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Help and advice

In college surveys, some student parents have reported a lack of understanding of their situation within the formal University system. Students who feel that they have not received fair consideration from their department or faculty, division, supervisor, etc should always feel able to come to the college for assistance and advice about how to proceed. The main points of contact are

In addition, your College Adviser may be able to help.

For informal help and peer support, the College’s GCR (Graduate Common Room) usually appoints at least one Couples and Families Rep, and GCR Committee members such as the Welfare Officers or the International Officer may also provide help or signpost you to the right person or organisation.

Financial support

Green Templeton College is a registered charity whose purpose is to help all its students be successful academically. This means that we are limited in the direct support we can provide for the benefit of non-members, including students’ families. Our support tends to be provided indirectly through facilities, for example family-sized accommodation, and welcoming family members to many college events.

At present, the College’s scholarships (as with the majority of University awards) are based on a stipend for a single student. Even if you are notionally fully funded by one of these awards, you will undoubtedly have extra expenses to budget for. The University provides a guide to some of these, available at Living costs | University of Oxford.

You may be entitled to Government benefits. You will find a directory of official information about these at Browse: Benefits – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk). You may also find information provided by the Low Incomes Tax Reform Group at Students | Low Incomes Tax Reform Group (litrg.org.uk).

Single parents may find this website helpful: Home | Gingerbread

If you think you are eligible for benefits but are struggling to apply because you do not yet have a National Insurance number, you can apply for one at Apply for a National Insurance number – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

Social life and community

Mailing-list

There is a mailing list for student parents at GTC (gtc-families@maillist.ox.ac.uk).To join, please send a request to the GCR Couples and Families reps: gcr-couples-families@gtc.ox.ac.uk.

Family-friendly events

 There is usually a Student Parents welcome event on the weekend at the end of First Week (this is now confirmed as Saturday 11 October) with current students and other college members bringing up children in Oxford. This is partly to help you settle in, partly to answer your questions about family issues which can be confusing at times. Spouses/partners and children are welcome!

During the year a number of seasonal events are organised by the college and the GCR which are specifically targeted at families or are open to all.

Previous events have included a Halloween party, an Easter Egg hunt, and family-friendly Sunday brunches. Further information on specific events will be circulated throughout the academic year. Other events may also welcome children, but it is best to check with the organisers first, particularly if they take place in the evening.

 Meals at college

 Children are welcome to attend lunch; however please note that children under 12 years old are not permitted in the servery itself because of limited space and hot surfaces. A children’s portion is available for 50% of the full price. High chairs are available on request. Formal dinners are not recommended for small children or babies, but older children may attend dinners.

 External Information

 Daily Info is the single best one-stop guide to Oxford, including What’s On, second-hand sales, services, restaurants, casual vacancies and accommodation listings.

Oxford offers a huge range of activities, events and festivals for families with children of all ages. The resources below will help you find out the latest information on what’s happening and where.

Family activities | Oxford University Welcome Service

Home – Red Kite Days

The college gardens

 Children are welcome to play in the college gardens, but they must be supervised by a parent or carer at all times. Please note that some of the college buildings are historical in nature and were not designed with children in mind. There are a number of hazards (such as steep staircases and stone steps), which may have uneven surfaces because of their age, as well as horticultural machinery, glass at low level (greenhouse and associated cold frames), and open access to both Woodstock Road and the college car park. There is also a border containing ‘medicinal plants’, most of which are poisonous, which is located behind the squash court; please ask the gardener, Michael Pirie, or another member of staff to point this out to you if you are concerned. There is a small play area next to the college gym.

Baby changing facilities can be found in the bathroom by the Kawasaki Room and in the Radcliffe Observatory. Breastfeeding is fine anywhere in college, but please ask at the Lodge if you would like a space with more privacy and they will do their best to find an appropriate room.

