Living on Wilbraham Road in Fallowfield with my parents is better than your student house

Living down the road from Baa Bar with your family is not as bad as people might think. 

For some reason,  people assume living at home is a restriction on university life. I however, like to see it as having the best of both worlds.

Yes, I still go out clubbing

After a few raised eyebrows and awkward silences, the first question I get is: “Do you still get to go out a lot then?”

Yes, is the answer. I live in Fallowfield – the outside world is just as accessible to me as it is to you.  It’s my hometown, so I already have a better idea of where’s good to go out. Unlike most freshers’, I’ve never had to fork out for a disappointing night out, because I know which places and nights to avoid.

I also know which restaurants are good but cheap, because we’re all students and can barely afford the new 5p bag charge, let alone a £15 meal.

Unsurprisingly, money is the main factor for my choice to live at home, and you can see why. Instead of forking out £90pw for rent, I can spend that money on nice meals, clothes and alcohol for all my great nights out. No one actually prefers Everyday Value vodka.

Better than your Fallowfield living room

I never long for home comfort like most students in Fallowfield. I can  jump straight into social life and university, knowing I can return home to my mum’s home cooked meals and other home comforts.

As a food lover, it’s incredible having a fully stocked fridge and not having to cook your own food. Plus, you never have to worry about who has taken your milk, or whose turn it is to take the bin out.

Nothing can beat home-cooked meals

People like to think going through all that makes them feel independent and grown up. But you’re over 18 – you can find other ways to feel like an adult without wash your own clothes and buy your own food. Besides, who’s to say you can’t do that at home?

At home you have a diverse friendship group, because not only will you have new ones from uni, but also you old high school and college friends.

You’re never short of having anyone to go out or chill with, and you can even help your new uni friends mix with your other friends, allowing them to expand their social group. It’s a win-win situation.

A lot of people have a misconception that having flat mates it the best and only way to make friends. If anything, living in such close proximity to people can ruin friendships and turn bitchy.

Bet you don’t have a dining room

I don’t need halls to make friends. Everyone at uni is so open to meeting new people that you can strike up a conversation in almost any environment. I can meet people simply by talking to them whilst standing in a queue for the Magic Bus or being in the same seminars as them. I’ve made a lot of friends through socials too, Manchester even has a Living at Home Society.

Plus, I can hang out at my friends houses before inviting them round for my mum’s home cooked shepherds pie.

If you live within a reasonable distance of uni and are worrying on missing out on university life, don’t. There is far more to university than living in halls.

Yes, it does help you feel more independent but you can gain that independence whilst experiencing other things about university life. I know I’ll still have the best years of my life in Manchester, even while living at home.