St Mary's Newcastle, newcastle-upon-tyne

Living at St Mary’s was a big part of my student experience, and overall, I’d say it was a great place to call home during university. The room itself was comfortable and had everything I needed—good storage, a decent desk for studying, and a private bathroom, which was a big plus. The communal kitchen was shared with a few flatmates, and while everyone had different schedules, it was a nice space to socialize when we crossed paths. What stood out the most was how friendly and responsive the reception and support staff were. Whether it was a maintenance issue or a package delivery, they were always quick to help and made the place feel welcoming. There were also regular student events and activities, which made it easier to meet people—especially if you were new to the city. The building had a strong sense of community, which I really appreciated. The only downsides for me were occasional noise from nearby rooms and the laundry machines sometimes being all in use, but that’s to be expected in student accommodation. Nothing major that affected my overall experience. I’d happily recommend St Mary’s to students who want a safe, social, and well-managed place to live.

EDIT: THIS REVIEW WAS WRITTEN I 2020 ABOUT THE ACCOMMODATION WHEN OWNED BY NEWCASTLE UNI. It's a lovely place. Each room contains a bed with matrass and a drawer underneath the bed, 3 bookshelves above the bed, a big closet which requires hangers, three drawer units (one with 4 broad drawers, one with 3 small drawers and a bedside unit with 2 drawers), a desk and a (very uncomfortable) chair. It also has a desk lamp, a very bright ceiling lamp, a mirror with a lamp right above it and a sink underneath it, with a hot and cold water tap. It also contains a trashcan. As far as I know, every room has a window with curtains, and every room has a heater attached to the wall. The window can be opened, but not very far. The rooms have carpet. You need to bring your own bedding and pillow, your own hangers etc. The rooms can get pretty cold but you can request an extra heater. Mine was delivered to my room within ten minutes of requesting it! The staff is incredibly quick with repairs, and they do not charge extra costs. During my stay here the toaster, the shower, the cooker and one of the lamps broke, and all were fixed within twelve hours or less. Each flat contains 5 bedrooms of different sizes (all the same price, you can just happen to be lucky and get a bigger one), two showers and two toilets. I have had no trouble with hot water, there always seems to be enough even if you take a shower directly after one of your flatmates did. It has one big kitchen which includes the living area. There are enough cupboards for all, and there are two big fridges and freezers. There is an oven, electric cooker, a toaster, a kettle and a microwave. There's also a storage room with vacuum cleaners, an ironing board and a mop. I stayed in one of the newly refurbished flats, for which i am very grateful. From what I've seen the non-refurbished living quarters offer much worse living conditions. The common areas in the flats are cleaned once a week (for my flat it's every Tuesday) by a very competent staff. The fire alarm is tested every Wednesday at 15.00, and although in the beginning of the year there were a LOT of late-night false alarms where we had to wait outside in the cold for half an hour or more, we haven't had any in the past two months. The walls are very thin, so you can hear your neighbours pretty clearly. However, if there really is too much noise at night security will quickly solve that problem. The security in general is very good, they keep a proper eye on the property to make sure no intruders enter the student flats to steal any valuables. This accommodation is relatively far away from the centre of the city, but you do get a free bus pass that allows you to travel with public transport from and to certain stops. The busses aren't that trustworthy though, so I would recommend buying a bike, but that might just be the Dutchie in me talking. Bikes can be stalled in an internal courtyard which can only be accessed by residents. There are only 6 washers and 6 dryers, in one single laundry room. This means that for some accommodations you have to walk quite a distance if you want to do some washing. You need to install the Circuit app, which requires PayPal / a credit card. Washing is 1.10 and drying is 1.10. Even though there are so little machines, I have not had much trouble with waiting times. Reception is open from 9-12 every weekday. The employees are incredibly lovely and supportive. You can install the Newcastle University Accomm. App (available in Google play store and probably also for Apple products but I wouldn't know) to request repairs. As previously mentioned, repairs are handled incredibly quickly. I had my window frames repaired because it was getting very drafty and the repairmen were very professional and quick. They made sure to protect my belongings from the dust offered to vacuum clean after they were done! Even though this accommodation is the cheapest one it is still a lot of money, but it's not expensive. You really get value for the money you pay with the amazing staff and quick repairs.

