Oriel College

There is no parking at the College main site. There are three public designated blue badge parking spaces opposite the front entrance of the College. Anyone needing to use a car should discuss their requirements in advance with the College.

Please click on the thumbnails below to enlarge:

Main Entrance
The main entrance is on Oriel Square and has heavy double gates. One gate is kept open during the day. At night the gates are locked and entry is through a small cut-out door. This door has a lintel which is 17 cm high. The access Control for this door is 147 cm from the floor. 
The Porters Lodge is staffed 24 hours a day and the staff are happy to assist anyone who cannot manage the cut-out door. There is a bell pull outside this door which is 147 cm from the floor. It needs a very strong pull to make it work. The main entrance gives level access to the rest of the main site. 
Inside the main gate there is a set of metal gates. The access controls are set at 99 cm on the Quad side and 96 cm on the gate side. The gate opens to 88 cm.
Alternative Entrances
There is an access controlled level entrance on Oriel Street with a cut-out door which leads into Third Quad.  The access control is 120 cm from the floor on Oriel Street and 104 cm inside College. The cut out door is quite heavy and opens to 68 cm.
The gate into Second Quad has access controls at 92 cm from the floor and opens to 120 cm.
On the other side of Oriel Street is a level access controlled entrance to the Island site. This manual gate is locked at night and is quite heavy. The access control is 106 cm from the floor.
James Mellon Hall
There is a level access controlled entrance from the pavement on Cowley Road into the site. The access control on the pavement side is 110 cm from the ground and 97cm inside the site. The gate opens to 88 cm and is on a moderately heavy closer.

Please click on the thumbnails below to enlarge:

The College has three accessible toilets. Please note that the toilets were built at different times and so are not all built to current accessibility standards. This means that some do not have features such as high contrast between rails and walls, easy to use door handles, and easy reach sinks. 
There are locations without accessible toilets such as the Bar and Dining Hall. Also the Library and the JCR and Beddard and Walker teaching rooms. The nearest accessible toilet to these is in Second Quad. On the Island site the nearest accessible toilet to the MCR and Gym is in the Harris lecture theatre building.
The accessible toilets are in:
•    Second Quad  1
•    Harris Lecture Theatre Building  1
•    James Mellon Hall  1

Please click on the thumbnails below to enlarge:

There are three lifts at Oriel. There are two passenger lifts which are in staircase 14 on the main site and in Larmenier House at James Mellon Hall. There is also a lift to allow people to access the Benefactors and Champneys Rooms. The College has a stair climber for the Dining Hall stairs.
Staircase 14 
The door opens to 90 cm. The lift has backlit tactile buttons with braille display. The buttons are between 90 cm and 117 cm from the floor. The call button is 93 cm from the floor. There is no audio information in this lift. This lift has an induction loop for the intercom. The lift is 144 cm deep and 102 cm wide.
Larmenier House 
The door opens to 90 cm. The lift has backlit tactile buttons and audio information. There is a mirror and a handrail. The buttons are between 88 cm and 105 cm from the floor. The call button is 103 cm from the floor. The lift is 146 cm deep and 112 cm wide.

Please click on the thumbnails below to enlarge:

The College has expanded since it was first built and therefore has a range of building styles and staircases some more accessible than others. 
Some staircases have contrasting edges and handrails but this is not consistent across the site. 
It is possible to reach most of the College buildings on the main site at ground floor level without using stairs. On the Island site most of the buildings are reached by using stairs or steps.
The following rooms can be reached without having to use stairs:
•    Porters Lodge
•    Pantin Library Ground Floor
•    MacGregor Room
•    Beddard Room and Walker Room
•    Harris Lecture Theatre and Seminar Room
•    James Mellon Hall Common Room

Please click on the thumbnails below to enlarge: 
 

As you would expect in a College with buildings built at different times there are a large variety of doors. Some doors are easier to manage than others.
There are powered doors in the following areas:

•    Porters Lodge
•    Accessible bedroom Eleven
•    Staircase fourteen 
•    Larmenier House 
Some of the doors are heavy and some people may need assistance. Many doors are unlocked with keys. Many of the doors have door knobs.   

Please click on the thumbnails below to enlarge: 
 

First Quad
First Quad is reached through the main gates. There is level access into this Quad. The Porters Lodge and Chapel and the Dining Hall and the Bar are on this Quad. There is also accommodation. There is a footpath through the middle of the grass in this Quad which has a slightly raised edge.
Second Quad
Second Quad is usually reached through First Quad or Third Quad. There is level access from First Quad through a paved passageway. There is a combination of level and sloped access from third Quad. There is sloped access to the Library. The accessible toilet is on this Quad. The lift which is used to reach Benefactors and Champneys is in this Quad and there is also accommodation. There is gravel between the footpath and the grass and a raised edge to the grass. 
Third Quad
The path around third Quad provides a mixture of level and sloped access to the buildings. This Quad holds seminar rooms and the JCR. There is also a music room and the gym and accommodation. The accessible bedrooms are in this Quad. There is a shallow drainage channel around the edge of the grass which may be difficult to negotiate. This Quad has some outside seating.
Island Site
The Island site has a mixture of paving and cobbles and the surface can be uneven under foot. The Harris lecture theatre and seminar room and the MCR and accommodation are on this site. There is also a laundry with a powered door and sloped access and a gym which can only be reached by stairs. The King Edward and Sanders rooms and the Basil Mitchell seminar rooms are also here but can only be reached by using stairs.
James Mellon Hall
James Mellon Hall has a mixture of sloped and level access to the buildings. This site has accommodation and a laundry and a Common Room. There is also a gym which can only be reached by using stairs.

