University Accommodation Agreement for 2026-27

This document forms part of a legally binding contract for your University of Southampton accommodation in the 2026-27 academic year.

Please read it carefully before proceeding.

Students and Staff must comply with the University Charter, Statutes, Ordinances and Regulations, including the Halls of Residence Regulations whilst living in University of Southampton accommodation.

You should familiarise yourself with these, and the Halls of Residence Regulations are appended to this agreement for your information.

INTRODUCTION

This Agreement contains the contract terms and conditions that are applicable to all Accommodation contracts for the academic year stated on the front page, made between students (you) and the University of Southampton (us).

Where to find advice

Our Student Hub will be happy to answer any general queries you have, but they will not advise you on the legal effect of this Agreement for University accommodation.

Email: studenthub@soton.ac.uk
Tel: +44(0) 2380 599 599

You are always free to seek independent legal advice from a solicitor, or consult Citizens Advice, a Housing Advice Centre or the Southampton University Students’ Union for advice.

Our aim

We are committed to supporting the experience of our students as they work towards fulfilling their academic and personal potential. We aim to create a safe, comfortable, friendly, intentionally diverse and inclusive living environment. This Agreement sets out what is expected of you, other Halls’ residents/visitors and us.

Discussing this Agreement

As this Agreement is made between you and us, we are only able to discuss concerns directly with you and not with a third party, unless you authorise this in writing.

Your personal data

We comply with the Data Protection Act 2018 and the General Data Protection Regulation, Regulation (EU) 2016/679, as it forms part of domestic law in the United Kingdom by virtue of section 3 of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 and DPPEC (Data Protection, Privacy and Electronic Communications (Amendment Etc.) (EU Exit)) Regulations 2019 (including as further amended or modified by the laws of the United Kingdom or of a part of the United Kingdom from time to time) (UK GDPR) as amended from time to time.

We process data relating to you for the purpose of administering this Agreement, which may include sending communications to you; managing the day to day running of the halls or residence; to provide support services; to fulfil any other legal obligations

View details of our accommodation privacy notice explaining what data we hold, and how we use it and your rights. Please be aware that a failure by you to provide us with your personal data when requested for this purpose may result in the termination of this agreement. If we intend to process your personal data for a purpose other than included in our privacy notice, we will provide you with any further information as required.

The Data Controller (as defined in the data protection laws) of your personal data is the University of Southampton. The University of Southampton’s data protection officer who is responsible for the application of our privacy policies and data protection compliance can be contacted by writing to The Data Protection Officer, University of Southampton, Highfield, Southampton, SO17 1BJ or by emailing data.protection@soton.ac.uk

Accommodation Agreement terms and conditions

01.1 Definitions

1.1 “Accommodation” means

the type of residential student accommodation identified in the Contract Details (the “Room Type”) and
subsequently, the actual accommodation (Room) allocated by us to you either initially or, in substitution as provided for in this Agreement.

1.2 “Agreement” means the Contract Details and Contract Terms.

1.3 “Catered Package” means a weekly catering allowance that can be purchased for any normally self-catered room, where a weekly allowance of catering credit is added to the Student’s ID card (or any replacement system), for use at any of the University of Southampton catering outlets across Southampton and Winchester.

1.4 “Contract Details” means the details set out in the ‘Contracts’ section of our online accommodation system.

1.5 “Contract Terms”: means the entirety of: the Contract Details and all the parts of this Agreement for University Accommodation.

1.6 “Halls” means all, and any part of the halls of residence (including Shared Areas) that we own or operate from time to time, including but not limited to any ancillary buildings, grounds, facilities and access routes whether by foot or car or both.

1.7 “Halls Fees” means the fee set out in the Contract Details that is payable to us for your occupation of the Accommodation.

1.8 “Halls of Residence Regulations” means the document accessed via https://hallslife.soton.ac.uk/story/29752887/your-halls-contract, as amended from time to time.

1.9 “Keys” means keys or door fobs issued to students to gain access to their rooms or other parts of the Halls estate.

1.10 “Licence Period” means the occupancy dates set out in the Contract Details.

1.11 “Notice to Quit” means notice to leave the Accommodation and bring the Licence Period to an end.

1.12 “Part-Catered Students” means those students who have accepted an offer of a Part-Catered licence, comprising a room and term-time only meal package inclusive of two meals per day on weekdays and one meal per day at weekends, the cost of the meal package being included in Halls Fees.

1.13 “Residences” means the department of Residences, Sport and Community Services at the University of Southampton, Highfield, Southampton SO17 1BJ.

1.14 “Room Swap “means where two Students with existing Agreements for Accommodation agree to swap Accommodation (rooms) with each other.

1.15 “Services” means electricity, gas, water, waste disposal, passenger lifts, laundry and data network service (including but not limited to WI-FI) supplies to the Halls and Accommodation, as may exist from time to time.

1.16 “Shared Areas” means parts of the Halls that are accessible to you in addition to your Accommodation, including but not limited to shared kitchen and bathroom facilities, laundries and common rooms.

1.17 “Us”, “We” and “Our(s)”: means the University of Southampton, Highfield, Southampton SO17 1BJ.

1.18 “You” and “Your” means you, the individual student, to whom the offer of the type of Accommodation in the Contract Details is made and who will be occupying the allocated accommodation.

1.19 “Unilink” means the bus service operated under contract and serving the University of Southampton. The 2026-27 contractor is Bluestar, part of the Go-Ahead Group.

1.20 “University Closure Day”: means days as set out in Term dates and semesters dates when the University is closed.

1.21 “Week” means a period of 7 days inclusive.

1.22 “Working Day”: means a day when the United Kingdom clearing banks are open for business in the City of London and which is not a University Closure Day.

01.2 Interpretation

1.2.1 A person includes a natural person, corporate or unincorporated body (whether or not having a separate legal personality)

1.2.2 A reference to a party includes its successors and permitted assigns.

1.2.3 A reference to a statute or statutory provision is a reference to it as amended or re-enacted. A reference to a statute or statutory provision includes all subordinate legislation made under that statute or statutory provision.

1.2.4 Any words following the terms including, include, in particular, for example or any similar expression shall be construed as illustrative and shall not limit the sense of the words, description, definition, phrase or term preceding those terms.

1.2.5 A reference to writing or written includes fax and email.

1.2.6 Clause, schedule and paragraph headings shall not affect the interpretation of this Agreement.

1.2.7 The sections, clauses, schedules and Appendix form part of this Agreement and shall have effect as if set out in full in the body of this Agreement and any reference to this Agreement includes all of them.

1.2.8 A reference to a company includes any company, corporation or other body corporate, wherever and however incorporated or established.

1.2.9 Unless the context otherwise requires, words in the singular includes the plural and, in the plural, shall include the singular.

1.2.10 Unless the context otherwise requires, a reference to one gender includes a reference to the other genders.

1.2.11 Unless the context otherwise requires, any reference to European Union law that was directly applicable or directly effective in the UK before Exit Day is a reference to it as it applies in England and Wales from time to time as retained, amended, extended or re-enacted on or after Exit Day.

1.2.12 Any obligation in this Agreement on a person not to do something includes an obligation not to agree or allow that thing to be done.

1.2.13 A reference in this Agreement to any other agreement or a document is a reference to such other agreement or document as varied or novated (in each case, other than in breach of the provisions of this Agreement) from time to time.

1.2.14 Any reference to a clause or schedule shall mean a clause or schedule of this Agreement.

1.2.15 This Agreement contains obligations placed on you with which you have to comply. On very rare occasions we may decide in the circumstances (in our sole discretion) not to enforce an obligation(s) that has been breached by you. These are ‘one-off’ occasions and are not to be taken as a permanent release by us of that or any other obligation on you.

1.2.16 If there is any conflict or inconsistency between the provisions in the sections of this Agreement and the various schedules, such conflict or inconsistence shall be resolved according to the following order of priority:

Accommodation Agreement Terms and Conditions,

Schedule A Halls of Residence Regulations and Schedule B Residences Discipline Regulations

02. Offer and acceptance

2.1 By accepting your offer of accommodation via your online accommodation account, you acknowledge:

you have read these Contract Terms
By accepting this Agreement, you are entering into a legally binding contract with us for the Licence

Period and subject to the terms of this Agreement, which gives you the right to live in the Accommodation and to use the Shared Areas;

We only agree to provide to you the type of Accommodation shown in your online accommodation offer when the status of that offer shows ‘accepted’. Before this and also subject to clause 4.1 below, we reserve the right to withdraw an offer of a type of Accommodation; and
It is your responsibility to check your online accommodation status.

2.2 If we permit you to move into the Accommodation without you first accepting an accommodation offer online, you will be deemed as having Accepted by your action of moving into the Accommodation.

03. Under 18s and Couples’ Accommodation

3.1 Under 18s

3.1.1 You must be over sixteen years of age at the start date of the Licence Period.

3.1.2 If you will be under the age of eighteen years at the time of accepting an Accommodation offer, please see our Under 18s policy

3.1.3 Parent(s)/guardians of any Student under the age of eighteen should recognise that residential accommodation offered by the University is generally intended for the use of students aged eighteen and over. The University will not take any responsibility for Students, even those under the age of eighteen, in terms of their accommodation needs.

3.2 Couple’s accommodation

3.2.1 If you are in our couple’s accommodation, you must:

provide us with the name, date of birth and relationship to you of the person sharing your accommodation; and
receive our written permission for them to be resident in the Accommodation
not cut any additional keys. If you require an additional key, you must request this at your Hall’s reception

3.2.2 Children are not permitted to live in the Accommodation.

3.2.3 One bus pass will be included in the Halls Fees and will be registered to the Student email address. Additional bus passes can be purchased from Unilink directly.

04. Enrolled and registered students/other students

4.1 Course conditions

4.1.1 You agree that providing you with Accommodation is subject to you being, and remaining, an enrolled and registered full-time student of ours at all times or being allowed to occupy our students' accommodation for study purposes.

4.1.2 If after completion of the Agreement for Accommodation but before the start of the Licence Period you fail to enrol and register as our student, this Agreement may be terminated.

4.1.3 Unless we choose to exercise our discretion under clause 4.2 below, if you cease to be an enrolled and registered full-time student of ours for any reason and at any time during the Licence Period, we may give you not less than four weeks’ notice of termination of this Agreement.

4.2 If you are no longer an enrolled and registered full-time student of ours, we may, subject to completion of a separate agreement, in our absolute discretion, allow you to stay in the Accommodation.

4.3 We cannot guarantee to grant the concession referred to in 4.2.

05. Current students

5.1 This clause five applies if you are a current student, returning to Halls Accommodation for a subsequent year.

5.2 Outstanding halls fees / notice to quit

5.2.1 The offer of Accommodation made to you is dependent on you having no outstanding Halls Fees due to us under a previous agreement for our accommodation. We will check Student Fees accounts and if it is found that you have a debt to us, we may decline to offer you Accommodation. If you accept an offer of Accommodation and a subsequent check of your Student Fee account shows a debt to us, the Agreement for the Accommodation may be terminated prior to the start of the Licence Period.

5.2.2 We may decline to offer Accommodation, withdraw an offer of Accommodation, or terminate the Agreement prior to the start of your Licence Period should we reasonably believe that your behaviour and/or actions when previously resident in our Halls, may not be conducive to the Halls environment taking account of our responsibilities to our wider community. Examples (but not limited to these) would be a student who has had repeated interactions with the Residences Discipline team, who has demonstrated behaviour not conducive to shared living, or been issued a Notice to Quit Halls because of:

a breach of the Student Discipline Regulations; or
repeated minor breaches of Residences Discipline Regulations in Schedule B below.

06. Cancellation before arrival

6.1 If, after completing the accommodation acceptance process and before the start date of the Licence Period, you decide that you do not wish to take up the Accommodation, the booking will be cancelled under the following circumstances:

a) you do not meet the conditions of your academic offer and are not able to register or enrol as a full-time student at our University, or
b) you do not obtain a required visa and are not able to register or enrol as a full-time student at our University for the academic year 2026-27, or
c) you provide medical evidence clearly showing that the offered Accommodation is not suitable, and you must live outside University accommodation. Medical evidence must be dated within three months of the Accommodation being accepted, on headed paper, in English and from a GP/registered doctor, or hospital.

6.2 Cancellation requests must be received in writing no less than four weeks before the start date of the Licence Period, by emailing studenthub@soton.ac.uk and requesting the Withdrawal form. The Withdrawal form must be submitted before the start of the Licence Period.

6.3 If a cancellation request is received less than four weeks before the start date of the Licence Period and in the opinion of Residences does not satisfy the criteria above, the booking will not be cancelled, and the Student will remain liable for Halls Fees until such time as a replacement student is found to take over the Agreement, subject to clause 14.3.3.

07. Part-Catered students

This section applies only to Highfield Hall Part-Catered contracts

7.1 If you are a Part-Catered Student, for an additional payment (included in your Halls Fees) you receive a term-time-only daily allowance of catering credit providing breakfast and one other meal per day on weekdays, and one meal per day at weekends. This facility is accessed via your student ID card or any replacement system.

7.2 Part-Catered Students do not receive a daily allowance during our University vacations, on Bank Holidays or our University Closure Days, or other occasional dates as notified.

7.3 Unused daily allowances are non-refundable, and we are not responsible for any loss in the event that your student ID card is lost or stolen.

7.4 The Part-Catered Student’s daily allowance can be used in Highfield Halls, or any Campus Catering outlets at any University of Southampton campus in Southampton or Winchester. It cannot be used in the Southampton University Students’ Union catering facilities.

7.5 Part-Catered Students are not eligible to purchase a separate Catered Package.

08. Your obligations

8.1 General

You must:

comply with the terms of this Agreement; and
comply with the Halls of Residence Regulations (which includes the Residences Discipline Regulations) as amended from time to time. A copy of the current Halls of Residence Regulations is annexed to this Agreement in Schedule A, and the current Residences Discipline Regulations are annexed to this Agreement in Schedule B.

8.2 Paying halls fees

8.2.1 Halls Fees must be paid on the instalment dates falling within your Licence Period and specified on the Accommodation website https://www.southampton.ac.uk/student-life/accommodation/fees-contracts. Halls Fees will be automatically collected from the card specified in the accommodation acceptance process. Update or change your card.

8.2.2 Halls Fees cannot be paid in cash.

8.2.3 Halls Fees are chargeable from the start-date of the Licence Period, not from when you arrive at the Accommodation if later than the start-date of the Licence Period and permitted under clause 8.3.

8.2.4 Failure to pay any Halls Fees instalment may result in your debt being referred to an external debt collection company by our credit control team and a Notice to Quit to leave Halls or Accommodation being issued to you if payment is not made. This may also result in a claim for one or more of the following: loss of Halls Fees, our internal administration cost, legal costs and interest. Support and advice are available from the Student Hub for those with financial difficulties and/or debt. We strongly advise those in such circumstances to engage with these services. If you fail to pay any Halls Fees instalment and are in arrears, you will receive three notifications from us that your Halls Fees are unpaid before being referred to an external debt collection company. View more details on how we handle fees and debt, see especially paragraph 13.

8.2.5 If someone other than you pays all or part of the Halls Fees to us directly (for example a Sponsor or parent), this will not reduce or affect your responsibilities under the Agreement or result in any kind of rights of benefits to that other party.

