Southampton Accommodation

Disclaimer: The information contained within this accommodation post is based entirely on my own experience with L3 Airline Academy / CTC Aviation and is intended to answer the questions I once had on accommodation prior to starting my course. The experience of others may well vary from property to property.

On my search for a flying school I wanted to find an organisation that not only offered a high-quality of teaching but also one which provided housing, particularly where training is carried out overseas. This was one of the many factors that later led me to select L3 Airline Academy / CTC Aviation as my preferred choice, however, prior to starting I had little or no knowledge as to the type of accommodation I could expect to live in.

THIS INFORMATION HAS NOW CHANGED!!
At the time of my training accomodation was inclusive in the training fee of £93,800. However, since the CTC Aviation / L3 merger and subsequent L3 / Harris merger, this is no longer the case. At the time of writing this note, the base Integrated ATPL fee is £89,000 with optional accomodation billed at £200 per week. The style of accomodation offered is similar to that mentioned in the Liberty Quays blog post.

On completing selection I received an accommodation pack alongside my contracts which provided an outline as to what to expect but wasn't overly specific and on the first flight day we found out why this was: It's simply because CTC manage ~100 properties and how they allocate you one depends on a number of logistical challenges.

Through this post I aim to answer the questions I originally had and provide some photos of the accommodation I'm currently living in. First things first, here's some photos.

Q: When did you find out where you would be living?

Each member in our CP was emailed a week prior to our start date to inform us of our property's address.

Q: Did you get to select who you wish to live with?

No and the reason is that CTC place cadets in houses depending on a number of factors including who drives in your group and how many spare rooms are available in each property as in some cases you may end up living with cadets whom are at different stages of their ground school. CTC prefer to keep cadets from CPs together as one group where they can.

Q: What's included in the accommodation? 

The following was inclusive with our property:

• All Utility Bills (inclusive of TV Licence & Council Tax)
• Fibre Internet
• Hoover
• Iron
• Ironing Board
• Typical Kitchen Utensils (i.e. Wooden Spoons, Servers Spoons, Knife Set, Colander)
• Dinner Plates, Small Plates, Mugs, Glasses
• Microwave
• Dishwasher
• Washing Machine
• Tumble Drier

I can't say whether every house has a dishwasher etc. as i haven't been to every single property CTC manage so don't be alarmed if contents vary from property to property.

Q: Are the rooms ensuite?

With so many houses in the portfolio this will depend on which house you're going to be in. In our house the majority of rooms are not ensuite with the exception of the downstairs bedroom which has a bathroom attached. As a house we were more than happy with allowing Kamyl the sole use of this bathroom and the two bathrooms/shower rooms upstairs shared between the guys.

Q: How many people do you share with?

In my case, 6. However, CTC's handbook does state the maximum could be 10. 

Q: Are the houses mixed?

Yes, in my case the house is mixed although whether the accommodation is mixed or not depends on how many female cadets you have in your CP. It may also depend on how many female cadets are still currently at ground school which you could move in with in the event they are to still be occupying the house you are moving into.

Q: Is there space to park the car?

We have a concrete parking area outside our house for 1 car but there is more than adequate on street parking for all of our cars. Other properties have driveways for more than one car so it really does vary.

Q: Are all of CTC's properties houses?

Nope. In fact CTC actually leases the entirety of a block of flats not too far from our property. With cadets in every one of the flats it's a true community feel although from what i've heard, it's far from a student halls environment as most cadets are too 'head-in-book' studying for exams etc.

Q: How far away from ground school is the house?

CTC tell you to expect to live anywhere from 5 - 20 miles away from the school. The majority of my CP are around the 8 mile mark although just how many miles you factor depends on the journey you take. Due to traffic our journey in the morning is around 9 miles, but on the way home only 6 miles.

Q: How does transport to and from ground school work?

I share a house with six people so we take two cars and split the petrol. It works out at roughly £15 per week in fuel costs so we're simply going to rotate who is paying each with the occupants in the car paying £15 once every four weeks or so... not bad really! Whilst I drive direct to CTC, my other housemate stops by some others in our CP to pick them up on the way.

Q: How far from the town centre are you?

About a 10 - 15 minute drive depending on traffic. When we went on a night out it was about £7 back to the house for a taxi.

Q: How far are the local shops?

In our case we're quite lucky as we have a Waitrose and Iceland within walking distance and a Sainsbury's and Aldi a short drive away. Being on a budget, we tend to nip to Aldi.

Any other questions?

If you have any other questions which you would like me to add to this page, please send me a message using the form below or leave a comment.