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The City

Loughborough may be tiny, but getting a place at the university here is no small feat. Loughborough University is not far behind Oxford and high-ranking institutions in London in the UK league tables. It is exceptional for sport, awarding more scholarships in this field than any other institution. More than 250 international athletes train at Loughborough.

The settlement started out as a market village about 1000 years ago, eventually going on to manufacture hosiery and lace in the 1900s. Plague affected the townsfolk through the ages, but they showed their resilience to reach today’s population of 57,000.

Higher education is the focal point of the town in the 21st century. The University started life as a technical college, which was founded in 1909 and brought to life by Dr Herbert Schofield. It has since swelled into a large single-site university of more than 400 acres.

Town centre

Loughborough town centre is largely defined by three separate shopping areas: the Rushes, Regents Place and Carillion clustered around the High Street, which merges into Swan Street and the Rushes. Pedestrianised Market Place and Market Street are the focal point of town shopping and are the location of many art deco buildings.

Queens Park

This area of green space was opened to celebrate Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee in 1899 and is home to Loughborough Carillion, the site of a war memorial and museum. The park contains bowling greens, an aviary and Swan Maze. Queen’s Park hosts several events in the summer, including bandstand concerts, picnic in the park entertainment and other recitals.

Southfields Park

The smaller of the two town centre parks, Southfields provides a place for shoppers to get out of the centre, stop and relax, especially for families, as there is a children’s play area. It is home to the annual Loughborough Mela, a festival that celebrates the town’s cultural diversity and attracts 3,000 visitors to its rides, theatre, food, singing and dancing.

Loughborough Wharf

Although this newly built part of Loughborough has faced criticism for its colourful block-like buildings, which prompted nicknames such as Legoland and Balamory when it opened in 2007, the Wharf is a quiet place students can sleep, eat, drink and take it easy. It has also become an unusual run for the town’s skateboarders.

University campus

Situated along a strip of green space to the east of the centre, Loughborough University almost takes over the town in terms of land mass. College sites cling to Epinal Way, with the art and design centre and college over the road from the main body of the educational institute. Turn the corner into the town centre along Forest Road to reach Loughborough Leisure Centre, shared by students and residents alike.

The University

Loughborough University welcomes more than 2,000 international students to lectures, including budding athletes from all over the world. Alumni include sports stars from Indian cricketers to professional international footballers. Hence, the university has strong connections with sport clubs and societies, with acres of green space for matches. Graduates have included famous English sports performers, such as runners Sebastian Coe and Paula Radcliffe, javelin thrower Steve Backley, rower Sir Steve Redgrave and former rugby coach Sir Clive Woodward.

The university recently introduced a range of international foundation programmes to ease overseas students into their new learning environment. There is a standard of English language required before international student can be accepted onto any course and admission is competitive. See the Loughborough University site for international students for details about entry. The good news is the wealth of support available for international students, with part of the union devoted to easing first-years into their new lives. There is also a welfare officer and a global development committee at the union. Separate higher educational institution, Loughborough College runs post-16 education in preparation for work or university. It welcomes 250 international students from 40 countries to study a range of courses, including foundation courses for next-level study. The town is also home to a Royal National Institute for the Blind (RNIB) College, which provides courses for blind and partially sighted people.

Transport

Loughborough is so small in comparison with other UK locations that crossing from one side of the town centre to the other takes a matter of minutes. The university, on the other hand, is so large it takes 15 minutes to walk end-to-end. Because the town is so small, many students choose to cycle and there are a lot of short cuts cars cannot use as well as scenic areas to bike. Driving into university is not advised due to the lack of available spaces and the need for permits. Entry by vehicle is only allowed with a security swipe card.

Although getting into town from campus can be achieved on foot, there is a Sprint bus service which runs from Loughborough University. It takes ten minutes to get to the town centre for £1 and 20 minutes to reach the train station for £1.30. Passengers should be prepared for delays when the roads get congested. Return fares are not available, but ten rides are sold for a discount. The number four Shepshed Sprint stops at the student union and an Arriva 127 service passes close by. International students should check Transport Direct to plan door-to-door travel.

The train station is on the far side of town from the campus to the west of the town centre. Services run along the Midland Main Line to London in the south and Sheffield in the north. Savings can be made on out-of-town journeys by purchasing a young person's rail card, which takes a third off the cost of a ticket. Loughborough is unique in that it is also part of the steam-powered Great Central Railway, which offers international students with a great way of seeing the town’s surroundings on a different mode of transport.

East Midlands Airport is connected to Loughborough by rail and special Skylink buses, which run to and from the town centre every half an hour, seven days a week. The airport is about 20 minutes away by car and provides connections to major international destinations through London.

Food and drink

Loughborough University has its fare share of places to eat on a budget. The Gallery Cafe is open from 09:00 to 15:00 during the weekdays and makes money by selling the artwork on display rather than making a profit from food. The Linford Restaurant offers a choice of five main meals each day, but the choice is limited when it comes to Halal, Kosher or vegetarian meals. There are other cafeterias on campus, but again choice is limited.

