Pros:
~ The shower was good, and the small electric heater generally gave out enough heat to warm the apartment
~ The location was good for where I was working, and well-placed for shops, cafes and public transport.
Cons:
~ The apartment I was given (#43) was not the one illustrated (#44) when I booked it. No explanation, even though I had booked it for an 8-week stay
~ The building is difficult to find. There is no number or name on the outside. It is actually called Bracken House, but that was not conveyed to me by the landlord, and I had to make repeated attempts on the day of arrival to get instructions for entry – entry code, location of keys, etc.
~ Entrance hall and stairs dirty and often covered in discarded rubbish, cigarette ends, garbage bags etc. Some of the stairs have lost their edging-plates and could be dangerous.
~ I knew in advance that the lift was out of order, but despite many notices saying that they were working on its repair, there was no sign of any work being done. I think the management of the building must have just given up on that one. Thankfully I was only on the 3rd floor (of 8)
~ Apartment generally very noisy due to building works during the day, as well as very loud noise from pubs and bars in the evening and into the small hours, especially at weekends.
~ The outsides of the windows were almost opaque with dirt and dust.
~ No information in the apartment about wifi, laundry facilities, cleaning schedule. All this information had to be elicited from landlord.
~ Laundry facilities were included in the “list of amenities”, but they were in a rat-infested basement at the back of the building, and cost £3.50 per wash or dry. The machines were often out of order
~ Cleaning: the apartment was cleaned only twice during my 8-week stay.
~ The desk chair and one of the other chairs were broken, and the toaster didn’t work. The desk chair and toaster were eventually replaced by the landlord
~ Fridge: the shelf inside the door was broken and unusable, and there was no freezer, even though it was included in the “list of amenities”

~ Poor selection of crockery etc: 1 mug, 1 drinking glass, + one of the two wine glasses had a huge crack and had to be disposed of.
~ Kitchen area generally very dirty – dust and grease on hotplates and cooker hood, & part-used food packets left in cupboard.
~ The apartment was generally dusty and covered in finger marks on arrival. The shower area, mirror, soap dispensers etc were very dirty, with the shower screen covered in limescale. The toilet dripped constantly and audibly for several hours after being flushed.
~ Bedroom: the sheets were very old and worn, there were no protectors for mattress or pillows (a hygiene issue in times of Covid) and there were only two pillowcases for six pillows. There was one small, thin blanket – I eventually obtained another one of my own to use when the weather became colder.