Hughes Parry Hall, London

Hughes Parry Hall is one of eight intercollegiate halls of the University of London.

Facilities

With 300 residents, it is primarily intended for undergraduate students. The hall was opened in 1969 and its design and facilities bear witness to the exigencies of that time: bathroom facilities are shared; there is little by way of communal kitchen arrangements (although the hall provides both breakfast and evening meals); and the lifts are frequently broken (the hall is arranged as a tower block and has fourteen floors). There are squash courts, tv and games rooms, and a less than active student society. The hall also benefits from its location overlooking Cartwright Gardens in WC1 where tennis courts are available to residents. Every Christmas, the students are accustomed to wrap decorative paper around the life-size statue of John Cartwright (political reformer) in the Gardens that are named after him.

History

It is impossible that Mick Jagger, who left the University (LSE) in 1962, could ever have been a resident of Hughes Parry, although, in defiance of chronology, many residents still believe this to be the case.

The Hall is administered by a bursarial team that exercises responsibility for two halls in Cartwright Gardens: Hughes Parry and Canterbury Hall. Since 1995, the Warden of Hughes Parry Hall has been Professor Martyn Rady; the Bursar is Fiona Elder.

Although Hughes Parry Hall is affectionately known by students as 'Huge Party Hall', it is in fact named after the distinguished lawyer and Vice-Chancellor of the University, Sir David Hughes Parry (1893-1973).

Hall staff have always operated a tough drugs policy, with on one occasion the Warden marching a student to the police station. As of July 2007, the Hall has introduced a blanket no-smoking rule. Since a student in 2005 attempted to abseil out of a third floor window on an internet cable, (consequently breaking both legs and hindering his ability to climb 14 flights of stairs in the absence of working lifts) the hall has also taken strict measures to keep large parties and alcohol consumption to a minimum.

The first warden, Dr Jeffery David Lewins, was appointed in December 1968. The first students were admitted in 1969 and the Hall was officially opened by the Chancellor of the university, her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother in February 1970. Dr Lewins spent ten years in the hall with his family.

The hall was originally for male students only. It went mixed in 1971.

External links

* [http://www.london.ac.uk/225.html Official website]

References