8.2.6 Resident personal carers, or rotating care teams, may be accommodated, but they must be registered with a care agency and DBS checked. You must ensure that the cost of the carer’s room can be met. Home fee paying students may be able to reclaim the cost of the carer’s Accommodation from their home area Social Services Department. We do not cover or discount the cost of carer’s rooms.

8.3 Your arrival

8.3.1 You must complete the online ‘Essential Life in Halls’ Welcome programme for the relevant year before arrival. Failure to do so may result in your Accommodation Agreement being terminated.

8.3.2 You must arrive no later than seven calendar days after the start date of the Licence Period as set out in the Contract Details, unless we have agreed in writing that you can arrive later.

8.3.3 You must notify us of your arrival date using the online arrival booking process. In the event of you failing to arrive on time in accordance with clause 8.3.2 we may cancel this Agreement and make the Accommodation available to another student. If you are subsequently found to have enrolled at the University but have not arrived to your Accommodation, you will be charged for the contract until such time as you or we find an eligible replacement student who agrees to take over the contract. We are not obliged to find any such replacement student and will prioritise offering unbooked rooms.

8.3.4 Arrival before the start date of the Licence Period is not possible. If you think you need to arrive before the start date of the Licence Period, contact the Student Hub for advice.

8.4 Allowing us access

8.4.1 You agree that we retain control, possession and management of the Accommodation and you are not able to exclude us from it.

8.4.2 In order to carry out our responsibilities as property owner and operator, for Health and Safety and building security and management requirements (including Fire Drills) and for the maintenance of civil order, we will access your Accommodation and/or Shared Areas. This will require our staff and the employees or contractors of outside bodies who supply Services to the Halls to have access to your Accommodation and/or Shared Areas. All authorised persons will carry/display identification.

8.4.3 We will give you notice wherever possible, via e-mail and/or written notices, that we need to enter the Accommodation, in accordance with the guidelines set out in the current Universities UK/GuildHE Code of Practice for the Management of Student Housing (https://www.acop.ac.uk/) , but we reserve our right to enter the Accommodation on shorter notice or no notice at all in the case of:

access is required in accordance with clause 8.4.2;
an emergency (including a concern for welfare);
if we have reasonable grounds to believe that you are breaching Hall Regulations as set out under Schedule A;
if you have breached Halls Regulations relating to fire safety, e.g., including (but not limited to) covering of, smoke or heat detectors, or smoking/vaping in your room: for the 3 months following a breach of the Halls Regulations, we reserve the right to enter your room without notice (but after knocking on the door) to ensure ongoing compliance with these Regulations.

Notice may not be given if we need to enter the Shared Areas to address any of the above concerns.

8.4.4 During each academic year we will inspect your room to ensure you are taking adequate care of your Accommodation and to check for maintenance issues. Each inspection will involve an initial visit and may involve a follow up re-inspection to ensure that any actions notified to you from the first inspection have been carried out. If the condition of the room is still found to be unsatisfactory after re-inspection you will be charged for the reasonable costs of the cleaning and repairs undertaken by us, where we reasonably believe they arise from your actions. Inspections will be carried out on a regular basis, usually one inspection within a two-week period, you will be notified at least seven days in advance of any changes to this inspection schedule.

8.5 Your departure

8.5.1 You must
a) leave the Accommodation by 10am on the final day of the Licence Period or the date of earlier termination of this Agreement, whichever is earlier; and
b) leave the Accommodation in a reasonable state, similar to that of when you moved in, which as a minimum includes but is not limited to your room and any assigned shared kitchen storage being clean, free from your and anyone else’s possessions and any rubbish. A charge may be levied if your room is not left in a reasonable state to cover any reasonable costs associated with any cleaning and/or maintenance required; and
c) return your keys/key fobs to your Halls reception. Any keys left in rooms will not be deemed to have been returned and you may be charged additional rent to cover the time taken for them to be found and returned to the Halls reception.

8.5.2 We will carry out our own survey of your Accommodation (including the Shared Areas, if applicable) and the following actions will be taken:

Any items left will be treated as abandoned and may be disposed of appropriately;
Any important personal documents found will be passed to the Residences Team who will contact you by email at your last known address;
We will charge you the costs of any postage payable, before we will send any important documents to you;
Important personal documents will be kept for 3 months from the date we write to you, after that they will be destroyed, except for University of Southampton exam certificates which will be sent to the University of Southampton exam office.

09. Accommodation moves

9.1 Room moves

9.1.1 With our prior, written permission you may move from one room to another in your existing Halls or to different Halls, provided:

your reason for doing so is, in our sole opinion, a reasonable one; and
you provide evidence in support of your request; and
you provide evidence that the Hall Fees are paid up to and including the date of your request to move rooms; and
there is a suitable room available for you to move into

9.1.2 We will use the supporting evidence to assist us in prioritising room moves.

9.1.3 In determining the outcome of your request we will act reasonably.

9.1.4 We reserve the right to charge an administrative fee of £50 on completion of a room move, to cover the administrative costs incurred in changing contracts.

9.1.5 The grant of any room move request is at our sole discretion.

9.1.6 Information on how to request a room move

9.1.7 If we grant your room move request, this Agreement applies to the alternative Accommodation.

9.1.8 All room move requests should be sent to studenthub@soton.ac.uk for consideration by us.

9.2 Room swaps

9.2.1 No Room Swap is to be carried out without our prior approval. Such action would be considered subletting (see clause 3.2 of Schedule A of the Annex – Halls of Residence Regulations)

9.2.2 A Room Swap will only be considered if carrying out the Room Swap would not cause detriment to either of the flats involved. Any Room Swap will be at our absolute discretion and if approved we will inform both parties involved of our approval and permit the swap.

9.2.3 Subject to clause 8.2.1 and 8.2.2., if you identify a fellow resident that you wish to swap rooms with, you must provide the following:

The fellow resident identified is a registered and enrolled full-time student at the University of Southampton with a valid University of Southampton ID number
The fellow resident identified has an Agreement for Halls Accommodation with the University of Southampton at the time of the request
You and the fellow resident identified provide written confirmation to the University of Southampton that you agree to the Room Swap and the proposed date of the Room Swap, and
You and the fellow resident identified provide evidence that the Halls Fees have been paid up to and including the date of the request.

9.2.4 All proposed Room Swaps should be sent to studenthub@soton.ac.uk for consideration by us.

9.2.5 Both parties will agree the date upon which the Room Swap will take place and will become liable for the fees for the new room from that date onwards.

9.2.6 All fees and credits for the new room will be invoiced by us, to you. No money is to be paid by either party involved in a Room Swap to each other.

9.2.7 No cleaning provision will be made for Room Swaps. The state of each room is the responsibility of each party.

10. Contents insurance

10.1 We provide cover for your personal effects under a Campus Block Halls policy.

10.2 View full details of what is covered and the limits on liabilities

11. Keys and key fobs

11.1 You must look after your Accommodation Keys and return the Keys to your Hall’s reception when leaving your Accommodation for the last time. We may charge a reasonable sum for providing a replacement.

11.2 For operational reasons and to take account of our other students and occupiers of Halls, your obligations under clause 8 (including paying Halls Fees) remain applicable until you vacate your Accommodation and return the Accommodation Keys to your Hall’s reception. Any keys left in rooms will not be deemed to have been returned and you may be charged additional rent to cover the time taken for them to be found and returned to the Halls reception.

11.3 You may not have additional Keys cut. Any lost Keys must be reported to your Halls reception, where a replacement may be issued for a fee.

