Kingston University students speak out about construction disruption in Lectures

By Rand Ismail

Students at Kingston University London have commented on the current construction work going on outside the Main Building on the Penrhyn Road Campus and how it has distracted them in classes due to the noise.

Kingston University has said that around 4,000 square metres of the Penrhyn Road campus are being refurbished and phase one of the renovation was completed in June 2024. Phase two is currently taking place in the Main Building and the university have said: “Work is expected to be completed by mid-2025”.

The project aims to provide more collaboration spaces for students and a new careers hub in order to provide students with more support for their next steps after university. However, based on complaints being made, students appear to be frustrated that, for the future of Kingston University to be improved for new students, those currently enrolled at the university are having to suffer the consequence of distraction from the noise.

One first year student, Fatima, studying Criminology and Forensic Psychology has said: “All my classes are in the John Galsworthy building and we can still hear the construction work in our classes. It is very distracting and not ideal for the class. I can tell my lecturers get annoyed by it too.”

She also noted that many students she knows of, have made complaints to Kingston University regarding the construction, saying it is causing disruptions to their lectures and teachers are taking time out of their classes to “wait for the noise to stop”.

This refurbishment project has sparked issues surrounding how students’ grades may be affected due to the ongoing construction project and the disturbance it may be causing them. It appears as though the university are unable to provide any help or alternative rooms for students’ lectures to be held in.

Roxana, a student in her final year, also studying Criminology and Forensic Psychology, has said: “It is just something I have had to get used to since I started studying at Kingston. There’s always some sort of distraction going on outside and you just try to block it out. It is the worst when you’re in an exam.

“The walk from the entrance of the Main Building to my lectures has now become significantly longer, because an entire entrance and corridor in the building has been barricaded off so we have to walk round the long way.”

The issues surrounding the construction work is something that it appears students and staff have just been required to adapt to. One staff member, Clare Lovell, teaching Journalism, said: “The biggest problem I have found is the distance from our offices to a toilet because the corridor is blocked”.

The construction did not stop during the summer, so this may indicate the university is trying to get the work done as soon as possible for students and staff to get back to regular, uninterrupted teaching.

You can find more information on the construction on the Kingston University website: https://www.kingston.ac.uk and if you are a student or teacher looking to contact someone directly you can do so by going on the ‘Contact us’ page on their website.