In Southampton, we offer homestay accommodation with hosts who have been personally approved by the school and are regularly inspected. Homestays are 10-35 minutes from the school by bus. Our recommended minimum age for homestay is 13. Junior homestay students share a room. This can be with students of the same or different nationality.
Single en-suite rooms with shared kitchen
Bed linen and towels provided (laundry of bed linen and towels included)
Students stay in University of Winchester halls, a short walk from the classrooms, activity areas and dining hall. Accommodation is arranged by the Lewis School of English.
Each student has a single bedroom with a private en-suite toilet, washbasin and shower. Bedrooms are arranged in flats with a shared kitchen and common area.
Students are placed in flats with other students of the same sex. Groups are usually housed together, and a Group Leader may also stay in a separate room in the flat.
Individual students are placed with students of the same sex and a similar age. This may be with other individual students or, where appropriate, with students who are part of a group.
Room allocations also take account of welfare needs and any important information provided before arrival.
Residential students receive full board. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are normally served in the university dining hall. Packed lunches are provided on Sundays and on trip days.
It is important to tell us about any food allergies or dietary requirements when booking. Vegetarian and halal options are available in the Winchester dining hall.
Bed linen and towels are provided and changed once a week.
Students can wash their personal clothes in the card-operated laundrette at the residence. Prices start from:
Prices are subject to change.
Residential staff are on site, with curfews, bedtime rules and overnight supervision. Group Leaders support the welfare and supervision of students in their own groups. Students who arrive without a Group Leader have a named Lewis Guardian.
The University of Winchester provides a 24-hour campus security service. Students also receive the Lewis 24-hour emergency number before arrival and during their stay.
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Students are introduced to the residence rules during induction. They must:
Residential students must pay a £45 deposit on arrival. This covers lost keys or damage. The full amount, or the remaining balance, is returned on departure after the room and key have been checked.
On arrival, students are welcomed by Lewis staff, helped to check into their accommodation and given their room key. Staff explain the important arrangements for the first evening and following morning.
Depending on the arrival time, the first meal may be served in the dining hall or provided as a packed meal.
We also welcome students who arrange their own accommodation through our No Accommodation programme. These students join the daytime programme from Monday to Saturday, as well as dinner and evening activities twice per week.
Please see the programme timetable for full details.
For group programmes outside the summer season, please contact us.
Available all year round in Southampton.
Hosts personally approved by school and regularly inspected
Summer: Twin room with a student of the same sex and the same or different nationality. Please note that we cannot guarantee mixed-nationality sharing.
Year-round groups: Twin room with a friend from the same group and of the same sex
Full board in the summer. Choice of half board or full board options for year-round groups.
10-35 minutes by bus from the school in Southampton.
For all students under 18, the host and all adult household members are DBS-checked (police-checked)
Staying in a homestay is an ideal way to practise your English and get to know British culture. You will live as part of the household, taking meals together and sharing the common living areas. We have many wonderful hosts of different backgrounds: families with children; single hosts living alone; couples without children or whose children have grown up and left home. Your host will provide you with a comfortable room where to study and relax. They will give you a change of towel and bed linen every week, and will wash your clothes. However, it is a home and not a hotel, so we ask you to respect the house rules.
Our welfare staff at the school reception are always available to talk to if you have any concerns about your homestay. If it becomes necessary, we will find you a new homestay as quickly as possible.
Lewis Schools Ltd (trading as Lewis School of English). Registered in England, No. 03312844. Registered office as below. Director: Alistair Walker MA
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