Domestic Life
This section covers information about college accommodation, catering and all the essentials to do with day to day life at the college.
Accommodation
We can usually offer full-time students up to two years’ accommodation. Our houses and rooms are normally offered without break throughout the year but you may be asked to move rooms in the summer vacation if major maintenance works are scheduled. Rent is payable monthly in advance and calculated on a pro-rata daily basis if extensions to standard contract lengths are agreed. College rents become payable from the start of the licence period you have been offered, even if you are unable to arrive by this date. Further information about student accommodation, including accommodation licences setting out terms and conditions, is available on our website’s accommodation pages.
Guest Rooms and Visitors
Green Templeton has two double rooms available at the main college site. Priority for use of these rooms is given to visiting academics, but they may also be available as guest accommodation for visitors, in addition to any student rooms which become available while students are away on electives, placements or other agreed out of residence events. Please visit our guest rooms page for further information and a booking link. Visitors to students in single college rooms are currently permitted to stay a maximum of three consecutive nights per week in our communal houses and student blocks on an occasional basis (ie this does not apply to every week on a regular basis). If you require a guest to stay longer than three nights, please contact the Accommodation Manager for permission.
Cleaning
The College has a team of Housekeeping staff (Scouts) who clean communal areas in shared houses. They work Monday to Friday every week, except over the Christmas and Easter breaks. Details will be circulated prior to the holiday breaks. They do not clean self-contained houses or flats, it is your responsibility to keep your residence clean and tidy throughout your tenancy.
You are requested to maintain all facilities in a reasonable state of cleanliness in between the times they visit; this includes removing rubbish from kitchen and other bins within your room on a regular basis and placing it in the bins provided outside of the house. Please note that the team has been employed to look after the communal areas within the building and most rooms bi-weekly. In order that you gain maximum benefit from their work, please ensure that all surfaces in the kitchen, bathroom and your study bedrooms are left in a tidy condition prior to their arrival. All residents should be aware that cleaning staff are instructed to inform the Housekeeper if they are unable to gain access to study bedrooms for any reason for more than three consecutive days.
You are expected to leave the accommodation in the same clean and tidy condition when your licence ends as it was when you arrived; failure to do so may incur additional charges for cleaning which may be deducted from your deposit.
Insurance of Personal Effects
Green Templeton has taken out building and contents insurance with Endsleigh Insurance. Please click here to view details (Your policy number is HH1636). The insurance cost has been included in your rent charge.
Television (TV) Licences
Students who have their own TVs or access streamed live TV coverage on a PC or other device are required to obtain their own TV licence. This includes on-demand and catch-up programming on BBC iPlayer. See a useful guide on whether you need a TV licence to watch. The TV Licensing authorities monitor activity in and around student accommodation and have powers of access which are also detailed on their website.
Council Tax
Students are usually exempt from paying council tax in the UK, but check if you are living in a household with non-students. Most college accommodation is deemed a ‘Hall of Residence’ and so is exempt from Council Tax. The 2 and 3 bedroom houses on Observatory Street and the flats at 13 Norham Gardens are still liable for Council Tax. If you receive a bill for council tax, you should obtain an Enrolment Certificate from the University’s student self-service portal. A member of the College Office can sign and stamp this for you. If you are not sure about your liability for Council Tax, the Oxford SU can provide guidance.
Dining in College
Green Templeton has a reputation for some of the best food in the University, and college meals are served on the ground floor of the Observatory. Our students, staff and fellows all eat together over both lunch and dinner and this sense of community is a very important value of our college. Follow our catering and events Instagram page @Observatory_team for the latest updates and behind-the-scenes content.
Regular Lunches and Evening Meals
Informal buffet lunches are available Monday to Friday between 12:00 and 13.45 for most of the year. An informal supper is served every Tuesday in term time from 18:00 to 19:30. Formal dinner is served on Thursdays for most of the year. You are expected to wear smart clothes for formal dinners.
