Worcester College
One of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford

Worcester College has a large site with the main entrance on Walton Street. The College has a large range of buildings of different ages and styles. Some of these buildings are more accessible than others. There are a number of accessible bedrooms in the newer College buildings. There are changes of level across the site and the College has two lifts installed to assist people to access the site. The Nuffield Lawn and Main Quad are accessed by using stairs or a lift.
This table contains summary information about the building
On-site designated parking for Blue Badge holders | Yes |
Public designated parking for Blue Badge holders within 200m | No |
Other nearby parking | Yes |
Main entrance | Level with Door Bell |
Alternative entrance | Yes |
Wheelchair accessible toilets | 6 |
Lift | 6 |
Hearing support systems | Yes |
The main entrance is from Walton Street. This is a level entrance. You pass the Porter’s Lodge on your right as you enter the College. The Lodge is staffed 24 hours a day.
During the day one of the main doors is normally left open. At night the gates are shut and access is through a cut out door with a threshold which is 19 cm high. The Porters will open the door for anyone unable to negotiate this door. The door is access controlled. For people needing help there is a bell set at 151 cm from the floor. The access control is set at 126 cm.
Once through the gates Main Quad is straight ahead of you. Access to the rest of the college is via stairs or a platform or passenger lift.
There is level pedestrian access to the College from Worcester Place through an access controlled gate. The access control is set at 149 cm above the ground on the inside and 145 cm outside. The gate has no handle and is quite heavy to open. The gate opens to 76 cm. Some people may have difficulty managing this gate.
There is another pedestrian gate on Nelson Street which has a slight slope into the College. The access control is set at 94 cm and the gate opens to 79 cm. The handle is 134 cm from the ground.
Vehicle access is through large wooden gates on Walton Street and is access controlled. The Porters open the gate for people who have arranged parking on site. The designated parking spaces are either directly ahead of you or to your right.
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The Porter’s Lodge has a level entrance and is on your right as you come into the College from Walton Street. There are double doors into the Lodge and each door opens to 56 cm. The porters are happy to help people to open these doors.
The counter is 113 cm from the ground with a lowered area set at 78 cm from the ground. There is no knee recess. There is a gap in the middle of the counter which some people may find easier to use. There is room to manoeuvre a wheelchair here although this may be difficult at busy times.
The pigeonholes are in a room off staircase 15 in the Pump Quad. To access this you have to use the stairs or platform lift to get to Main Quad. From here there is a mix of level and ramped access. The door to this room opens to 70 cm. The Porters hold post in the Lodge for people who cannot access the pigeonholes.
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There are accessible toilets in several locations throughout the college. Please note that many of the toilets were not built to current accessibility standards and as such do not have features such as high contrast between rails and walls, easy to use door handles, and easy reach sinks. Some of them have limited space to manoeuvre a wheelchair.
There are locations with no accessible toilets including the Library and Bar and JCR where the nearest toilet is in Pump Quad. The nearest accessible toilet to the MCR is in the Nash building.
There are accessible toilets in:
Pump Quad
Linbury Building
Next to staircase six
Nash building
Sultan Nazrin Shah Centre.
There are also nine accessible bedrooms across the College site all of which have a wet room with an accessible toilet.
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There are six lifts on the Worcester College site. There are three platform lifts and three passenger lifts. The platform lifts are in these locations:
- The stairs opposite the Dining Hall giving access to Main Quad
- The Provost’s Lodgings giving access to the Provost’s Dining Room and Sitting Room
- The Sultan Nazrin Shah Centre giving access to the platform in the auditorium
The passenger lifts are in the following locations:
- Next to Staircase Six
- Nash Building
- Earl Building.
There are tactile backlit buttons in the lifts in the Provost’s Lodgings Staircase Six Nash Earl and Canal Buildings. There is audio information including the floor number in the Provost’s Lodging and Staircase Six lifts. There is audio information in the Nash and Earl Building lifts but this does not include the floor number. The lifts in the Nash and Earl Buildings serve all the floors. The Staircase Six lift has a door on each side.
