Student Houses in Galgate, Lancaster

The campus is about a mile up the road. That puts it within walking distance for anyone who does not mind the stroll, and a very short bus ride for everyone else. On a day with a nine o'clock lecture, that difference is worth a lot.

Galgate is a proper village rather than a suburb, with its own pubs, a convenience shop and a canal running through it. It has a settled, quiet feel, and the mix of students and long term residents keeps it that way.

Housing here tends to be a mix of terraced cottages and later houses. Group sizes are usually smaller than in the big Bowerham shares, so it works well for threes and fours. Because the village is small, the number of student houses is limited and they get taken early.

The catch is distance from the city centre. Lancaster is about four miles north, so a night out means a bus, a taxi or a designated driver. Students who live in Galgate tend to be the ones who would rather be near campus than near town.

The Lancaster Canal runs through the village and the towpath makes a decent walking and cycling route. Cycling to campus is genuinely practical from here, which is not true of most Lancaster student areas.

Before you commit, be honest with your group about how often you expect to go into Lancaster in the evening. Galgate rewards people who spend most of their time on campus and treats town as an occasional trip. If half the house wants to be out in the city twice a week, the travel adds up in both time and money.

Because the village is small, it is worth walking the route from the house to the campus once before you sign, at the time of day you would actually be doing it. A mile is a pleasant walk in September and a different proposition in the dark and the rain.