 The College Gym

Children under the age of 16 are not permitted in the gym for insurance reasons. Children of 16 or over who wish to use the gym equipment will be required to complete an induction session and follow the user guidelines (available from the Lodge)

 Oxford University Newcomers’ Club

This is an organisation run by volunteers to welcome newly-arrived spouses and partners of    University members; it holds a weekly ‘Newcomers with children’ social group: Home | Newcomers’ Club (ox.ac.uk).

Shipping, shopping and eating out

Students coming with families will obviously have more items to bring, and you will have to consider the costs of bringing and shipping items both at the beginning and end of your studies, balanced against obtaining essentials soon after you arrive.

If you secure college accommodation and you are hoping to send items to college in advance of your arrival, please contact the Porters Lodge first as there is very limited storage available for advance items which must be collected as soon as possible after delivery. We would recommend as far as possible that you bring only essentials for your arrival and arrange to have items sent on that you can collect on arrival or source locally.

Shipping companies

Other than using well-known airfreight companies, for example UPS, DHL and FedEx, we recommend that you do some advance research and use a shipping delivery comparison site as quotes and quality of service can vary considerably. Our current student parents have recommended Send My Bag for easy-to-use and reliable service.

Equipment hire

If sourcing baby equipment once in the UK, it may be more cost-effective to hire equipment or buy second-hand locally. For equipment hire try Baby Comes 2.

Please take the necessary precautions when buying second-hand baby items and check that they conform to current safety regulations.

 GTC household ‘lending library’

A few items that families may need for occasional use are now available for borrowing from the Stables Gallery and at the time of writing include blenders, baking utensils, picnic hamper and birthday decorations.

Second hand and charity

For second-hand items, try:

There are also many charity shops in the area; former students have found shops in the areas of Summertown (Banbury Road) and Headington (London Avenue and Windmill Road) can be good for children’s items. Sometimes second-hand items can be fairly close in price to buying new, so ensure you compare prices. It may also be more cost effective to buy rather than rent depending on how frequently you might need an item. Again, do some research in advance and compare prices as some items may be more/less expensive in the UK than in your home country.

Buying brand new/local

 Places and online sites where items can be bought at reasonable prices new include:

  • Amazon (items can be delivered to the Porters’ Lodge once you are on hand to collect)
  • Argos (click and collect points at most Sainsbury’s supermarkets in Oxford)
  • Primark (Westgate Shopping Centre)
  • TK Maxx (Westgate Shopping Centre or Templar’s Square Shopping Centre, Cowley)
  • large edge-of-town supermarkets such as Asda, Tesco (Cowley Retail Centre) and Sainsbury’s (Heyford Hill, south east Oxford or Kidlington)
  • John Lewis (Westgate Shopping Centre)

Grocery shopping

There are plenty of food shops local to Green Templeton, with many high-quality delicatessens and specialist food shops close by (Walton St and Little Clarendon St). The most local small convenience stores are the Co Op and Sainsbury’s (Walton St) and East West Provisions (Woodstock Rd). The Gloucester Green open street market runs from Wednesdays to Saturdays with a variety of stalls and produce at reasonable prices. Many of the larger supermarkets are based on the outskirts of Oxford with ‘metro’ outlets including Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Marks & Spencer in the city centre. The most reasonably priced supermarkets are Aldi, Asda, Lidl and Tesco and although based further away from the centre, they mostly offer low-priced and convenient delivery service.

Local cafés/restaurants

Some local restaurants, pubs and cafés will be more family-friendly than others (ie more likely to have child-friendly food, more space etc). Students have found the following near to the College grounds to be more accommodating:

  • Mamma Mia on Walton Street – relaxed Italian dining with some space for strollers. No specific kids meals but many dishes can be shared, and pastas come in small and larger servings.
  • The Rickety Press – 67 Cranham St – nearby pub serving burgers and pizzas, can get quite busy in the evening and better to book ahead, but quieter for a lunchtime visit. There is a good amount of space in the back room for families and there is a kids meal option (a smaller sized burger).
  • The Perch – this pub/restaurant is on the other side of Port Meadow, a fairly manageable distance even for relatively small legs. It has a large grassed outdoor area for kids to spread out and play and is a lovely space for drinks/lunch when the weather is nice.