The team at Portergate’s Friargate Court student accommodation in Preston has been bowled over by the vision for a new £60 million civic square and student support centre unveiled by the city’s University of Central Lancashire (UCLan).

The design from world-leading architect Hawkins\Brown will help to totally transform the University Quarter and deliver UCLan’s ambition of drawing the university and city closer together.

And we’re looking forward to seeing how this stunning design will be turned into reality to create a vibrant new gateway as part of the ambitious £200 million university masterplan.

The design concept features a biodiverse roof, LED lighting underfoot, a pavilion café bar and a large glass façade to create feelings of light, space and airiness.

It has been created using the idea of ‘threads’ to connect the university and its city, drawing on Preston’s textile heritage and its future in aerospace electronics.

The result is a design filled with space, light and openness. The new public square will give a whole new dimension to this part of Preston.

These really are exciting times for the university, its student population and the wider city – with the project due for completion in 2019.

For more details of the design concept and the masterplan visit the university’s own website:

We also echo the comments of Preston City Council leader Peter Rankin, who said: “Everything is coming together to make Preston an even better place to live, study, work and visit.”

The students who are now making their home at Friargate Court are already discovering what Preston has to offer them.

They are also settling down to enjoy the benefits that living in our stylish new £18 million accommodation – opened last month at the start of the new university year – brings them.

The 244-bedroom development, which has helped to kick-start the regeneration of Friargate, is also aimed at employees in Preston’s high-tech manufacturing sector and Lancashire’s new Enterprise Zone.

Friargate Court is just minutes from the university campus and the centre of Preston.

Our high standard of accommodation and hands-on management appeals to students who want more than the basic student living style and to their parents who welcome the care and attention offered by the 24/7 staff.

Prices at Friargate Court start from £135 for a fully furnished and well-equipped en suite bedroom in a standard apartment containing between two and five bedrooms, a living area and large kitchen.

Large standard, standard, superior and studio apartments are also available to rent now through our own website – www.friargatecourt.com – or through the Property Place in Manchester and Martin & Co. in Preston.

Here at Portergate we pride ourselves on the quality and levels of service and support residents at our hotel-class properties receive once they move in.

Everyone who works at Portergate is very passionate about what we do, with a total commitment to quality – and like the university’s ambitious plans, we’re delivering the ‘wow’ factor.

You’ve got through Freshers’ Week in one piece (just) and your student life is just beginning.

It’s a daunting but exciting time and these tips uncovered on the internet by the team here at student accommodation provider Portergate might just help make things go a bit smoother.

First off are these student life skills, which according the savethestudent.org will help you survive university life:

www.savethestudent.org/extra-guides/freshers/13-skills-to-help-you-survive-university.html

They range from knowing when to call it a night to figuring out the washing machine – all essential to student survival.

And when it comes to your course there’s the valuable ‘avoiding tricky seminar questions’ tip.

The Good Universities Guide has also come up with its checklist of advice:

http://www.gooduniversitiesguide.com.au/Latest-news/Life-at-university/How-to-survive-your-first-year-of-uni#.V-fZaySBKQ8

It includes these wise words which we heartily agree with: ‘Don’t be too hard on yourself’.

It might take you a while to get settled.  So don’t expect to get perfect grades straight away and try to enjoy your time at university while it lasts.

According to the Daily Telegraph “University is not just about taking a degree – it’s about learning to be an adult.” Stern stuff!

Check out the newspaper’s survival tips here: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/universityeducation/student-life/8677131/Student-living-tips-for-university-survival.html

It seems that everyone has some advice for you as you set off on the big university journey.

Parents think they still know best, and one of the best advice columns Portergate has come across over the years, still has to be from the Mumsnet website. www.mumsnet.com.

According the site, these were lessons “learned the hard way” by Mumsnetters during their own uni days.

They ranged from “be careful which clubs you join” to “know your limits” – or to put it another way: “When you feel sick, stop drinking”.

Other great tips include “read the instructions” – important when doing your washing and “adjust your expectations”, which is a sound piece of advice when you head off to the shops to do your food shopping for the week.

Another piece of sound advice, which Portergate continually passes on to students embarking on their university career, also makes the list. “Stick to your budget”.

And it comes as no surprise that the Mumsnet top 10 includes an instruction to “listen to your parents.”

The article quotes one of its mums explaining: “Before I headed off to uni my dad said, very seriously, ‘Well… don’t do anything stupid.’ It pretty much covers it all!” Quite!

Balancing your budget and making the pennies count is another theme for would-be advisors, with a host of tips to be found on the internet.

We checked this one out from the Independent website and found some sound advice to share:

http://www.independent.co.uk/student/student-life/finances/making-student-loan-last-at-university-freshers-week-2016-managing-finances-for-the-first-time-a7326286.html

As all students will find out – every penny counts, even when it comes to buying a round of drinks in the Student Union bar. Count those pennies now and at least you’ll avoid suffering a financial hangover.

More positive news surrounds the University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) and its vision to create a new £50million campus gateway in the heart of its home city of Preston.

The university has now announced that it is including the good people of Preston in the process of selecting the architect that will design the development. And the team here at Portergate and Friargate Court can’t wait to see what their input brings.

Feedback from the community will help inform the decision on how a new civic square and student support centre, part of UCLan’s ambitious £200 million masterplan, could look.

The whole process is also being carried out in conjunction with the prestigious Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA).

Earlier this year, RIBA ran an international competition which asked architectural practices “to submit designs which would deliver an excellent student experience and create a world-class campus”.

There’s now a seven strong shortlist of designs and, as the university’s website has revealed, they will go on display at St George’s Shopping Centre on August 8-10, and UCLan’s Foster Building on Fylde Road on August 11-12.

The university says that members of the public can have their say on the proposed designs, either at the events or online, before final judging takes place later in August.

In a statement the university said: “These events are a great opportunity for local people to find out exactly what is being proposed and help inform the final decision. The whole community can reap the benefits of this multi-million pound investment.”

UCLan Vice-Chancellor, Professor Mike Thomas, told the website: “The standard of the shortlisted entries is very high and we’re now looking to members of the public to ensure these designs reflect what’s important to them.”

Details of the plan are emerging and they are impressive. Combined, the new student support centre and civic square will be the same size as London’s Trafalgar Square!

The shortlisted designs can also be viewed online at www.ribacompetitions.com/uclan where members of the public can share their views using the online form.

These are certainly exciting times for Preston. The countdown is on to the opening of our stylish new £18 million Friargate Court accommodation in the city’s University Quarter.

It will open its doors to welcome students from UCLan later this year. The 244-bedroom development, which is helping kick-start the regeneration of Friargate, is also aimed at employees in Preston’s high-tech manufacturing sector and Lancashire’s new Enterprise Zone.

The Friargate development is part of Portergate’s ambitious North West expansion plans. It is currently under construction by the Preston-based Eric Wright group.

Portergate’s successful Riverside House student accommodation in Salford has been a major success story and welcomes students from across the globe.