Further afield international students can get a cut-price curry at Koh-i-Noor Balti, which is a 100 per cent Halal restaurant and take-away situated near the train station. For Chinese meals under £5 visit Mr Chan’s on Bedford Square. Yum Yum Thai Restaurant on High Street is recommended by other students as well as Mario’s which runs cut-price pizza and burger meal deals from Swan Street. Forest Gate serves an English carvery for £5 and is close to campus on Forest Road, while Cactus Cafe advertises inexpensive Mexican meals. Despite the size of the town, international students who look far enough will find Loughborough is full of flavours from all over the world.

Things to do

Loughborough is all about sport, most notably cricket. The English cricket team use the University’s ECB National Cricket Academy as a primary training centre and Loughborough Greenfields Club is one of the most respected in the country. While rugby union side Loughborough RFC has a history of more than 100 years in the town, it has almost been as long that Loughborough has had a league football team. However, this means watching non-league Dynamo Football Club games comes cheap. For big games Loughborough University teams are ones to watch on the pitch across different kinds of sport. It has a history of consistently topping the tables of inter-institution competitions. Check out the society listings for clubs to join.

Loughborough has a handful of museums and art galleries. Carillion Memorial and Museum in Queen’s Park is run by volunteers who maintain military keepsakes to remember the town’s war dead. Charnwood Museum lifts the lid on the archaeology, history, geology and industries of the local area. Meanwhile, the Old Rectory, inside a restored building, attempts to depict what life used to be like in this small market village hundreds of years ago.

To check out new and emerging talent, visit Galerie Resonance at Loughborough University to look at the work of contemporary artists. Paintings sell for almost £1,000. The Art Zone on High Street Quorn is a gallery and works with the community on council-run projects.

Out on the Town

Students do not need to leave the comfort of the union for entertainment. The ground floor is made up of three bars, with the floor of pub Cognito actually lighting up beneath punters’ shoes. Fusion is one of the newer additions to campus, hosting club nights on the first floor. By far the most popular event is Hey Ewe, the official athletics union night, followed by FND Friday Night Disco, Stupid Tuesday and indie/rock/metal on Thursday. For festivals check out the university’s Free Fest organised by the union’s Musician’s Society, which takes place May Day bank holiday weekend.

Off-campus, Echos is a favourite for songs that were hits in the 70s and 80s in the UK, while Rain is a popular new addition to the newly-named-but-still-the-same nightclub, Rapture on Swan Street. For dance music, local clubs lag behind super club the Emporium in Coalville, which is popular among Loughborough and Leicester students alike, and a half hour’s drive from both locations. The Blacksmith’s Arms is a top pre-club pub, popular with students because of its proximity to campus on Forest Road and the Orange Tree is a trendy hangout with meals for under £5, a cocktail menu, special events and competitions on Bedford Square.

Loughborough Town Hall hosts a range of alternative entertainment from comedy, literature, music, theatre, dance and fairs. There is a bar and restaurant here for theatre-goers to make a night of it as well as special events, ranging from community sales to poker nights. If it is cinema you are after, six-screen art deco Reel Cinema shows the latest blockbusters in the town centre.

Day Tripper

Bradgate Park is a bike ride away from Loughborough and extends over almost 850 acres, supporting herds of deer that have family trees spanning back to the Ice Age. Come here to explore the ruins of a former queen of England’s birthplace, Lady Jane Grey, who ruled the country for only nine days. Bradgate Park has an old folly to visit as well as a cafeteria to rest weary legs for coffee, sandwiches and cake. Admission to the park is free.

International students looking for a larger place to explore can head over to Leicester, which is less than 30 minutes away by train. Students from the University of Leicester and De Montfort University have turned this city into a top night out with a range of discounts available for students. There are cheap places to drink and dance as well as venues that draw larger acts than the little town of Loughborough. Sports fans can watch the Leicester Tigers play or league team Leicester City Football Club.

How to make your life easier

Invest in a bicycle to save on bus fares and go on adventures around the countryside and parks near Loughborough. Cycling would be a great way to cut down on gym bills for international students keen on training for particular sport. Joining a team would be a great way to meet new friends and keep fit. For people who would rather watch sport, the campus has facilities to screen big games while serving cut-price food and drink. With almost everything catered for on site, Loughborough University is a hard place to leave.

Finding Student Accommodation in Loughborough

Here is a very quick guide to help you find your ideal student accommodation in Loughborough. First of all you should check out our student residences and our private student accommodation lisitings. Your next port of call should be to contact the university. The Loughborough University site is here: Loughborough University Student Accommodation

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:: Rana Malook, Loughborough | 10 Jul 2008

An eventful year spent in Loughborough, I can safely say that the place grows on you. My initial thoughts arriving to study for my Masters Degree were positive. The onsite campus University has one of, if not the best sports facilities in the country, and attracts the best young sports talent from all over. On many occasions I bumped into intern...

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