Southwell and Bernard Sunley Hall

Southwell & Bernard Sunley Hall is home to around 290 students during the academic year. It is a mixed gender residence, one of three halls of residence located around Evelyn Gardens, just off Fulham Road in South Kensington.

The wardening team is responsible for the welfare, discipline and social aspects of Hall life and is assisted by fifteen Hall Seniors (returning students) who man the coffee bar. The day-to-day operations of all halls in Evelyn Gardens are coordinated by the Village Managers’ Office in House 44 Evelyn Gardens, which is open between 8am and 6pm on weekdays and where you can report any defects and collect registered mail and parcels.

We aim to provide a safe, friendly, social environment where you can achieve both your academic goals at College and enjoy the benefits of living in London. The College has a highly effective support system for academic problems, and wardens aim to complement this by providing you with help and advice on how to cope with life in halls and in a big city.

There are elections to become members of the Hall Committee, who are mainly responsible for planning and organising events and discussing improvements to hall life.

Bedrooms

The rooms are assigned by the central accommodation office and we are unable to move you from one type of room to the other. The majority of people in double rooms, in fact, will have requested single accommodation. However, our experience is that the vast majority or people get along tremendously well with each other. The initial awkwardness of getting to know each other is soon replaced by friendship: That strange looking person you meet at the start of the year often ends up being a friend for life!
All the rooms whether single or double have a standard set of furniture for each student. You will of course get a single bed (and it's honestly the most comfortable bed I've ever slept in). You'll also get a wardrobe, bedside cabinet, some shelves, a desk, a chair, a desk lamp, a bin, and a huge pin board. Each room also has its own sink and mirror. You may want to note that the mirror is not a full length one, so if you absolutely have to have one, you'll have to bring your own.
One of the things you'll notice about Southwell and Bernard Sunley is that it's a set of converted Victorian houses. This means that no two rooms are really the same. There are some very large double rooms, and there are some smaller single rooms with their own balconies. Each room has its own character, and remember it's not the size of the room that counts, but what you do with it! Noise can be a particular problem, especially during exam times. It is important to realise that people around you may be trying to sleep or study. Different courses have different dates for exams and other deadlines. If you are having trouble with a noisy neighbour, talk to them about it - if you just ask them politely most people will turn down their stereos, talk more quietly etc. This is even more important if the problem is between room-mates. Try to understand the other point of view and remember that compromise is often the mature and effective way to solve a problem. If you are unable to resolve the situation, then you should ask one of the wardening staff for advice.

Bathrooms

There are lots of bathrooms, each one typically having three shower cubicles and three toilets, giving us plenty of facilities. We have two bathtubs in halls. Bathroom facilities are mixed-gender, though we have designated some as female-only.

Kitchens

There are numerous kitchens situated around the Hall. Each kitchen has at least one cooker, microwave, sink, kettle, toaster, and seating area. Each resident is provided with a lockable fridge compartment. You will also have a lockable storage cupboard and a lockable freezer basket assigned to you in your nearest kitchen. You should bring your own padlocks for these. You also need to bring your own food and cooking utensils. Kitchens are often local social hubs in the Hall and should be enjoyed by everyone: please keep them clean. Rice cookers, deep fat fryers and chip pans are not allowed to be used in the Hall and no cooking devices or fridges are allowed in bedrooms due to fire regulations.

Common Rooms

At Southwell and Bernard Sunley we are very fortunate to have a large amount of common room space which includes a main TV room, a games room with two pool tables and two table football tables, a coffee bar, a ping-pong room, and reading rooms. Most areas are furnished with sofas and comfy chairs. Our TV has Cable to provide a large array of stations, including all the sports channels. We also have a DVD based home cinema setup for regular film nights. Newspapers will be placed in the reading room daily and you will be able to find your post in the pigeon-holes located in the basement mail room of House 44.
You can find a fantastic Coffee Bar with tea, chocolate, Mars Bars, cookies, cups of tea, a relaxed atmosphere, and plenty of friendly people. Open every day of the week from 8pm to 11pm and Sunday mornings for breakfast. Most of the social life tends to gravitate around here (red cushions, comfy sofas and games are provided).
There are four small study areas tucked away off the stairs between the 3rd and 4th floors in Houses 53, 56, 57 and 60. These provide an alternative place to study if your roommate wants the light off to get to sleep. They also provide an area where you can work as a group on problems or assignments.

