Banned & Prohibited Items In Halls

Read this to ensure that you do not bring any contraband

For the safety and security of all residents, the following items are not allowed in your hall. Please read thoroughly to ensure that you do not bring any of the following – or risk confiscation and/or disciplinary action!

• Pets (including live food for pets e.g. insects for reptiles)

• Extra fridge, mini fridge, freezer, cooler
• Chip pans, deep fat fryers, older style pressure cookers or any appliance holding large quantities of oil
• Plugged in electrical fairy lights and strip lights (battery-powered ones are fine)
• Heating appliances (portable heaters, oil burners, electric blankets)
• Battery for electric bike, scooters, etc*
• Candles, tea lights, hookah/shisha pipes, incense sticks, etc., or anything else with a naked flame
• Fuel, gas or hazardous substances
• Washing machine, tumble dryer, and dishwasher
• 3d printer
• Drone (the use of private drones is not permitted on campus)
• Any additional furniture
• Any illegal drugs/substances, including legal highs and nitrous oxide
• Any explosive materials (including fireworks)
• Weapons or replica weapons, darts and dartboards
• Electrical cooking appliances that are bought from outside the EU/UK (such as a rice cooker, a kettle)
• Multi-plug adaptors and extension leads that are not purchased in the UK
• Personal CCTV cameras

You cannot use any cooking appliances such as a kettle, coffee maker, rice cooker, etc in the bedroom.

Each kitchen comes with a shared fridge and freezer. Personal fridges or freezers are not permitted in the accommodation. If you require one for medical reasons, please get in touch with the Disability team. An iron and ironing board are available for use in the lounge or laundry facilities.

Personal CCTV cameras

Residents are not permitted to install or use personal CCTV cameras, doorbell cameras, surveillance equipment, or other recording devices within University accommodation.

While these devices are often intended for security purposes, they may capture images, video or audio of other residents, staff, contractors or visitors without their knowledge or consent, creating privacy and data protection concerns. To protect the privacy, safety and wellbeing of all members of the residential community, only University-authorised security and monitoring systems may be used within halls of residence.

Any unauthorised surveillance devices will be required to be removed immediately and could result in disciplinary action.

Bicycles and cars

• Bicycles are allowed on campus but are not allowed inside your hall. Please use a bike shed. We also have two lockable bike sheds in the Christina Miller Buildings. For more info, please visit the lockable bike shed page
• No vehicle (e.g car, lorry, caravan, motorbike, boat or similar item) is permitted to stay overnight on Edinburgh campus without express written permission from Safeguarding (contact carparking@hw.ac.uk). 

E-bike battery

You can use e-bikes and e-scooters around campus, but do not bring or use them inside any buildings.

For safety reasons, batteries must not be charged anywhere within halls of residence. While in halls, batteries must be kept in a secure storage box at all times.

If you need to charge your battery, please charge it in the academic buildings on campus.

Drugs

Students are reminded that possession of illegal substances is a criminal offence and possession with intent to supply is a more serious offence. Students found to be using, or in possession of, or knowingly allowing any illegal substance, including cannabis, nitrous oxide and legal highs, in their halls of residence are in breach of their accommodation contract.

Any drug-related offence will be dealt by the University’s Conduct team and your accommodation contract may be terminated by the University.

Dangerous items

It is a disciplinary offence for any student to have the following items in their possession or control on campus:

• An offensive weapon.
• Any item capable of causing injury or adapted to cause injury.
• Any dangerous items.

This includes some types of hunting knives, flick knives, CS gas, air weapons, firearms, imitation firearms or anything that has the appearance of being a firearm.

If you need to keep a dangerous item in your room for a recognised sporting activity, you must:

• Notify the Residence Life Team in writing
• Provide details of how the item will be securely stored when not in use
• Receive written permission before bringing the item into the accommodation

A copy of any approved request will be shared with the Accommodation and Safeguarding Teams.

The following is also not permitted in University accommodation or on campus grounds:

• Fireworks or similar pyrotechnics
• Sky lanterns
• Nitrous oxide canisters

The university reserves the right to confiscate and remove any banned or prohibited items from student accommodation

In addition to the above, students are asked not to

• Interfere with electrical wiring, sockets or equipment
• Overload any electrical circuits by using too many electrical appliances at once
• Put anything harmful or which is likely to cause blockage in any pipes or drains
• Throw or drop anything whatsoever from windows or balconies of their residence or any other part of the property
• Remove from, affix to, change, damage or attempt to repair the structure or decorative finish of any part of the residence or the contents
• Smoking anywhere inside the accommodation. Please be advised that smoking indoors and tampering with firefighting equipment (smoke detector, fire extinguisher, etc) will lead to disciplinary fine up to £250 and may lead to expulsion from halls. 

There are some exceptions...

Rice cookers 

You can bring appliances such as a rice cooker, coffee machine or toastie maker to use in the kitchen, but only if they conform to the appropriate British Standard and have been purchased in the EU/UK. These are not to be used in the bedrooms, and if cooking appliances are found in your bedroom, they will be confiscated.  

Medically required fridges 

If you need to store refrigerated medicines in your room, you must contact the Wellbeing team and provide supporting medical evidence prior to arrival to campus.  

You can contact the Wellbeing team on studentwellbeing@hw.ac.uk and disability@hw.ac.uk.

PAT testing 

If you have an electrical item over 12 months old or bought outside of the UK or EU, the item will need to be PAT tested before use. PAT testing will be available on campus at the start of semester. This will be advertised on social media (@HWUReslife) in advance.

Confiscation of unsafe electrical items

If our staff notice that you have an electrical item without the correct CE safety mark, we will remove it immediately. We will leave a notice to contact the Residence Life team. The item will be stored until you move out when you will need to collect it within 14 days. We will dispose of any items left behind after 14 days. 

Correct CE marks: