Accommodation

Newnham offers its postgraduate students single study bedrooms in a range of college-owned properties, all within a few minutes of the main College buildings and particularly convenient for the Arts Faculty/Sidgwick Site campus and the University Library.

Each house has at least one kitchen/common room, together with a good provision of shower-rooms, bathrooms and toilets. All postgraduate houses and flats have washing machines and drying facilities in them, with the Rosalind Franklin Building having access to these in a communal laundry room. The kitchens have gas or electric cookers, refrigerators and freezers, but residents must provide all other cooking equipment. Duvet and pillows are provided, but you must use your own linen. You may choose to cater for yourself here, but you can also use the College’s Buttery and Iris Café. All houses have a network phone for free University and College calls.

Rents

Rents for College rooms fall into four bands. Band A is the most expensive and bands A and B guarantee a double bed (for single occupancy). The rest of the rooms fall into bands B, C or D according to size. The rent includes, or includes a contribution towards the costs of: all utilities (electricity, gas, water); wired and/or wireless network access; duvet, pillows, mattress cover; laundry facilities; cleaning of communal areas; personal contents insurance (insurance details here). The student must provide their own bed linen (sheets, duvet cover, pillow covers) and towels. Rent is paid termly, in advance. Postgraduate room licences run for 51 weeks; for 2023-24 this will be from 23 September 2023 – 14 September 2024. Students can leave accommodation at the end of their course (if this is earlier than licence end date) subject to notice periods.

Postgraduate Rents and Charges for 2023-24

Band A = £182 per week
Band B = £172 per week
Band C = £161 per week
Band D = £151 per week

Rents at Newnham usually increase by inflation each academic year, based on the CPIH inflation measure for the previous calendar year, rounded to the nearest £1. The rents for 2023-24 have increased at a below-inflation rate.

Additional Accommodation Costs

in addition you will be charged a Kitchen Fixed Charge (KFC); this includes a contribution to running the College Buttery, providing and maintaining student kitchens and subsidising student Formal Hall events.

Council Tax

Full time students are not liable to pay the local property tax. Students living in College will not have to apply for any type of exemption. Students living outside College are likely to need a confirmation letter for council tax exemption. Students must have updated their address on CamSIS before requesting a letter. Please email the Tutorial and Academic Office.