Booking Meals
Meals are booked online once you are registered and enrolled in College, and charged on a monthly basis to your account (‘battels’). In order to help us reduce food wastage, we ask all members to book in for lunch in advance so that we can accurately cater for our guests. Those arriving without a booking or failing to arrive for a booked lunch will be charged a fine to encourage members to book.
Your meal booking account should become live the day after you complete your college enrolment. However, in case this is delayed and in order to ensure you have access to meals when you arrive in Oxford, new students can come to lunch without a prior booking without incurring the non-booked fee. This arrangement will be in place from week 0-4 of Michaelmas Term only. Please ensure you have your Bod card available so that we may log your meal charges, you will not need to pay for these charges until the following month, when your battels bill is issued.
Lunches and evening meals become available to book online three weeks in advance with evening meals filling up fast. The dining pages of the intranet contain full details on booking parameters, deadlines and pricing structures for all our meal sittings. Please also note that if, having booked a place, you and/or any guests fail to attend a supper or formal dinner, or cancel with less than a week’s notice, you will still be charged. Further information and a guide to using the online system is available on our website and intranet (SSO required).
College Bar – The Stables
Our college bar is usually open Thursday and Friday evenings in conjunction with college dinners and Student Black Tie Dinners during term time only. Our catering team work with the GCR to put on a packed term card of events, featuring everything from cheese and wine exchanges with other colleges, through to live band nights.
Occasionally, the bar will be open on alternate nights depending on the term card- please see the weekly catering bulletin, the @Observatory_team or @gtc_gcr Instagram pages for the latest opening information during term time.
Although our bar is managed by the catering team we are always looking for students who would like to work behind the bar in paid roles. Please contact our Food and Beverage Manager if you are interested in working for us.
Special Occasion Dinners
Throughout the year, the college also runs a number of special occasion dinners, often in conjunction with the GCR or to celebrate events. Some examples of these include Student Black Tie Exchanges, where our students have the opportunity to dine at other colleges and host students from around the university at a formal here at college. Additionally, we host twice-termly special guest nights which feature a drinks reception, 4 course menu followed by coffee upstairs in the common room. Dates for these special guest nights are circulated in the catering bulletin and available on the intranet from September. We also host a family-friendly Christmas event when students can bring their children to experience college. Other examples include Burn’s Night, Thanksgiving, Diversity Dinners and themed suppers. Full details for these events will be featured on the term card as well as in the catering bulletin and our Instagram page.
BBQ
Students living on site are able to book a coal BBQ to use with friends. Please book this in advance with the Events Team. You will be asked to provide details of the date, duration, number of attendees and the contact details for the lead organiser. You will also be required to read and sign some food safety documents. The Events Team will provide you with all the information you need and will ensure your booking does not clash with any others. One week’s notice in advance is required.
Closure Periods and Private Bookings
The College is closed for catering for short periods of time at Christmas, Easter and during August. Separate notification will be given of exact closure dates nearer the relevant times. The dining hall may be booked for private dinner parties (a minimum of 30 guests applies) when not in use for college functions, by arrangement with the Events team. Please see our Venue Hire page for further information.
Drinks
Hot drinks are available free of charge from a vending machine in the Gallery in the Stables building, and from the Common Room on the first floor of the Observatory between 6:00 and 22:00 on weekdays when lunch is being served (there is a short closure period over the summer vacation). There is also a water dispenser adjacent to the Stables Bar in the Stables building.
- As part of our commitment to sustainability, we do not provide any single-use cups for any beverage machines on site. Green Templeton Keep Cups are available to buy in the lodge. China cups are provided for the common room coffee machine during lunch service only.
Access to College Facilities and Rooms
You can use your University Card to access the main college site and most of the facilities here, as well as (for residents only) accommodation blocks. Residents will also be issued with room, flat or house keys as appropriate. A map of the college is available on our website. You are reminded to take responsibility for the security of college sites and facilities, and any loss or theft of keys should be reported to the Lodge immediately. College members are not permitted to lend their keys to others, whether college members or not. Please refer to the college’s Data Protection Policy for more information. Keys may be left at the Lodge for safekeeping while away from Oxford, if wished. Please ensure that you return your keys at the completion of your programme of study.
