KCL is the fifth most likely university to punish students for noise complaints

With Freshers’ Week long gone, common rooms are finally quieting down, and shared kitchens are being used for actual cooking rather than pres. I can sleep through anything, so the chaos of Freshers’ never bothered me. But as it turns out, not everyone’s built that way – some people can’t stand the noise and even file formal complaints.

Data complied by MattressNextDay showed that in the past five years, 173 noise complaints have been recorded at King’s College London (KCL) and in 129 of those cases, students faced disciplinary action.

That makes King’s the fifth most likely university to punish students over noise complaints. A little harsh, right?

It’s a surprising statistic, especially when you think about London’s party scene, and the decibel levels reached every Wednesday at Dover Castle.

This basically means that if someone reports you for being too loud, the odds aren’t exactly in your favour. For a university with a buzzing student scene, it’s definitely quite the plot twist.

Tied in first place, St Andrews and London South Bank University hit a full 100 per cent punishment rate for noise complaints – imagine that, zero mercy.

However, the University of Exeter ranked lower in the eighth position, followed by Queen Mary University of London and the University of Sheffield who placed ninth and tenth, respectively.

It’s not all bad news, though, as King’s isn’t even the university with the most noise complaints. Out of the 81 UK universities assessed, our uni ranked in the 49th position.

Oxford Brookes scored top with the most complaints, coming to a staggering 5,307 in the five year period.

The main takeaway from all this? Well, Halloween is creeping up so maybe stick to spooky, not scream-y. With a 74.57 per cent punishment rate, the scariest thing this season might not be the guy in a scream mask asking for the aux, but a disciplinary email in your inbox before the hangover even hits.