24 M a y 2002 Issue 1237
Star Wars. Episode II. Want it you know you do... (Page 11)
Should keep you amused for
Student Housing In Jeopardy College authorities have approved plans to sell C l a y p o n d s h a l l of residence i n the summer of 2003 for a n estimated £8m. C l a y p o n d s is situated i n E a l i n g a n d houses 332 students, mostly first year overseas postgraduates. The College currently plans to refurbish Southside a n d Bernard Sunley halls i n the A u t u m n of 2003. If these refurbishments a n d the C l a y p o n d s sale both go ahead as p l a n n e d t h e n the College w i l l have to find a least 300 extra bed-spaces just to keep its guarantee of accommodation for all first year undergraduates. There w i l l be no space for overseas post-graduates, w h o are currently recognised as "priority c a s e s " for a place i n halls once a l l first year undergraduates have been housed. A l t h o u g h the Rector's Committee on Student Residences met last week, the plans w e r e not made public unt i l a meeti n g of the College C o u n c i l last Friday. A n angry m e e t i ng of the Union's Executive Committee on M o n d a y established that College officials h a d failed to consult student before approving the plan.
s p i r a c y " a n d assured Felix that the guarantee of accommodation for a l l first-year undergraduates w o u l d somehow be met. In the long term this may involve the construction of a n e w hall of residence near to the South Kensington campus. In the short term, it raises the possibility t h a t t h e sale of C l a y p o n d s m a y be delayed until October 2004 or e v e n 2005. M a r k Tyler, the Warden of Clayponds, told Felix that "I'm disappointed w i t h the short-term v i e w t a k e n b y the College." He also questioned the College's commitment towards overseas postgraduates.
Clayponds: Going, going... gone in 2003 Professor Rees Raw l i ngs, the Pro Rector (Educational Quality), t o l d Felix that "the students should have been informed... it should not have gone to College C o u n c i l as s u c h a surprise."
Clayponds w a s bought for £12.5m i n the early 1990's a n d valued i n 1996 at £11.8m. A n informed source, c i t i n g the recent surge i n London's residential property market, estimated that C l a y p o n d s might actually be w o r t h £15m, w h i c h with an w o u l d leave the College u n p l a n n e d c a s h surplus of £7m. Etienne
Senior College officials attempted to portray the decision as "cock-up, not con-
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