Why I chose to live in Smithdown

I’m Helen and I’ve lived in Smithdown for the last two years. I moved here after I moved out of halls with a group of four friends. In third year I lived in a two bedroom flat, still in Smithdown but slightly closer into town. Rent was pretty cheap for both places and we managed to get it including bills which made the whole thing a lot easier!

Smithdown is a hugely popular area with students, and students who go to LJMU, University of Liverpool and Liverpool Hope all live there. There’s a big student community so you can’t go far without bumping into someone you know. I ended up living just around the corner from most of my friends so even the people I didn’t live with were pretty close by.

You can walk from Smithdown into town but it’s not the shortest walk so I got a bus pass, I also had my lectures at Byrom Street so it was on the opposite side of town. The student bus passes are really good value for money and you can use them at any time. It was especially good for a night out as we would get the bus instead of spending money on a taxi. Saying that, taxis to Smithdown are quite cheap if you book one or you can also jump in a black cab.

There’s a big Asda in Smithdown, a small Tesco and an Aldi. There’s loads of take-aways in the area along with a Subway and Dominos. There are plenty of places to go for a drink, the Brookhouse is the main student pub which puts on really cheap student nights. Smithdown surrounds Sefton Park which always has things going on or is a good place just to go with friends.  A few minutes’ walk from the main student area there’s a Lifestyles gym. There is a doctors and pharmacy just next to Asda, which is on the bus route, so everything is really convenient.

I really enjoyed my time living in Smithdown and would say that it was a great place to be a student and really helped me get everything out of uni that I possibly could.