12. Our obligations

12.1 General
We will:

grant you a licence to occupy the Accommodation for the Licence Period or until its earlier termination. (Please note that a landlord and tenant relationship is not created by this Agreement)
use reasonable endeavours to ensure that any repairs, maintenance or cleaning services are carried out promptly. In carrying out such works it will be reasonable for us to adopt whatever systems, procedures, standards and specifications we may have in place from time to time and in so doing there will be no obligation on us to put or keep the Accommodation and/or Halls in any better condition than they were at the Accommodation start date of the Licence Period
use reasonable endeavours to provide adequate Services; and
in the event of a failure of a Service(s), take reasonable steps to restore the Services as soon as possible but we will not accept any responsibility or liability for any losses which you may incur as a result of any interruption in the supply of the Services.

12.2 We have the right to carry out any alterations or building works at the Accommodation, Hall or neighbouring property without liability for disturbance, but as far as is practicable we will use reasonable endeavours to minimise any disturbance.

12.3 We will use reasonable endeavours to provide catering to Part-Catered students, except where clause 7.2 applies.

12.4 Excluding residents of Erasmus Park, we will pass your registered email address, name and student ID number to Unilink for the purposes of issuing you with a code to claim a bus pass via the Unilink app. The bus pass will be active for the duration of your Licence Period. If your Licence Period is brought to an end before the normal end date under clauses 14.1.2 or 14.3, we will request Unilink to terminate your bus pass as of the final chargeable date of your contract.

12.5 If, at the start of the Licence Period or during the Licence Period, we are unable to provide the Accommodation to you by forces outside our control, we will use reasonable endeavours to provide you with alternative accommodation (which may not be accommodation owned by us and may not be as convenient as the Accommodation you accepted).

If we offer you alternative accommodation, you agree to accept it for a period of up to four weeks, but you will have the right to cancel your Licence Agreement if we have not offered you accommodation of an equivalent standard to the room type that you booked by the end of that four-week period.
If we are unable to offer an equivalent room type, we will not charge you any more rent than you agreed to pay if the replacement is of a higher standard than the room you booked, but we will offer you a rent reduction if the room type is of a lower standard than the one you booked.
We will always aim to give you reasonable advance notice if we have to offer alternative accommodation.

12.6 If, at the start of the Licence Period, we are unable to provide the Accommodation to you by forces outside our control, and we are unable to provide you with alternative accommodation, we will use reasonable endeavours to provide you with alternative accommodation (which may not be accommodation owned by us and may not be as convenient as the Accommodation you accepted) within two weeks of the start of the Licence Period.

If we are unable to offer acceptable alternative accommodation, you may cancel the Licence Agreement without charge.
If we offer you alternative accommodation, you agree to accept it for a period of up to four weeks, but you will have the right to cancel your Licence Agreement if we have not offered you accommodation of an equivalent standard to the room type that you booked by the end of that four-week period. If we are unable to offer an equivalent room type, we will not charge you any more rent than you agreed to pay if the replacement is of a higher standard than the room you booked, but we will offer you a rent reduction if the room type is of a lower standard than the one you booked.
We will always aim to give you reasonable advance notice if we have to offer alternative accommodation.

12.7 If you believe either clause 12.5 or 12.6 applies, contact studenthub@soton.ac.uk to request information on cancelling your Licence Agreement under clause 14.1.1.

13. Change of accommodation during the licence period

13.1 During the Licence Period we may need to move you to substitute Accommodation for operational or discipline reasons. We will give you not less than one weeks’ notice in writing unless clause 13.2 below applies.

13.2 In the event of an emergency (determined by us acting reasonably) or in accordance with our Halls of Residence Regulations and/or our University Student Discipline Regulations, we may require you to move immediately from your current Accommodation to substitute Accommodation.

13.3 In the event of clause 13.1 or 13.2 applying, this Agreement will continue to apply to the alternative Accommodation.

14. Termination and/or early release

14.1 Circumstances

14.1.1 This Agreement will automatically terminate:

at the end of the Licence Period; or
as provided for elsewhere in this Agreement

14.1.2 This Agreement can be also brought to an end by us in the following circumstances:

There are substantial arrears in Halls Fees or Halls Fees have not been paid by you on the date due;
You breach one or more terms of this Agreement;
You cease to be registered and enrolled as a full-time student at our University (unless we use our discretion under clause 4.2);
You change from a full-time student to a part-time student (unless we use our discretion under clause 4.2)
You commit a serious breach of the Halls of Residence Regulations and termination of this Agreement is considered appropriate.
Your registration status changes to ‘External’ so that you will no-longer be eligible for Halls accommodation.

14.1.3 In the event of one or more of the grounds referred to in clause 14.1.2 above occurring, we will give to you not less than four week’s written notice of termination of this Agreement.

14.2 Notices

14.2.1 Except where this Agreement specifically states that a notice need not be in writing, any notice given under or in connection with this Agreement must be in writing and delivered:
a) to the University of Southampton by email to accommodation@soton.ac.uk
b) to the Student at:
(i) the Student’s registered University of Southampton email address, and
(ii) Room Number and Building Address, marked for the attention of the Student
or as otherwise specified by the relevant party by notice in writing to each other party; and

14.2.2 If a notice complies with the criteria in clause 14.2.1, whether or not this Agreement requires that notice to be in writing, it shall be deemed to have been received:
a) if delivered by hand, at the time the notice is left at the proper address; or
b) if sent by a registered post service or by recorded delivery, on the second Working Day after posting.

14.2.3 Clause 14.2.1 and 14.2.2 do not apply to the service of any proceedings or other documents in any legal action or, where applicable, any arbitration or other method of dispute resolution.

14.3 Early release/ termination process

14.3.1 If you wish to apply for early termination/ release from this Agreement you should email studenthub@soton.ac.uk for advice. Requesting early release/termination does not mean that early release/termination will be granted and is only granted in exceptional circumstances unless the grounds set out in section 13.1 of this agreement apply. In some instances, in support of your request, we may ask for evidence of your circumstances, and we reserve the right to request you engage with relevant support services within Student Hub.

14.3.2 Entirely at our sole discretion this Agreement may also be terminated earlier if both you and we agree to this in writing. The decision of Residences is final.

14.3.3 Ordinarily, early release is granted if another full-time, enrolled student of the University (identified by you and who is satisfactory to us) is identified to take over the vacated Accommodation. The identified student must:

have a valid University of Southampton ID number,
not already be resident elsewhere in our Halls (including in any partner or nominated Halls covered by the University of Southampton accommodation guarantee),
not be already on our waiting list; and
not have an accommodation debt with the University of Southampton, and, subject to their meeting the criteria above,
accept their offer of accommodation.

14.3.4 You will remain liable for the Halls Fees up to and including the agreed early release/termination date and the return of your Keys to your Halls’ reception. The agreed early release/termination date by when you must vacate the Accommodation will be the date stipulated in the notification from us that the early release/termination has been granted and all Halls Fees must be paid up to and including the return of the Keys and the date of early release/termination stipulated in the notification prior to you vacating the Accommodation. Such notification will be sent by us by email. As a standard, a four week notice period will be implemented from the date the Early Release form is submitted, unless clause 14.3.3 applies. The Early Release form can be accessed by emailing studenthub@soton.ac.uk.

14.3.5 Any bus pass issued to you as part of your Accommodation Agreement under clause 12.4 shall terminate upon the agreed early release/termination date.

14.3.6 In the event of you remaining beyond the agreed early release/termination date then clauses 8.1, 8.2, 8.6, 11, 15, 16, 17 and 18 apply.

14.4 Courts

If you do not leave the Accommodation following clause 14.1.1, 14.1.2 or 14.3 we may commence proceedings to obtain a court order requiring you to leave. This may also result in a claim for one or more of the following: loss of Halls Fees; our internal administrative costs; legal costs and interest.

14.5 Halls of residence regulations

Even though the Agreement for your Accommodation may have ended, your obligation to comply with Halls of Residence Regulations continues as long as you remain in residence.

14.6 Pre-termination rights

Termination of this Agreement does not affect any claim(s) either party has against the other for anything that happened while this Agreement was in force.

15. Exclusion of liability

Except where otherwise provided by statute we will not have any liability to you, your guests/visitors for any accident happening or injury suffered in or around the Halls.

16. Complaints and jurisdiction

We aim to create a safe, comfortable, friendly and beneficial study and living environment for you. Occasionally things go wrong, and we set out below how these issues are dealt with. Please note that wherever we can we try to resolve issues internally and there are various ways this can be done. Going to court is seen by us as a last resort.

16.1 Complaints

16.1.1 In the first instance, if you are unhappy with your Accommodation, you should let us know within thirty days of the event or issue arising, by sending an email to studenthub@soton.ac.uk.

16.1.2 If you remain dissatisfied with the resolution provided by us you may raise a complaint about the Accommodation by following the University’s Regulations Governing Student Complaints which can be found at the following link: www.southampton.ac.uk/studentadmin/appeals-complaints/for-students.page

16.1.3 If after following the full procedure set out in the University’s Regulations Governing Student Complaints the matter has not been resolved to your satisfaction you may make a complaint to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator.

16.2 Agreement construction and jurisdiction

16.2.1 The construction, validity and performance of this Agreement, and all non-contractual obligations arising from or connected with it, shall be governed by the laws of England and Wales.

16.2.2 The parties irrevocably agree that the Courts of England and Wales shall have exclusive jurisdiction over any claim arising under or in connection with this Agreement.

17. Rights of third parties

It is not intended that any term of this Agreement shall be enforceable by virtue of the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999, by any person who is not a party to this Agreement.

18. Severability

If any provision of this Agreement is held by a Court to be:

illegal or,
invalid or unenforceable in whole or in part, in any respect,

then such provision (or in the case of part, that part of a provision) shall be given no effect but such a holding will not invalidate the other provisions of this Agreement or the remainder of a provision found invalid or unenforceable in part.

Schedule A: Halls of residence regulations

Introduction

As a member of the University community you are expected to follow the law and our rules as set out in the University Regulations, policy and student charter, which include these Halls of Residence Regulations.

The aim of the Halls of Residence Regulations is to create a safe, comfortable, friendly and beneficial study and living environment in Halls.

Please note that if you fail to comply with these Regulations this may lead to termination of your Accommodation Agreement and/or action under the Regulations Governing Student Discipline.

The examples given in the sections below are not intended to be exhaustive illustrations.

Your contact for the Residences Team is accommodation@soton.ac.uk.

These Halls of Residence Regulations cover:

You,
other students who live in your Halls, or
anyone who is visiting you in your Halls

Useful links and advice

Links to useful information on the University’s website.

The Res Life Cycle team
The Student Hub
SUSU Advice Centre
Student Charter
University Charter and Ordinances
Student Information page
Halls Information page
The University’s Inclusion and Respectful Behaviour Policy
Regulations Governing Student Discipline
Substance Misuse Policy - This policy also gives guidance on alcohol related behaviour and smoking practice
Car parking
University of Southampton iSolutions Rules and Guidelines

A1. Definitions

In these Halls of Residence Regulations, the following terms have the meanings shown:

1.1    “Accommodation” means
A)  the type of residential student accommodation identified in the Contract Details (the “Room Type”) and
B)  subsequently, the actual accommodation (Room) allocated by us to you either initially or, in substitution as provided for in this Agreement.

1.2 “Drones” means remotely controlled, unmanned, flying craft of any description and size.

1.3 “Halls” means all and any part of the Halls of Residence that we own or operate from time to time, including but not limited to any ancillary buildings, grounds, facilities and access routes whether by foot or car or both.

1.4 “Planon” means the student online system for reporting repairs and maintenance issues.

1.5 “Residences Team” means that part of the University responsible for the student (accommodation) experience.

1.6 “Services” means electricity, gas, water, waste disposal and data network service (including but not limited to WI-FI) supplies to the Halls and Accommodation, as may exist from time to tim

1.7 “University” means the University of Southampton, Highfield, Southampton SO17 1BJ.

1.8 “Us”, “We” and “Our(s)”: means the University of Southampton, Highfield, Southampton SO17 1BJ.

1.9 ‘You’ and ‘Your’ means the individual student to, to whom the offer of the type of Accommodation in the Contract Details is made and who will be occupying the allocated accommodation.

A2. Your commitment to the Halls community

2.1 Behaviour and respect to others

We promote an inclusive culture where harassment, bullying or victimisation is not tolerated. You must behave with consideration for others, treating staff and fellow students with respect, dignity and courtesy, considering them as individuals, with different needs and expectations.
You must respect the right to privacy of other students, members of our staff, visitors and any other people present on our premises. You must not take photographs, videos or recordings in our Halls without permission, or live-stream or make social media posts including other students, visitors, members of our staff and any other people present on our premises without clear consent from them to feature in any such content. You must not use photographs, videos or recordings taken with permission for the purposes of harassment or to cause upset or injury to another person.
You must respect the right of all residents to access Services and Shared Areas and not take actions which may unduly limit access to such Services or Shared Areas. This includes, but is not limited to, using one laundry machine at a time, collecting laundry promptly once the cycle has finished, not using the laundry facilities on behalf of a non-resident of the Hall, and sharing Shared Areas such as common rooms and music rooms.

2.2 Fire safety

You must play an active and responsible role in minimising the risk of fire within the Halls and to respond to emergency procedures quickly and efficiently. In particular,

A) you must familiarise yourself with the Halls of Residence Fire Procedures and with any other publicised emergency procedures including Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans (PEEPs) (if appropriate),
B) if we deem at any point that you require a Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan (PEEP) whilst in our Accommodation, the process will be discussed with you in detail. Failure to engage with the PEEP process or a failure to agree to the proposals made without good reason will entitle us to issue a Notice to Quit and terminate the Agreement for your Accommodation
C) you must leave the Halls for the fire assembly point immediately the fire alarm sounds and MUST NOT return until instructed to do so by a member of our staff or the Fire Service,
D) you must not leave cooking unattended. Unattended cooking is the biggest cause of fire alarm activation in Halls. If a member of staff finds unattended cooking, we reserve the right to switch off the oven and/or hob,
E) you must keep passageways, stairways, exits and fire exits clear from any obstruction such as, but not limited to, the following: clothes airers, personal belongings, decorations, mats/rugs, vacuum cleaners
F) all your personal possessions used in the Accommodation must meet the minimum standards set by the UK fire, electrical and safety regulations. Electrical items, including adaptors, must be CE or UKCA marked and fitted with a correctly fused and earthed UK 3-square-pin plug from new and be in good and safe working order. No more than two items may be plugged into an extension lead at a time to prevent overload. 2-pin plugs present a fire hazard if attempts are made to use them in UK sockets and will be removed. Electrical items with exposed wiring will be removed. “Fairy lights” are permitted but must not be in contact with soft furnishings and must not be left turned on and unattended. LED strip lights or similar are not permitted on walls or ceilings. No additional soft furnishings, such as chairs or curtains, may be brought into the Accommodation,
F.i ) The following is specific to City Gateway and Mayflower Halls: in addition to clause F above, all personal electrical appliances must be Portable Appliance Tested (“PAT tested”)
G) you must not have any personal, freezers, heaters, microwaves, washing machines, kettles, heated clothes airers or drying racks or other domestic appliances in your Accommodation. Appliances such as rice cookers, air-fryers, kettles and toasters which are CE or UKCA marked; fitted with a correctly fused and earthed UK 3-square-pin plug from new and in good and safe working order may be used in kitchens but not in bedrooms.
Mini fridges are permitted in your accommodation provided they meet all of the following requirements:
- Dimensions no greater than H55cm x W45cm x D50cm
- Less than 2 years old;
- Not placed anywhere that restricts exit or entry into a bedroom

Residences staff must inspect and approve any mini-fridges brought into your Accommodation. You must email studenthub@soton.ac.uk to request an inspection within 48 hours of arriving to your Accommodation. No mini fridges may be placed in Shared Areas.

H) high risk electrical appliances, including but not limited to deep fat fryers, 3D printers, pressure cookers and batteries/chargers for electric vehicles of any sort are not permitted in your Accommodation or any of the Shared Areas
I) you must keep all fire doors closed at all times. You must not interfere with the integrity of your fire door (including but not limited to hanging items (for example, clothes-hangers or temporary over-door hooks) over the top of the door), nor cause obstructions in your room which prevent the easy ingress or egress from your room (including using rugs that would prevent your door easily opening or shutting)
J) the use or storage of any item with/requiring a naked flame, such as but not limited to candles or incense, in your Accommodation or any part of the Halls is not allowed; and
K) we reserve the right to remove any item found in Halls that is not permitted to be in Halls as part of our wider safety duty.

2.3 Health and Safety

You have a general responsibility to consider Health and Safety in your day-to-day activities, not only in your own interests but also others around you. This includes but is not limited to:

A) not creating hazards or health risks for yourself or others
B) maintaining a safe and hygienic environment for those who may need to enter the Accommodation, Shared Areas and other spaces and the Halls’ access routes
C) taking all reasonable steps to ensure that your own Health and Safety and that of anyone else, who may be affected by your actions, is not adversely affected in any way
D) ensuring that unnecessary combustible materials (household chemicals, packaging and other particularly flammable materials) are not stored in your Accommodation
E) not bringing or keeping any fireworks, fuel, firearms (real or replica and including airsoft and paint-balling devices) of any type or description and their ammunition into your Accommodation, and not bringing or keeping any weapons of any type or description, including decorative weapons such as, but not restricted to, axes and swords into your Accommodation. This applies even if you are a member of a Student Union society organising activities involving any of the items stated in this clause. Dangerous items found in Halls will be reported to the Police
F) not bringing any bicycles(s), including e-bikes into any part of the Halls buildings but storing them in one of our designated external bike storage areas when not in use
G) not playing ball or other projectile games anywhere in the Halls, except in designated areas
H) not using wheeled items such as bicycles, scooters or skateboards indoors
I) not using, storing or charging electric wheeled items indoors, including but not limited to e-bikes, e-scooters and/or batteries for any such item
J) notifying the Residences Team of any damage, fault or disrepair within, or to, the Halls as soon as you notice it and that wherever possible this notification, if not an emergency, is made using the online system Planon
K) not damaging or penetrating walls, ceilings or floors of any Halls. Buildings built pre-2000 may contain asbestos
L) not interfering with or exchanging shower heads and/or hoses in bathrooms and ensuites. Any non-University shower heads and hoses encountered during our quarterly limescale descaling process will be removed to ensure the safe management of legionella risk.

2.4 Security

You must be considerate of your own personal security as well as the impact of your behaviour on the security of others. This includes ensuring that:

A) you do not disclose any security access codes or pass over keys to access any part of your Accommodation or Shared Areas to any other person apart from a member of our staff who has the appropriate identification, and you must not have copies of Halls keys cut;
B) the doors and windows of your Accommodation or Shared Areas are properly secured when you leave it unattended
C) access doors are closed behind you when you enter and leave the Hall’s building;
D) you exercise reasonable control over your guests and visitors whilst the guest/visitor(s) is/are present anywhere in the Halls and/or the University’s campuses provided they are in your presence. You must not leave your guests unattended in your Accommodation. Visitors or non-residents, even if known to you, are not permitted to use the laundry facilities;
E) you do not allow any unknown or unidentified persons, or persons (even if known to you) who are not residents of the Hall access to any of the Halls’ buildings, including laundry facilities and bike sheds; and
F) you notify your Halls reception by phone (or the University 24 emergency number 02380 592811) if you have concerns about an unknown or unidentified person(s). You should not approach them yourself.

NOTE: All bona fide staff and contractors will carry valid ID that is visible on their person.

2.5 Respect for your Halls environment

You must take care of your Halls environment including ensuring that:

A) you keep your Accommodation (including bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and any Shared Areas) in a clean and tidy condition at all times. A failure to comply will result in you being charged the reasonable cost of professional cleaning/ tidying. This includes following reasonable cleaning guidance given to promote a safe and hygienic environment
B) no rubbish, refuse or any other materials are placed, poured or left to create obstruction in your sinks, baths, showers, lavatories, cisterns and any other Halls pipework. All your rubbish must be disposed of correctly both inside and outside of buildings, using the general waste and recycling facilities provided and as directed both during the Licence Period and prior to you leaving the Accommodation. A failure to comply may result in you being charged the reasonable costs incurred by us, for example of the removal of your rubbish or of the unblocking of fatty or oily deposits from pipes
C) all your food products have not passed their ‘use-by’ date and are stored hygienically, any spillages caused by you or found within your Accommodation and associated Shared Areas are cleaned up quickly and your crockery, cutlery and cooking utensils are cleaned, maintained and stored safely and hygienically
D) that your behaviour does not encourage pests and you must co-operate with pest control measures, allowing access, including emergency access to pest control contractors
E) you do not fly Drones anywhere in, on or around the Halls
F) you and any guests you have must keep noise to a minimum between the hours of 11pm and 7am inside your Accommodation, in the shared areas and in the external Halls environment. This includes using headphones and keeping your voice low if making voice or video calls between these hours. During exam periods, noise must be kept to a minimum at all times. If you live in Quiet flat, you, or any guests, must keep noise to a minimum between the hours of 10pm and 7am. Your Accommodation offer clearly indicates if your Accommodation is in a Quiet flat.
G) if you live in an Alcohol Free flat, you and any guests in your flat are not permitted to keep, drink or bring alcohol into the Accommodation, including the Shared Areas within the flat. Your Accommodation offer clearly indicates if your Accommodation is in an Alcohol Free flat.
H) you use the Services respectfully, avoid wasting resources such as water or electricity and ensure other residents have fair access to Services such as laundry machines and study spaces. Using more than one laundry machine at a time is not permitted; and
I) you abide by the safety instructions in regard to the operation of passenger lifts, where provided, including but not limited to observing limits on capacity and using the safety alarm in the event of entrapment.

2.6 Trading activities

A) You are not allowed to conduct any form of business, trade, profession or employment or any other commercial activity including casual agreements resulting in any non-student use of the Accommodation or Halls. We will return to sender any post or deliveries sent to a business with a Halls address
B) You are not allowed (either paid or as a volunteer) to participate in the promotion of unauthorised business services or service providers that involves the distribution of posters, flyers or other forms of advertising in or around our Halls. Any authorised activity means approved by us and/ or the Southampton University Students’ Union.

2.7 BBQs

You may only have a BBQ in the designated spaces using the facilities that are available in these locations. These must be booked in advance by you at your local Halls reception, and you must comply with the health and safety guidance relating to their fair use. Disposable BBQs must not be placed onto benches, and hot coals must not be put into waste bins.

2.8 Pets and animals

The only animals permitted in our Halls are Assistance dogs who have undergone training through Assistance Dogs UK (ADUK), and you must have written permission for keeping such a dog in your Accommodation from both the University of Southampton Student Disability and Inclusion and Residences teams. If you require permission for an Assistance dog, you must email studenthub@soton.ac.uk before accepting this agreement. Most of our rooms are not suitable environments for the appropriate care of a dog and we will need to discuss with you what options are available.

2.9 Parking

Car parking is not available to students living in our Halls. You are strongly discouraged from bringing a car, van, truck or other motor vehicle to the University. You must not park such vehicles on any Halls site without a valid parking permit. Holders of permits must park within marked bays and must use car parks without causing a hazard or obstruction. You must not drive or park in such a manner as to cause a nuisance or disturbance to other residents or neighbours, for example by restricting access.

A3. Sub-Letting, guests and visitors

3.1 Only you may live in the Accommodation unless you are living in a one bed flat suitable for couple’s accommodation (subject to your compliance with clause 4).

3.2 You may not sublet, share or loan-out the Accommodation to anyone else.

3.3

A) You are allowed the occasional guest who must be aged eighteen years or older. Children are not permitted anywhere in Halls buildings.
B) If you wish a guest to stay for more than three consecutive nights, you must receive in advance of the guest staying, the written consent of Residences (studenthub@soton.ac.uk). The maximum time a guest may stay is seven consecutive nights in any given four-week period. You must give the name, date of birth and age of the person staying, when asking for this permission. We reserve the right to refuse guests in Halls.
C) Frequent short-term visitors (whether staying overnight or not and if whether clause 3.3B above applies or not) are discouraged, due to the impact on other occupiers of the Halls by way of overcrowding, additional noise or behaviour leading to complaints.
D) You are responsible for your guest and for any misconduct or damage caused by them, and you will be liable for any fines/costs resulting from your guest’s behaviour.
E) If you are living in a designated single sex flat, only guests of the same sex are permitted to stay after 10pm. Guests of a different sex are only permitted to visit single sex flats with express permission of each of the other residents of the flat.
F) If you have a resident carer, or visiting care team, you remain responsible for their behaviour whilst in the Accommodation. Shared Areas must be used respectfully.

3.4 You must make any guest or visitor aware of the fire regulations and location of the fire assembly point for your Halls.

3.5 We reserve the right at all times to ask your guest (including a relative, resident carer or care team) or visitor(s) to leave the Halls immediately.

3.6 You must tell your guests/visitors/resident family member/carers that they are expected to:

be considerate of the needs of other occupiers of the Halls; and
abide by these Halls of Residence Regulations and will be asked to leave the Halls if they do not do so.

Schedule B: Residences discipline regulations

B1. Introduction

This Section covers how we deal with allegations of misconduct and the penalties for any breaches of these Regulations.
Examples of misconduct to guide you:

the procedure for dealing with misconduct matters
our ability to move you to alternative accommodation if the circumstances require
the penalties that can be imposed
appeals

If you want to raise allegations of misconduct by other residents under these Regulations, you are advised to do so as soon as possible and normally within thirty working days of the event or issue occurring.

B2. Definition of misconduct

Misconduct includes but is not limited to:

1.1 Failure to produce without undue delay your current student ID card at the reasonable request of a member of our staff.

1.2 Producing/providing false information relating to your student ID.

1.3 Failure to comply with a reasonable instruction given by a member of our staff.

1.4 Failing to leave the Halls or its grounds, including specific external areas, when reasonably asked to do so.

1.5 The possession, use, sale or other trafficking of illegal drugs, illegal drugs paraphernalia or controlled substances. If you are suspected of involvement with drug/controlled substances such activity will be reported to the Police.

1.6 The possession, use, supply or offer to supply Psychoactive Substances commonly known as “Legal Highs” and Nitrous Oxide, commonly known as “Laughing Gas”. If you are suspected of involvement with Psychoactive Substances, you may face disciplinary action.

1.7 Smoking (including e-cigarettes/vaping) within any Halls building. As well as being a misconduct offence you may be charged the costs of cleaning or replacing of soft furnishings and redecoration.

1.8 Smoking outside Halls buildings in a way that is not considerate of the wellbeing of other Halls occupiers. For example, if smoking outside a building you should be at least five metres away from any residential door or window.

1.9 Failing to evacuate the Halls immediately when the fire alarm is sounding or returning to a Halls before being allowed to do so by a member of our staff or the Fire Service.

1.10 Activating fire alarms in the absence of any fire or other reasonable cause or tampering with any fire equipment such as fire extinguishers, fire blankets, fire detectors, smoke detectors or wedging fire doors open. Such actions are also a criminal offence.

1.11 Leaving cooking unattended leading to the activation of smoke or fire detectors.

1.12 Using candles, incense sticks/ burners or any item that requires a naked flame in your Accommodation, Shared Area or anywhere within the Halls.

1.13 Failing to comply with the Health and Safety instructions in passenger lifts, particularly relating to occupancy, health and hygiene or emergency procedures.

1.14 Causing damage to:

your Accommodation
Shared Areas, social spaces, communal access ways or
any other part of the Halls

NOTE: Causing damage will mean you will be liable to pay the full costs of repairing any damage caused or contributed to by you or your guests and visitors together with our reasonable administration costs for dealing with the matter, but a reasonable allowance for ‘wear and tear’ will be made when assessing repair costs. Where appropriate, costs in Shared Areas will be shared among those residents with access to the area.

1.15 Interfering in any way with existing Services and/or our fixtures or fittings.

1.16 Unauthorised use of or damage to property belonging to us, our staff, other students and their guests or visitors.

1.17 Unauthorised use of the Halls or its grounds.

1.18 Causing noise nuisance and/or exhibiting other anti-social behaviour (for example (but not limited to) causing harassment, alarm or distress) that affects the quality of life of other students, occupiers or our staff, for example (but not limited to) their study, general activities, relaxation or sleep or work. This includes behaviour arising from the misuse of any substance (for example (but not limited to) alcohol, legal highs or controlled substances).

1.19 Causing noise nuisance and/or exhibiting other anti-social behaviour (for example (but not limited to) causing harassment, alarm or distress) that affects the quality of life of the local community. This includes behaviour arising from the misuse of any substance (for example (but not limited to) alcohol, legal highs or controlled substances), and parking vehicles inconsiderately.

1.20 Lewd or sexually inappropriate behaviour anywhere within Halls or the grounds.

1.21 Violent behaviour or threats of violence to staff and/or other students or visitors

1.22 Misuse of the student data network services, including interference with the Wi-Fi access points located on the Hall sites.

NOTE:

A) You are referred specifically to the University of Southampton iSolutions Rules and Guidelines which are available at: www.southampton.ac.uk/isolutions/regs.
B) If you make excessive demands upon our IT network, we reserve the right to cap your use to preserve an efficient service for other users.
C) Illegal downloading. By connecting to Eduroam or accessing the Internet through a University network point you are agreeing to the University’s IT terms of service, and conditions of internet browsing. The University does not permit any activities which are illegal. This includes, but is not limited to, the downloading or sharing of copyright protected material. If you do download or share anything illegally it can be traced back to you. You are personally accountable for your internet activity whilst connected to the University’s network. The University will seek to take the appropriate action for any reported illegal activity.

1.23 Keeping pets or animals, livestock, fish, birds or insects anywhere in the Halls or its grounds. ADUK trained Assistance dogs are permitted but must be authorised by the University of Southampton Student Disability and Inclusion and Residences Teams prior to the Agreement commencing.

1.24 Publicly displaying, or distributing, any promotional or marketing material for any third party.

1.25 Recording and/or distributing in any way, any material (audio, visual or both) for the purposes of harassing, stalking or bullying another person.