Please click on the thumbnails below to enlarge: 

The library entrance on Second Quad is reached by using slopes. This door is powered. The access controls are 110 cm from the floor. The ground floor can be reached without using stairs. The rest of the library can only be reached by using stairs. Some of the stairs are quite narrow and there are several flights to get to the top floors and the Senior Library. There are also stairs in the first and second floor rooms as these rooms have different floor levels. 

Ground Floor Room
The door into this room is quite heavy and opens to 86 cm. The access control to this door is 106 cm from the floor. There is a reception desk in this room with a lowered section of counter which is 74 cm from the underside to the floor. 

First Floor
The access control to the door inside the room is 150 cm from the floor. The lock on the door is 136 cm from the floor. This room has several changes of level with steps. 

Senior Library
The Senior library is reached from the first floor by using two sets of stairs. The outer door opens to 72 cm and the inner door opens to 86 cm.

Second Floor
The access control to the second floor rooms is 130 cm from the floor. The exit push button is 109 cm from the floor. The door opens to 87 cm. The book issue/return desk is in an area with a step down to it. The librarians are happy to get books and other materials on the other floors for anyone using the library who cannot use stairs. There are magnifiers and coloured acetates for loan to users of the library.

Please click on the thumbnails below to enlarge: 

Teaching Centre
The Teaching Centre has the following seminar rooms:
•    Robert Beddard 
•    Owen Walker 
•    Conference room One
•    Conference room Two
There is sloped access from Third Quad into this building. The main door opens to 100 cm. There is level access from the building entrance into these rooms. The access control is 104 cm from the floor and the exit push button is 109 cm from the floor. 
Robert Beddard and Owen Walker Seminar Rooms 
The doors to these rooms open to 970 cm. The access control is 104 cm from the floor. There is room to manoeuvre a wheelchair in these rooms.
Conference Room One
The door opens to 76 cm. The access control is 103 cm from the floor. This room is quite narrow and room for manoeuvre is limited. 
Conference Room Two
The door opens to 77 cm. The access control is 104 cm from the floor. This room is quite small with limited room to manoeuvre. 
MacGregor Room
The door to this room opens to 120 cm. The door has a stepped threshold of 4 cm plus 1 cm. The access control is 103 cm from the floor. There is room to manoeuvre a wheelchair in this room.
Robert Harris Seminar Room
The double door into the building is light and stays open. Each of these doors opens to 68 cm. There is level access from the main door into the room. The room door opens to 77 cm. There is a countertop which is 90 cm from the floor.  
The following seminar rooms can only be reached by using stairs:
•    Lecture Room 2
•    King Edward Room 1
•    Sanders Room
•    Basil Mitchell Seminar Room

Please click on the thumbnails below to enlarge: 
 

Harris Lecture Theatre
This lecture theatre is on the Island site. To reach it there are areas of older paving which can be uneven in places. There is level access into the building which has a double door. Each door opens to 68 cm and will stay open. 
There is level access into the lecture theatre through another set of double doors. Each door opens to 67 cm. The lecture theatre has stepped levels down towards the platform.  

Please click on the thumbnails below to enlarge: 

The Dining Hall is currently being refurbished. The Hall is reached by steps or the College has a stair climber.

There are three steps up to the Chapel from First Quad which have a total height of 37 cm. The College has a portable ramp for these steps which has a very steep slope. The Porters are happy to help people access the Chapel.
The Chapel has two sets of doors. The outer door opens to 61 cm. The inner double doors each open to 65 cm. The aisle is 203 cm wide at its narrowest point.

Please click on the thumbnails below to enlarge: 

There are two steps from Third Quad into the JCR building. There is a portable ramp for these steps which is quite steep. The access to the JCR for wheelchair users and those who find the steps difficult is through the library and the games room. 
The building has double doors. Each door opens to 50 cm.
Sitting room
There are two single doors into the sitting room. Both open to 85 cm. The doors will stay open. This room has a low pile carpet and room to manoeuvre a wheelchair.
Kitchen
The kitchen door will stay open. The door opens to 71 cm. The countertops are 90 cm from the floor. One of the counters has a recess underneath it.
Study room
The study room door opens to 86 cm. The door will stay open. The underside of the tables in this room are 70 cm from the floor.
Games room
There are double doors from the library into this room. Each one opens to 80 cm. The door to get from this room into the hall and across to the sitting room opens to 80 cm. room to manoeuvre a wheelchair.

Please click on the thumbnails below to enlarge: 
 

There is a powered door into this building. There are two sets of double doors between the building entrance and the Common Room. Each door opens to 70 cm. The doors into the Common room each open to 70cm. 

There is a high counter on one side of the room with a computer screen which is 94 cm from the floor. 

Please click on the thumbnails below to enlarge: