ACADEMIC SUPPORT

Jesus College, as one of the constituent Colleges of the University of Oxford, supports the University’s aims in assisting staff and students with disabilities and specific access needs. In particular:

• The University will work to remove any barriers, real or perceived, which might deter people of the highest quality from applying to Oxford, either as staff or students.
• The University will provide an inclusive environment for work and study through embedding diversity and equal opportunities in all areas of its activities, to ensure that staff and students experience a consistently inclusive and supportive environment to assist them in reaching their full potential.

At Jesus College, academic support for students with disabilities and specific access needs is co-ordinated within the Academic Office, under the aegis of the Academic Registrar and the Disability and Grants Officer. The Academic Office works with the University’s Disability Advisory Service to provide the information, advice and adjustments which applicants or students with disabilities may require. Those interested are advised to consult the Disability Advisory Service website here for the latest information on what assistance might be available.

Typically, action can be taken under the following headings:

• Adjustment in course and examination arrangements.
• Adaptations to buildings.
• Provision of special equipment and Information Technology.
• Curriculum accessibility – strategies for alternative study methods.
• Adjustments for specific disabilities and conditions – for instance, dyslexia, dyspraxia, visual impairment and hearing impairment.
• Applying for disability-related funding, which current students have been able to use to fund IT equipment and support workers.

Anyone who would like to discuss what assistance may be available under these or other headings is encouraged to contact the Academic Registrar or by calling 01865 279720 in the first instance.

GENERAL ACCESS

Location
Jesus College is located on Turl Street in the centre of Oxford and two minutes away from the main University libraries, within walking distance of the Science Area and the main shops, cinemas and theatres. There are a number of designated disabled public parking spaces in Broad Street, about 150 metres from the College’s principal entrance, accessible by badge holders. There are no public transport links to the College’s principal entrance.

Main Site and Entrances
The main entrance is from Turl Street and is +1 stair through a wicket gate width 700 mm (however, the larger main gate can be opened on request).

There are two other entrances. The Market Street entrance provides flat wheelchair/pedestrian access to Second and Third Quads through two doors 900 mm. It can be opened by arrangement to allow level access to the second and third quads for pedestrians and wheelchairs. The second entrance is off Ship Street and is through a narrow wicket gate, accessible via a gate key, within a very heavy door that is always locked.

There is no general parking on site but, for residents who require it due to mobility impairment, it is possible to park inside the Market Street entrance. After 8pm keys are needed to open both the gate to the parking space and the doors leading into the Quads.

Cycle storage for individuals with upper body weakness is available via the Market Street entrance. The Porters’ Lodge is to the left of the main entrance, and has a counter of height 112 mm. The porters can be summoned by a bell situated to the left of the main Turl Street gate at a height of 140 mm.

Communal Facilities

The Hall separates the two main Quads, and is +4 stairs from each of them. It has double doors and moveable benches (see under Catering below). The Junior Common Room is in the terrace above Third Quad, which is itself accessible from Second Quad and the Market Street and Ship Street entrances. The terrace is +18 stairs in three flights from Third Quad; each flight is fitted with wheelchair lifts. The Junior Common Room has an accessible toilet.

The Library, which is available only to full members of the College, is found off Third Quad through double doors, which are kept open. It is on three floors that are on ground level, and +13, +13 stairs respectively. Each room is accessed through a door 800 mm, which is always locked; the keyhole is at height 1300 mm. For students with mobility impairment, assisted access to books can be provided.

The Computer Room, which is also available only to full members of the College, is off the Third Quad in a basement that is +1, -15 stairs, but all student rooms are connected to the ethernet.

Laundry facilities are also found off Third Quad, through a door 900 mm and +1, -15 stairs, which are narrow and winding (with a handrail on the left). For students with mobility impairment, alternative arrangements can be made.

The Bar is -15 stairs from inside the Ship Street entrance and has a door 800 mm; it can be crowded in term time and for Old Members’ functions (see * below).

There are wheelchair accessible toilets in the Front Quad (Staircase 5), the Second Quad (Staircase 11) and in the Junior Common Room on the Third Quad terrace. A telephone can be found by the Ship Street entrance in a phone box (door 800 mm). The pigeon holes for mail and messages are next to the Lodge at heights of between 140 and 650 mm.

The new Sports Pavilion at Herbert Close incorporates a lift for disabled access.

Meeting and Function Rooms

The Harper Room, one of the College’s main function rooms, has flat access from the Third Quad through Staircase 14. The Habakkuk Room, which is on the Third Quad terrace, is accessible by the same wheelchair lifts as serve the Junior Common Room. Full access is limited due to the +15, +11 spiralling stairs from the terrace. The Mansell Room is +15, +3 stairs (spiralling) from First Quad (see * below). The Harold Wilson Room has slightly ramped access via Staircase 8, and the Memorial Room has flat access via the Third Quad and the Fellows’ Garden. These two rooms can be used in tandem, in which case ramped access is available.

There are two Seminar Rooms on the Third Quad terrace, accessible by the same wheelchair lifts as serve the Junior Common Room. There are then a further two steps into the rooms (see * below).

* The College has an electric stairclimber which can transport wheelchairs and users in combination up and down the stairs to the Hall, Mansell Room, Seminar Rooms and Bar, as well as to some of the residential staircases. However, as the stairclimber can be operated only by trained staff, advance notice is required should it be needed.

Student, Conference and Guest Accommodation

Accommodation is available to all students who want to live in College accommodation for the full duration of their course. First-year students live in College. All undergraduate rooms have ethernet access. On Staircase 19, two bedrooms, each with a shared ensuite facility, have been equipped for the hearing impaired or visually impaired. A fully accessible bed sitting room, with an ensuite shower and toilet, has been developed on Staircase 8; this would be accessed from the Market Street entrance.

There are a further three double sets (two single bedrooms sharing a joint sitting room) and a single set (adjoining study and bedroom) on the ground floor in the Second Quad. These share two bathrooms that have not been modified for wheelchair access.

A further single bed-sitting room is available on the ground floor of
Staircase 14; this has access to a nearby accessible bathroom that is
shared with other residents.

Most students move out to College-owned flats on Woodstock Road (about a mile from the city centre) or to Cowley (about two miles away) after their first year. The flats are self-contained units of three or four bedrooms around a kitchen, sitting room, and bathroom; their facilities and cost make them extremely popular.

In the College’s married graduate or undergraduate accommodation at Herbert Close (approximately two miles from the College main site), a ground-floor flat has been fully fitted for wheelchair use.

Catering

Meals are provided in the original Jacobean Dining Hall of the College (see above). Breakfast, lunch and the first sitting of dinner (when available) operate on an informal, self-service system, while the more formal atmosphere of a served meal, preferred by some, is retained for the second sitting of dinner and for guest-nights and special occasions. Where necessary assistance can be given in using the self-service facilities. Vegetarians and others with special dietary requirements are catered for.

Induction Loops

Induction loops are fitted in the Hall, Chapel and Memorial Room.