Booking Rooms and Venues
All college members are warmly encouraged to make full use of the college facilities when and where available. The E P Abraham Lecture Theatre, the Barclay Room and the Kawasaki Room are usually available free of charge for college-supported lectures, seminars and meetings. Student-run events need to be agreed with the GCR or through the Academic Committee, depending on the nature of the event. For more information on college support, please visit our web page about funding for college-based events. In all other instances, a fee will be charged for the use of these rooms. Contact the Events team if you would like to book these larger rooms. Our website has further information on our main site about communal spaces and meeting rooms.
The Exam/Prayer room adjacent to the Lodge and the Skype room below the Library are available free of charge for study, Skype interviews and small ad-hoc group discussions and meetings. A small music practice room is also available in the Rotunda for use by all members of the college. These rooms can be booked via an app at the Lodge or refer to this intranet page (SSO required).
In addition to the Library, there are various other rooms and spaces available which you are welcome to use as quiet study areas or for group discussion with no need to book in advance; please refer to the Library section for further information.
Gardens, Grounds, Allotment
We have beautiful college gardens, maintained by the long-standing Head Gardener, Michael Pirie. You are welcome to enjoy the gardens to sit, study and relax, have a picnic or play croquet. As with all areas of the college, we ask you to treat these spaces respectfully, not leave litter and be aware that loud noise carries particularly during the summer months. There are student garden plots at the rear of our student accommodation annex at 33 St Margaret’s Road for anyone wanting to grow their own flowers and vegetables and a thriving college allotment club with the allotment in Old Marston, a pleasant residential area of Oxford nearby.
Bicycle Parking and Bike Rental
All bikes must be registered with the Lodge. Any bikes found not registered may be removed and disposed of. Parking for bicycles on the main college site is provided opposite the Lodge (main Woodstock Road entrance), next to the gym (Observatory Street entrance) and behind the Doll Building. Please do not take or leave your bikes elsewhere on the central site, or lock them to gates and railings. Any bikes found outside permitted areas or obstructing access may be removed by the Lodge staff without further notice. Bicycle parking is also provided at all residential annexes. Please be considerate to others when using the communal parking areas. Further useful information, advice and guidance about cycling in Oxford is available on the University website.
The college partners with OxBykes, a second hand bike sales and rental company run by Oxford students. Its aim is to provide quality refurbished bikes quickly and easily, and in doing so, reduce the bike wastage in Oxford. You can find out more on their website.
Car Parking
Students are strongly advised not to bring cars to Oxford. The combination of complicated one-way systems, numerous restrictions and pedestrianised areas, and an acute shortage of affordable parking, means it is generally faster and more convenient to use public transport, cycle or walk. There is no parking for student cars on the main college site, but parking permits at some of the college accommodation annexes may be available on a discretionary basis upon application; priority is given to students requiring a car in Oxford to travel to placements. There is a monthly charge of £30. Any queries relating to car parking arrangements should be addressed to the Lodge Manager in the first instance.
What’s On at Green Templeton
Green Templeton runs a lively and varied calendar of events and activities throughout the year, organized by the GCR, fellows and staff. Typical events include lectures, dinners, and sporting and social activities. These are listed on our website. See the Comms/Publicity section for more information on the mailing lists they circulate to students to notify them of relevant events.
Sports and Societies
Green Templeton has a range of on-site sporting facilities including a gym, a squash court, and tennis court. We have a varied and thriving mix of sports clubs ranging from competitive to beginners and informal groups. If a particular sport is not represented and you would like it to be, you are warmly encouraged to form your own groups and the GCR committee can offer advice on getting started.
We have a wide variety of college societies, run by both students and fellows, catering for a range of interests. There are many friendly and inclusive activities on offer ranging from a Big Band, Black Students Society and Book Group to Zumba, and we are proud to have an Artist-in-Residence, and a thriving music presence, including a Community Choir. Events are publicised through the GCR’s ‘Grapevine’ newsletter, Instagram and by posters around the college. As we advise for Sports, you are encouraged to contact the GCR Committee to set up a new group or society if your own particular interest is not represented.
