Leamington vs Canley: The great debate

Leamington vs Canley

Leamington, Jim Linwood / flickr

Love for Leamington by Bethany Sirianni

Let me start by saying I paid my dues in Canley as a second year. I’ve been there, done that, and not got the T-shirt. The area I lived in – around Westwood Student Mews – wasn’t well-connected, felt unsafe at times, and seemed a world away from student life. 

When the worst thing I’ve had to deal with is an hour’s commute on the U1 or U2 buses – and at least there are buses – Leamington is a shining light in comparison.  

For me, many things make Leamington stand out. It has green spaces, hidden local spots, great cafes, proximity to a good night out, and, best of all, proximity to my bed after said night out. 

If you want variety with your weekly shop, Leam is the place to be. Sainsbury’s, Lidl, Morrisons, Asda, and M&S all offer you yellow-sticker bargains

There’s also a cinema, a bowling alley, nightclubs, a jazz bar, a board game café, tennis courts, charity shops, and more. Most of which is right on your front doorstep, or, at the very least, lies a 15-minute walk away. In Canley, there’s none of that – unless you’re heading onto campus, where, frankly, we already spend too much of our time. 

If you want a work-life balance, Leamington is the place for you. You’re not constantly living and socialising in the same place that you’re attempting to be an academic weapon. 

In Canley, I was paying £165 a week, with bills, for the room I had. Whereas, in Leamington, I pay the exact same amount between four people, not 10, plus I have a garden. I have friends who pay less too, with rent at £110 a week, bills not included. 

If you want variety with your weekly shop, Leam is the place to be. Sainsbury’s, Lidl, Morrisons, Asda, and M&S all offer you yellow-sticker bargains. You name it, Leam has it. If you want that perfect girly house which you keep seeing on TikTok to the soundtrack of Sabrina Carpenter’s ‘House Tour’, then Leam has got you covered again. There’s the Range, Søstrene Grene, and Flying Tiger.  

Really, if you want to be close to a bustling town, it’s a no-brainer

And if you want a pub that plays live sports – hard to come by in Canley unless you go to the Phantom Coach, which was a 40-minute walk for me – Leam has an abundance of those too. 

Really, if you want to be close to a bustling town, it’s a no-brainer. 

“Can I just ask you an honest question? Why would you want to leave Leam when we’ve got a pub and a shop?”, and plenty more! 

Image: Canley, Snowmanradio / Wikimedia Commons

The Canley Convert by S.J. Addison

“Leam is just good vibes though, man.” This profound wisdom was shared with me on my return to university as we discussed our choice of second-year accommodation. I’m in Canley (Gasp! The horror!) – far from the exclusive Lakeside paradise of first year… but contrary to expectations, we love it. Canley (bear with me here) is the place to be.  

Let’s start with the basics. The primary factor for most is finances. Finding a student house at a decent price, with a working boiler, and maybe even a metre of garden, is like finding a seat in the library in Term 3 – impossible. The University of Warwick’s website offers some statistics for comparison, and the results are not what you might expect. As of 2025, Canley and Tile Hill students pay an average of £163.37 per week. Meanwhile, Leamington is slightly cheaper, at £139.04 per week.  

While the stats don’t lie, neither does the staggering price of a bus pass. The Stagecoach academic year pass now soars past £400. Leamington students also enjoy an unfortunate situationship with the buses – a sort of will-they-won’t-they affair, so to speak.    

With two pubs – The Sovereign or The Phantom Coach – a Canley pub crawl requires some going back and forth. But who cares by the seventh pint?

Living 5-10 minutes from campus allows for a walkable commute, forcing you to get at least 20 minutes of fresh air a day. Shopping-wise, Aldi and Tesco are just around the corner, so you’ll be in and out of the shops before you know it.  Plus, with Warwick’s classic trolley theft lining every pavement with a spare transportation device, you’ll have plenty of ways to carry your shopping home. 

Admittedly, our pub scene pales in comparison to Leamington’s superior bar crawls. With two pubs – The Sovereign or The Phantom Coach – a Canley pub crawl requires some going back and forth. But who cares by the seventh pint?  And, as a Canley local, Leam has remained a nice place. Friends once enamoured with the town now complain of crowded streets or dodgy walks home. For me, Leamington remains a place only to be associated with circles, drinking, or Spoons. And I’d like it to stay that way.   

Possibly, the aesthetics of Canley rub against Leamington’s Georgian architecture. Maybe we’re far from Leamington cafes. But we’re not here for brunch. We’re here to live – and frugally, too. If you enjoy the absence of buses, lattes that make your student loan cringe, or just really love Kelsey’s, Leamington is the place for you. As for me, I’ll be on campus in the next 10 minutes, attending a seminar I won’t be late for – cheerleading Canley all the way.