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The College has buildings of many ages from medieval cottages to twenty-first century buildings. It therefore has a range of building styles and staircases some of which are more accessible than others.
Some staircases have contrasting edges and handrails but this is not consistent across the site. Some of the stone stairs in the older buildings are uneven in places.
The Library and Bar and JCR and the first floor of the MCR can only be accessed by using stairs.
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As you would expect in a College with buildings built at different times there are a large variety of doors, some more accessible than others!
There are three sets of powered doors in the College. There are two in the Nash building and one in the Sultan Nasrin Shah Centre.
Some of the doors are large and heavy and opened with keys. Some doors have door knobs rather than handles. Some people may need assistance with some of the doors.
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Main Quad is accessed by using stairs or the platform lift by the Dining Hall or the passenger lift by Staircase Six. Travel around the Quad is on level gravelled paths. Main Quad has accommodation and the Library the Chapel and the Dining Hall. The JCR and Seminar Rooms A and C and Lecture Room B are in this Quad. The Provost’s Lodging’s are accessed from this Quad and between this Quad and the Orchard is the Memorial meeting room.
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The Gardens are on different levels and are accessed via stairs or by using one of two lifts. The platform lift opposite the Dining Hall gives access to the following areas:
• Main Quad
• Pump Quad
• Nuffield Lawn
The passenger lift next to Staircase Six gives access to:
• The Orchard
• Playing Fields
• Nash Earl and Canal Buildings
• Sultan Nasrin Shah Centre
The footpaths in the Gardens are gravelled. As you would expect with the age of parts of the College some of the paved areas are uneven. Some people may find the gravel and uneven paving are difficult to negotiate.
Nuffield Lawn
Nuffield Lawn has accommodation and the Linbury Building which has a large seminar room. It is also used as a social space.
The Orchard
The Orchard has level access onto the grassed areas. There is a gravelled path which provides access to accommodation and is part of the accessible route to the MCR and the Nash Earl and Canal Buildings and the Sultan Nasrin Shah Centre.
Playing Fields
There is a level footpath round the edge of the playing fields which leads to the accommodation in the Canal Building and the Nelson Street Flats.
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The library is on the first and second floors and is only accessible by using stairs. The librarians are happy to provide books for anyone unable to access the stairs and arrange for them to be delivered either to the Porter’s Lodge or the student’s room. The librarians will also get books from the higher shelves if needed.
There is an adjustable height desk in the Franks Room and the librarians also hold a visual aids box and book stands which can be loaned to library users.
There are currently building works taking place to create ramped access into the Law Library. These building works are estimated to be completed in June 2021.
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Seminar Rooms
There are seminar rooms in the following Buildings:
• Memorial Room
• Linbury Building
• Nash Building
• Sultan Nazrin Shah Centre
Memorial Room
The seminar room has level access and the outer doors open to 105 cm. The inner doors open to 107 cm. the doors are on heavy closers which some people may find difficult. There is a short ramp to assist entry over the threshold. There is plenty of room to manouevre a wheelchair in this room.
Linbury
This seminar room has level access from the Nuffield Lawn into the building. The double doors to the foyer open to 154 cm. The doors to the seminar room are heavy and open to 160 cm. They are on a light closer. Some people may find the doors in this building difficult. There is plenty of room to manoeuvre a wheelchair in this room.
Nash
The doors in this room are heavy and open to 870 cm. The room can be divided but however it is arranged there is room to manoeuvre a wheelchair in here.
Sultan Nazrin Shah Centre Le May Room
The door to this room opens to 86 cm and there is level access from the Foyer There is room to manoeuvre a wheelchair in this room.
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There is a lecture theatre in the Sultan Nazrin Shah Centre. There is a powered door into the Centre. There is a ramp from the foyer to the Tuanku Bainun Auditorium. The auditorium has a platform lift providing access to the platform for anyone who cannot manage steps.
