Affordable activities and free things to do on campus

By Erin Malik, May 2025

College Spaces

One of the most renowned features of our university is its collegiate system; each student belongs to one of nine colleges which act as their ‘home away from home’ during their time at Lancaster. All college spaces are free to access for all students and include a variety of pool tables, dart boards, board games, and so much more! Some of the college spaces even have music rooms with pianos, drum kits, and guitars available to book out. As well as this, some of the college bars have food and drink available to purchase, but you can happily use any of the spaces without any payment at all!

College and Students' Union Events

As well as having free spaces to utilise, the college JCR teams all hold events for their students. These include quizzes, karaoke nights, arts and crafts, free food events, light-hearted sporting competitions, and wellbeing activities throughout the year. Many colleges host trips to different places in the North West and beyond for very reasonable prices where you only pay for a day’s coach trip and get to see sights all over the country! The Students’ Union also hosts affordable events in each of the terms.

Connecting with Nature

Lancaster is a perfect location to spend time revelling in nature and green spaces. Even on campus, there are many walking routes, including a woodland walk and nature trail that are ideal ways to decompress after exams. There are loads of areas where nature grows wild and ‘edible campus’ areas where fruit and veg are grown by societies. My favourite memory from first year was heading down to one of the BBQs dotted around campus and spending the afternoon cooking and eating with my flatmates! The BBQs are entirely free to rent out and the food is super affordable when you spread the cost across a group of people.

Affordable food

There are a multitude of schemes at the university which aim to provide affordable food to all students. Colleges frequently hold ‘WTF: Where’s the Food?’ programmes to provide free hot meals to both students and staff. There are also ‘Cheap Eats’ available in The Marketplace, The Deli, and The Hive. As well as this, there are food outlets on campus that offer reward schemes and discounts through their loyalty schemes, such as Subway, Greggs, and Costa.

Societies

Finally, getting involved in societies is guaranteed to be some of the most fun you can have at university. Many Lancaster societies are completely free to attend, with the majority of them costing under £20 per year. You don’t even have to limit yourself to just one, you can fill up your week with different societies having different sessions on different nights!

Conclusion

Overall, Lancaster University is a perfect place for affordable food and activities. From woodland walks around the campus borders to affordable food in the campus bars, you’ll never run out of things to do!