Laundry Rooms

We have pay-as-you-go laundries located in the front of the basement of Houses 53 and 60, each with two washers and two dryers. There is also a laundry room located in the basement of House 44 with three washers and three dryers. Please follow all instructions and report any malfunctions as soon as possible so we can get them fixed. As with other facilities, the laundry is strictly for the use of Southwell and Bernard Sunley Residents only. The door from the laundry in Houses 53 and 60 that exits the building is an emergency fire exit and should not be opened or left open for any other reason.

Internet Access

Each room will have fast ethernet connection to the college network. You will need at least a 10 MBit Network card in your computer. There is no cost for the service and you will be allowed almost unlimited internet access as well as internal networking to other Southwell and Bernard Sunley rooms and to the rest of the college. These are for work purposes only, of course. Again you will get more details of the service on arrival.

Notice Boards

Hall social events, information and news will be posted on screens around the Hall, in the magazine and by email. You should read these frequently to make sure that you don't miss out on the fun as well as the serious stuff.

Back Garden

The garden which runs behind Houses 53 to 60 is shared with the Hall next door (Holbein and Willis-Jackson) and with a number of private residences. You can gain access via the ground floor common room. The College does not own the garden, but the lease conditions allow us to use it provided that we don't make too much noise. Ball games of any type are strictly forbidden. Access to the garden is permitted between 8am to 10pm at the discretion of the warden. After 10pm the security precautions will not allow you back into Hall, so if you get locked out you will have to deal with the Imperial College Security Dog Patrol. Using the garden is a privilege which can be revoked at any time if we don't follow these rules!

Phones

You will have a personal phone in your room. Initially this will be set up for internal calls only (connected to the college phone network) and for receiving calls, but you can arrange to use the phone for making external calls as well once you arrive. You will receive a complete set of details for these arrangements and charge rates when you arrive. There will be a list of all internal numbers posted outside the front door, for people to call you from outside. There are also a couple of payphones in halls.

Post

We will distribute your post to the pigeon holes in the mail room. You will receive a notice of any registered mail or parcels held in the Hall Manager's Office (ground floor 44 Evelyn Gardens). They should be collected with some proof of identity.

Hall Office

The SBS Hall Office is located in House 58 ground floor of the main Southwell building between 7.30 and 8.30pm daily (8-8.30pm Saturday to Monday) and it will be manned by at least one member of the Wardening team. Come to the hall office to buy tickets to our events, or to pick up any post for you which we held back (see Post, above). Drop by and say hello, or come in and find out more about the future events. Outside Hall Office hours, a Subwarden can always be contacted between 7pm and 8am by calling 40903 on the internal phone system. During the rest of the day, serious problems should be communicated to the Hall Manager in House 44.

Bike Hire

As no secure bicycle storage is available in Southwell and Bernard Sunley Hall or the Evelyn Gardens area, and bikes cannot even be brought into the hall due to fire regulations, we thought this year to encourage you to try the new London Barclays Bicycle Hire Scheme as an alternative. As journeys under 30mins are free, this could work for cycling to College. The closest docking station to Southwell and Bernard Sunley Hall is the one on the corner of Old Brompton Road and Rowland Gardens, but there are many more located between Southwell and Bernard Sunley and the main campus on both Gloucester road and Queensgate. To become a Member of Barclays Cycle Hire and for more information visit this link

The Hall Handbook

Included in the student welcome pack you receive in your room, the hall handbook is an incredibly useful document that will give you an idea of what life in Southwell and Bernard Sunley Hall is like, as well as informing you of who the hall wardens are, what to do if something goes wrong, what is available in the area surrounding the hall and a host of other useful information.
If you've lost your copy, or if you're eager to take a look before you arrive, you can download the handbook in digital pdf format here.