The door into the auditorium from the ramp is heavy and may be difficult to manage for some people. There is plenty of room to accommodate wheelchair users at the front of the auditorium.
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The Dining Hall is near the Porters Lodge and has a temporary ramp in place giving access through the door which opens to 132 cm. The door is quite heavy and some people may find it difficult to manage. Once in the Hall there is room to manoeuvre a wheelchair although this may be more difficult at busy times. The nearest accessible toilet is in Pump Quad and is reached via the platform lift.
The serving counters are 95 cm above the floor which some people may find difficult to reach. Staff are happy to help anyone who needs assistance.
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The Chapel is used for services and sometimes for events. The Chapel has a temporary ramp in place providing access through the door which opens to 128 cm. The door is quite heavy and some people may find it difficult to manage.
Access to the aisle is level and there is room to manoeuvre a wheelchair in the Chapel.
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The JCR is in Main Quad and has no level access. It is on the first floor and is accessed from Staircase 11. The JCR is a big room with a change of level and two steps about halfway across. The door is quite heavy and is opened using a doorknob. Some people may find this door difficult to manage. There is also a kitchen attached to the JCR.
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The MCR is accessed through the Orchard or through the gate in Worcester Place. The MCR rooms are on the ground and first floors. There are double doors to the MCR building. Each one opens to 69 cm. The door to the ground floor room opens to 86 cm. The inner door to the ground floor room opens to 86 cm. There is room to manoeuvre a wheelchair in this room.
The ground floor room has a bar which is 102 cm from the floor with an opening 53 cm wide. Some people may have difficulty entering this area.
The TV room and study room are on the first floor and are only accessible by using stairs.
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Worcester has nine accessible bedrooms. As they were all built at different times some have more accessible features than others. All of the accessible bedrooms have wet rooms. The wet rooms in the Franks Building are quite small.
The accessible bedrooms are in the following locations:
Nash Building 2
Earl Building 3
Canal Building 2
Franks Building 2
The only powered doors are the main doors into the Nash Building. The Door to the Earl Building is not powered at present but has been previously. None of the flat or bedroom doors are powered. All the bedroom doors are locked using keys which some people may find difficult. Students are encouraged to contact the College as soon as possible so that appropriate arrangements can be made for their arrival.
Students requiring quieter rooms can be accommodated either in the Sainsbury building or staircases seventeen to twenty or the Nuffield building.
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The kitchens in the Earl and Nash buildings have knee recesses and the countertops are 85 cm from the floor. There is plenty of room for a wheelchair in these kitchens.
The kitchens in the Canal and Franks buildings do not have knee recesses but there is plenty of room for a wheelchair. The countertops are 90 cm from the floor. All the kitchens have tables.
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The dining room and sitting room in the Provost’s Lodgings are sometimes used for social events. Access to the rooms is either by using stairs or the platform lift in the Provost’s Lodgings. The lift takes users up from garden level to the ground floor of the Lodgings. The lift door opens to 77cm. The lift is 111 cm deep and 82 cm wide.
The dining and sitting room doors both open to 96 cm. Both doors are easy to open.
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The entrance to the bar is in Pump Quad and is down two short flights of steps. The bar is not accessible for wheelchair users. There is an outside seating area in Pump Quad which has level and ramped access. The bar door is quite heavy and some people may find this quite difficult to manage.
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There are three accessible laundries at Worcester in these locations:
Franks Building
Opposite Earl Building
Linbury Building
Some of the washing machine and drier doors are at accessible heights in these laundries. The doors to the Earl and Franks building laundries are on heavy closers and there is a limited amount of space for a wheelchair. The door to the Linbury laundry is lighter.
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There are hearing support systems in the following locations:
- The auditorium in the Sultan Nazrin Shah Centre
- Dining Hall
- Nash Seminar Rooms
- Linbury Seminar Room
Contact details
Worcester College
1 Walton Street
Oxford
OX1 2HB
lodge@worc.ox.ac.uk
01865 278300
www.worc.ox.ac.uk
Contact the Access Guide
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