B2. Disciplinary procedure

2.1 Introduction

A) As a member of our community you are expected to follow the laws of England and Wales, and our rules (Halls of Residence Regulations, University Charter, Statutes Ordinances and Regulations), which aim to create a safe, comfortable, friendly and beneficial study, living and working environment for you, other students and our staff
B) Set out below is the procedure for dealing with alleged breaches and if a breach is proved, how it will be dealt with

2.2 Overriding objective

2.2.1 The overriding objective of the Halls of Residence Discipline Regulations is to:

Deal with allegations fairly and in ways that are proportionate to the alleged breach.
Carry out a reasonable investigation into the facts.
Allow you to know the allegation(s) against you and allow you to set out you case via email or in a face-to-face meeting depending on the severity of the allegation.
Where appropriate, evidence will be shared with you and in circumstances where the evidence cannot be shared a summary of evidence will be provided.
Take account of the interests of anyone affected by what has happened (victims and/or witnesses)
Deal with matters efficiently and speedily.

2.2.2 If you are found responsible for misconduct, we will fix a penalty that takes account of:

The seriousness of the breach(es)
The effect the breach(es) has/have had on others
Any early admission of responsibility
Any voluntary offer to make up for the harm/loss caused
Your prior behaviour

2.3 Investigation

2.3.1 An initial decision will be made by a member of our Residences Team as to whether the breach is to be dealt with:

Internally under these Residences Discipline Regulations; or
Internally under the University’s Regulations Governing Student Discipline; or
By referral to external authorities only; or
Both internally (under either these Residences Discipline Regulations or the University Regulations Governing Student Discipline) and referred to external authorities.

2.3.1.1 Some breaches may be dealt with under the Residences Discipline Regulations as they pertain to accommodation, and under the University’s Regulations Governing Student Discipline as they relate to wider misconduct implications, such as impact on reputation of the University.

2.3.2 If it is decided that the alleged breach will be dealt with under these Misconduct Regulations, a member of our Residences Team will be appointed the Decision-Maker (‘Decision-Maker’) and will carry out an investigation into the case.

2.3.3 As part of our investigation, CCTV images may be checked and where possible door fob access data will be checked and used.

2.3.4 If there is to be both an internal and external investigation, these may be conducted simultaneously, or the internal investigation may be deferred until the outcome of the external investigation is known.

2.3.5 You will be:

informed of the allegation(s) against you;
provided with the supporting evidence or a summary of the evidence gathered if more appropriate unless, in rare circumstances, it is appropriate to preserve the confidentiality of the identity of the witness(es) if there is a reasonably perceived need to protect the witness(es) from the risk of intimidation or retribution; and
given an opportunity to state your version of events in person or in writing. If you fail to attend a pre- arranged misconduct meeting without good reason, then we may proceed in your absence based on the evidence we have already received.

2.3.6 In the event of clause 2.3.5 ii) applying, we will endeavour to release such material as we are able which may be in a redacted or edited form.

2.3.7 Audio and/or visual recording of meetings is not normally permitted. If, due to exceptional circumstances it is agreed in advance that you are permitted to record a meeting, the recording is confidential and must not be:

copied or shared with any third party unless the copying and sharing with a third party is because this third party is assisting you with the misconduct case, or
published, or
disseminated in any way.

A true and complete copy of the recording of the meeting must be provided to our staff member(s) as soon as possible after the recording was made.

2.4 Standard of proof

2.4.1 Allegations of breaches of these Halls of Residence Misconduct Regulations need not be proved ‘beyond a reasonable doubt’. The standard of proof applied is the ‘balance of probabilities’ which means that, when assessing the evidence objectively, the Decision-Makers view is that it is more likely than not that the allegation of misconduct is proved;

2.4.2 The Decision-Maker’s decision is final as to the facts;

2.4.3 if applicable account will be taken of clause 2.3.6; and

2.4.4 where a person against whom allegations has been made is not aware of the identity of all those who have given evidence, due weight to this factor will be given and to your responses in those circumstances.

2.5 Written reasons

We will give written reasons for all formal decisions made at any stage of this misconduct process.

B3. Accommodation transfer

3.1 We reserve the right, depending on the circumstances of each case, to move you, on a temporary basis, to new accommodation pending the outcome of any investigation.

3.2 This change in accommodation will occur where in our opinion it is in the best interests of either you or another/other student(s) or our wider community.

B4. Penalties

4.1 Penalties mean and include the following:

Verbal warning
Written warning which may be copied to your Faculty
Financial penalty (‘Fine’). This is in addition to any amount charged per clause 1.5 of Schedule B
Attendance at an appropriate awareness session e.g. on fire safety, for which there may be a charge equivalent to a fine
Move to alternative halls accommodation, which may be at a different hall.
Termination of the Agreement for University Accommodation in accordance with clause 14.1.2 of that Agreement (issuance of a “Notice to Quit”)

4.2 When fixing a Penalty our Decision-Maker will use their discretion taking account of the factors in clause 2.2 of Schedule B

4.3 The Decision-Maker may apply Penalties in combinations if thought appropriate.

B5. Appeals

5.1 You may appeal against a finding that you are responsible for any Misconduct and/or the Penalties.

5.2 The grounds for a first appeal (“First Appeal”) are the following:

there is significant or additional evidence (such evidence to be sent in with your written notice of appeal), explaining a particular behaviour or outcome that was not previously available, or
the Penalty was disproportionate to the Misconduct, or
there was material procedural irregularity which if it had not occurred might have impacted significantly on the decisions made.

5.3 Simple dissatisfaction with the outcome does not constitute grounds for any appeal.

5.4 Any appeal should be made in writing by email to hallappeals@soton.ac.uk.

5.5 Any appeal must be received within 10 Working Days of the date of the communication to you, telling you of the outcome of any disciplinary action.

5.6 Following receipt of a First Appeal under clause 5.2 a member of the Residences Discipline team will appoint a different member of University staff from the original Decision-Maker, to act as an Appeals Officer (“Appeals Officer”) who will reconsider the matter. Such reconsideration will be on the basis of the documents already on file and the material submitted as part of your appeal.

5.7 The possible outcomes of an appeal may be:

That the original decision is confirmed or overturned; or
That a lesser penalty be imposed; or
That the penalty be removed.

5.8 If you are not satisfied with the Appeal Officer’s decision, but do not meet the grounds for appeal at 5.9, then you may request a Completion of Procedures (COP) letter (also see 5.12) by contacting the Head of Academic Appeals and Student Complaints appealsandcomplaints@soton.ac.uk

5.9 You may exceptionally appeal the decision of the Appeals Officer (“Second Appeal”) but only on the grounds that there was a material procedural irregularity which, if it had not occurred might have impacted significantly on the decisions made and clauses 5.4 and 5.5 apply.

5.10 On a Second Appeal an appropriate staff member from the University will review the allegation(s), the evidence, the decision(s) already made and your written reason(s) for this Second Appeal, on the basis of the documents on file.

5.11 The outcomes may be:

That the original decision is confirmed; or,
That the original decision is set-aside and the matter re-considered by another member of the Residences Team appointed as a fresh Decision-Maker (who cannot be either of the previous Decision-Makers); or,
That a lesser penalty be imposed; or.
That the penalty be removed.

5.12 This is the end of the appeals procedure. If the appeal is not upheld, you will be issued with a Completion of Procedures (COP) letter by the Vice Chancellor’s Office. A Completion of Procedures letter signifies that the University's internal procedure has been completed and should be sent to you normally within thirty working days of the University's final decision.

5.13 Information about the OIA’s procedures may be found at http://www.oiahe.org.uk or in the OIA leaflet ‘An introduction to the Student Complaints Scheme’ which is available from the SUSU Advice Centre. Students wishing to make a case to the OIA must normally do so within 3 months of the date of the COP. A complaint must be made in writing using the Scheme Application Form.

5.14 Contact details for the Office of the Independent Adjudicator are:

Office of the Independent Adjudicator
2nd Floor Abbey Wharf
57-75 Kings Road
READING
RG1 3AB
Tel: 01189 599813
Email: enquiries@oiahe.org.uk