Weston Library Exhibition Spaces

There are no University-owned spaces, but there are accessible parking bays on Broad Street and Parks Road (13 spaces in total). Please click on the link below to view a map of Blue Badge parking in central Oxford.

• Oxford Blue Badge parking map (PDF)

The main entrance is located on Broad Street.  There is a wide set of steps with one handrail on the right hand side (ascending), and two handrails closer together on the left.  There is also a wide stone ramp with no handrail integrated into the steps.  Once you reach the terrace at the top of the steps, there are a couple of automatic doors which you can use to enter the Blackwell Hall.  

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The information desk on right-hand side of the Blackwell Hall is the first point of contact for all visitor enquiries. This has a counter loop and a reduced height section on the left-hand side. If you need to enquire about a Bodleian Reader’s Card, the information desk will buzz you through the door to Admissions. 

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Accessible toilets

To reach the accessible toilet, enter the Blackwell Hall from the main entrance and turn left. The toilet block is straight ahead of you through the cafe area, and the accessible toilet will be on the left-hand side. 

Standard toilets

Separate blocks of Men’s and Women’s toilets are located on the left of the Blackwell Hall, through the cafe seating area. There are no gender neural toilets available. 

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The main doors are automatic, and the doors to the gallery spaces are powered using a small button on the right hand side.  From the Blackwell Hall, the doors to the shop are held open.  You can also get to the shop by going through the powered door on the left hand side of the outside terrace, before you reach the main entrance.

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The lecture theatre can be accessed via the powered doors on the far side of the Blackwell Hall from the main entrance.  It has fixed rows of seating and central steps with contrasting tactile nosing.  Chairs have flip-down seats and fixed armrests.  There is no designated wheelchair space, but there is enough space at the front of the room. The front of lecture theatre is all level access and anyone teaching with mobility issues could easily reach the lectern to control computers and lighting.

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The two main exhibition spaces (ST Lee Gallery and Treasury) are on the far side of the Blackwell Hall from the main entrance.  Both can be accessed via. powered doors which are opened using the push buttons on the right hand side.  Once inside the gallery, light levels are necessarily low to protect the exhibits, so please take care.  Exhibits are well spaced out, and there is plenty of space to move between then.  There is a variety of high and low cases, but nothing is too high up to see easily.  Large print information about the exhibits available is in booklets just inside each of the galleries; this may help those using wheelchairs to read the higher captions, and help everyone to identify the items on display!

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The Blackwell Hall is the large main space of the library, and is home to the visitors’ café.   There are some exhibition cases around the edges of the hall, and these are well lit, although some of the information text is very small.  There are also interactive touch-screens around the hall, which display facts about the library in a clear and readable format.

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The shop can be accessed from outside the main door by taking the powered door on the left hand side just as you come up the main steps.  Push the power button on the right hand side to use this door.  Alternatively, you can get to the shop by going through the café on the left of the main entrance, and turning immediately left when you reach the corridor.  The large double doors to the shop stand open during opening hours, and there is a slight slope on the threshold.  There is plenty of space to move around the shop, but the counter does not have a reduced height section.

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The café is on the left hand side of the Blackwell Hall.  There are café tables that are a good height for wheelchair users, and plenty of light moveable chairs.  All of the food is reachable, and whilst the servery does not have a reduced section, it is a comfortable height for wheelchair users.  The staff are happy to help.

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There is a counter loop available at the information desk on the right hand side of the Blackwell Hall.