The worst accommodation ever, please don’t believe in the pictures on sites because is a total scam. Everything is so dirty, my walls are covered with buggers, they literally don’t even clean up the rooms after a tenant leaves.

I stayed at St Mary’s during my academic year at Newcastle University , and overall, my experience was positive. The location is excellent—close to the university campus, public transport, and essential shops, which made day-to-day living very convenient. The security measures in place, such as key card access and 24/7 CCTV, made me feel safe throughout my stay. The rooms were clean and well-maintained, with enough space for studying and relaxing. The shared kitchen facilities were modern and functional, although at times it could get crowded during peak hours. Maintenance requests were handled promptly, and the staff was generally helpful and approachable. One of the highlights for me was the community atmosphere. Events were organized regularly, which helped me connect with other students and feel less isolated, especially in the first few weeks. That said, there were a few areas that could be improved. The Wi-Fi connection was occasionally unreliable, and the noise levels on some weekends could be disruptive. However, these were minor inconveniences in an otherwise smooth experience. Overall, I’d recommend St Mary’s to any student looking for a secure, friendly, and convenient place to live during their studies.

AVOID! AVOID! AVOID! I never usually bother to write google reviews but this is a warning to anyone considering this place as an option to move into, DO NOT book here under any circumstances unless you want to live in an accommodation that'll ruin your university experience. I lived in this accommodation from September 2024 to May 2025, and it was genuinely the worst housing experience I’ve ever had. I ended up being forced to leave early after the assistant property manager, Michelle, told me I'd have to either stop raising complaints or move out. That alone should tell you how they deal with issues. The biggest problem with this place was the heating — or lack of it. It was only on for max. 4 hours during the whole day, which left the room absolutely freezing especially during the autumn/winter periods. At one point in winter, my room temperature dropped to 5°C. I had to buy my own plug-in heater, and even then, it didn't make a difference because the windows were single-glazed with small gaps in them, had mouldy wooden panels around them, and let in constant drafts. I was sick multiple times because of how cold it was inside. After reporting the issue to the previous property manager Vanessa her response was? “Wear a coat” and “put on fleecy socks". YOU HAVE TO WEAR A COAT JACKET INSIDE YOUR ROOM? Reporting issues did nothing. I raised the heating problem multiple times, in person, via email and through their maintenance app, but was always ignored or brushed off with generic replies. The en-suite bathroom wasn’t any better — the shower leaked all over the floor every time I used it due to a glass panel that was barely hanging onto the wall, and nothing was done to fix that either. The wooden panels underneath the shower were rotting, and the tiny bathroom had almost no storage space. I even had to throw away toiletries because mould would grow on them from the cold damp air coming through the window. Reception was another nightmare. Most of the time no one was there to take parcels, so deliveries were often dumped outside — easy to lose or be stolen. If you have any urgent packages delivered to here good luck collecting them. All of this because of a ridiculous 24-hour parcel “processing” rule. Even important stuff like medication will have to wait because they just don't care here. On top of all that, the attitude from on-site management staff was dismissive at best and rude at worst. Complaints were met with sarcasm or indifference, and trying to get in touch with the management company, Cloud was a mission in itself. The phone line for them might as well be switched off, and the complaints procedure is buried deep in the website like they didn’t want you to find it. Til this day my complaint from January 2025 hasn't been responded to so if you think you'll be able to submit complaints, think again. It honestly felt like the staff were doing the bare minimum, while students were left freezing, frustrated, and ignored. I know for a fact I wasn’t the only one — tons of other residents had the same complaints. The local area isn't any better either. There’s barely anything to do nearby — no decent places to go with your friends, eat, or study — and it just felt isolated and dead most of the time. On top of that, the transport links are awful. The buses are either super early or annoyingly late, which makes getting to uni or anywhere else more stressful than it needs to be. So once again, if you’re a student thinking about living here: don’t. It might look decent and like it's good value for money on the website but the reality is miserable. You deserve somewhere that actually cares about your wellbeing — this place will be more like a survival mission.