact us for further information. For full-year contracts payments will be required in 3 instalments in September, January and April.

As long as there’s a room available. They keep their site perfectly up to date so you’ll be able to see where their spaces are.

All residents living at one of their schemes in England are required to be over the age of 17 during the academic year booked, and residents living in their schemes in Scotland are to be age 16 or over. Exceptions may be available on a case-by-case basis, and you will need to contact the site to get approval. If in doubt, please contact the respective schemes and the on-site team will be able to advise you.

You can apply for a Student visa to study in the UK if you’re 16 or over and you:, have been offered a place on a course by a licensed student sponsor, have enough money to support yourself and pay for your course - the amount will vary depending on your circumstances, can speak, read, write and understand English, have consent from your parents if you’re 16 or 17 - you’ll need evidence of this when you apply.

The UK has lots of banks, including National Westminster (NatWest), Barclays, RBS, Santander, HSBC and Lloyds. All of these offer special bank accounts for students, which usually include an interest-free overdraft. All high street banks have the same basic range of services – savings accounts, credit cards, overseas cash transfers and so on – but they offer different deals to attract new customers, so shop around to find your favourite. To open a bank account you’ll need to visit a branch of your bank (check to see if your chosen bank has a branch near your PMG) with the appropriate ID. Your passport, driving licence and one or two forms of proof of address (such as a bill or licence) will usually be enough. Bank accounts take a few days to get up and running, so try to open yours before you leave for university – or make sure you have a credit card to keep you going when you arrive.

You’ll find that your student union often has job adverts, and if you’re looking for shop, bar or restaurant work you can usually spot “Help wanted” signs in the shop windows. Your local Jobcentre will also have opportunities – simply head to the website and search by area.

Most surgeries now offer online registration – once you’ve found your local GP, check their website. Check with us too for any recommendations.

No problem – you’ll just need the same identification as other students. Take your passport, driving licence and at least one proof of address document such as a bill or licence. If you can get a letter from your bank at home recommending you, that’s even better – but you don’t strictly need this, and you absolutely do need the ID mentioned above.

No, but you can purchase bedding and other items from their partner.

Yes, each studio or flat kitchen has a fridge with a freezer compartment. Unfortunately, you cannot bring your own fridge as this would invalidate their insurance.

All their rooms are really well equipped with high-quality furnishings that provide ample storage and comfort.

Yes, studio rooms and flats have a combination microwave oven, a hob, a sink, a fridge/freezer and plenty of storage for all your pots and pans. Flats have communal kitchen spaces.

If you would like to bring your own kitchen equipment they have lots of storage space. However, you can buy a kitchen pack from us when making your booking which will be in your room upon arrival.

Some of their schemes have TVs in the rooms, however should you wish to use them then you will have to purchase a TV licence. Please note, there will be no TV's in the rooms however you are more than welcome to bring your own to plug in.

One of the best things about living with PMG is the amazing communal space that is open for all residents to enjoy. They've got TV areas, pool tables, and private or group study areas that are all perfect for you to enjoy on your own or in a group. They also hold regular social events in the common areas - check your information pack when you arrive for details.

Yes, they try to be as eco-friendly as possible so each of their schemes has plenty of secure bike storage space. Please note, E-Bicycles and E-Scooters are not permitted at any of their sites. They also offer FREE bike hire to all their residents across all schemes. Simply hand us your room key in exchange for a bike, helmet and lights.

All their developments are based in fantastic city centre locations, with great transport links nearby. They also try and be as eco-friendly as possible so they don't encourage students to bring cars. Very limited parking is available on a case-by-case basis – if you have a genuine need to keep a car at university, you can contact the management for your chosen PMG development to discuss your options. All their developments have nearby public car parks, perfect for when friends and family visit. Short term car access is available for dropping off or picking up your belongings.

Yes - they have a gym on most of their sites. They are open 24/7 and completely free to use for all their residents. Unfortunately, their insurance does not cover guests to use the gym.

Their onsite management can do very little in terms of internet problems. Please contact the service provider, Ask4. They have specially trained tech support staff to help sort out your internet as quickly as possible.

All their developments have easy-to-use laundry rooms with washing and drying machines (operated by Circuit Laundry). You can top up your laundry card from your computer and then use it to pay for your washing or use your phone through the mobile app. The laundry rooms are open 24 hours and they do not provide detergent.

All their common rooms have flat-screen TVs.

E-Bicycles and E-Scooters are strictly prohibited at all of their sites as they pose a significant fire risk.

You can log all maintenance issues online through the Student Portal. Their onsite maintenance team will respond to the issue as soon as possible.

For safety reasons, they can’t allow any overseas electrical equipment that doesn’t comply with all relevant British standards. They do not allow portable heaters in any of their rooms.

Yes, you do. All their sites have plenty of local supermarkets nearby.

No. Letting someone else store their things in your room is a breach of your Licence Agreement, and it will also invalidate your insurance coverage.

Of course. They normally allow a maximum stay of two days per visit for guests but they will need to sign in/out at reception (this is outlined in their guest policy which you will sign when you move in). Guests are not allowed their own keys.

Yes, through Endsleigh, they provide complete personal contents insurance to protect you and your belongings. Additional cover is available with Endsleigh at an extra cost.

Of course! You can enjoy the social aspect of student living, while hanging onto some personal space in one of their self-contained rooms.

So things don’t get too hectic, they will send all students different timeslots prior to move in so you can book your slot, but the reception is always open 24 hours a day.

They don't allow parties in your room - this is because they host regular parties and social events in the common areas throughout the year.

You’ll be in charge of cleaning your own room and helping to clean the communal area of your flat (if applicable). However, they do offer a cleaning service at a cost (details are in your arrival pack and on the Student Portal).

Your room is very safe - all door entry is key fobbed and all communal space has CCTV.

All their developments have staff on site 24 hours a day, monitoring the entire site to protect you and their buildings.

No. As per your Licence Agreement, if you’re caught smoking or tampering with smoke/fire detectors a charge may be applied to your account to cover call out charges of a fire engineer to check or repair the equipment. There are designated smoking areas at each of their developments which you are welcome to use.

The Student Portal is your online info guide. You can use it to report maintenance issues, book a cleaner, find out if you have post, as well as find useful documents like your Welcome Pack.

They’re not part of a university, but they have excellent working relationships with all the universities whose students they look after.

No, the facilities are only for their residents. It is only polite not to abuse this.

You can still live at PMG until the end of your licence period, however, you will become liable for council tax during this time. They can help you try and find somebody to take over your licence should you wish to leave, however, this cannot be guaranteed.

If you're already living with us, the best and quickest way to resolve your issue is to speak to a member of the PMG team at reception as they are likely to be able to resolve your issue there and then. If you are not living with us, or you are a member of the general public, you can contact PMG and they will take the details of your complaint and help resolve it. They really want to help resolve your problem quickly so when contacting us by email please provide us with the following information: Your name, Contact details - telephone number/email address/home address so that they can get back to you, Details of your issue or problem, Details of actions you have already taken, or anyone you have already spoken to.

Yes, they do offer short stays to students or the public in some of their properties. These short stays could be throughout the year, mostly during summer.

You can request to be in a room close to or within the same flat as your friends, however, this is subject to availability. They will do all they can to accommodate your request. Subject to availability you may request to be in a single-sex cluster flat for religious or cultural reasons.

They make every effort to ensure that their accommodation is accessible for all. Rather than try to plan generic “accessible” rooms in advance, they prefer to work with individual students to see how they can help. They have a certain amount of flexibility in each of their schemes, which allows us to offer a wide range of possible solutions.

They’re committed to considering – and, where possible, reducing – their impact on the environment across everything they do. They focus on green methods of construction and waste reduction, and all their developments have the facilities for you to carry on their eco-friendly mission! You can do your bit by recycling as much as possible.

Of course. Every site is equipped to recycle cardboard, plastics, paper and glass, and recycling tubs can also be found in each room. To recycle other items, check out the options with your scheme manager.

If you want to pay your rent in three instalments, you’ll need a UK-based guarantor (not Edinburgh). This is someone who lives and works in the UK and is willing to sign a contract saying they’ll pay your rent if you fail to do so. The Pmg will run a credit check on your guarantor – if they happen to fail The pmg will get in touch about what to do next. Your guarantor cannot be another student or a government. If you do not have a guarantor then you’ll need to pay your rent for the whole Licence Agreement in advance.

The property will investigate your issue thoroughly. The team will acknowledge all complaints upon receipt and ask that we be allowed 14 working days in order to fully investigate and respond to any issues raised. If you are not happy with their reply you should let us know and explain why - we can then arrange for a manager to contact you directly to discuss. Finally, if you remain unhappy, we will escalate your complaint to their Head Office to review and issue a full and final response.