Rewley House

The building itself has no allocated parking spaces, but Blue Badge holders should be able to find space in Wellington Square or on Beaumont Street. The nearest parking for those without Blue Badges will be the pay and display on St Giles.

• Oxford Blue Badge parking map (PDF)

• There are steps and a ramp up to the entrance
• The steps have handrails both sides but no visually contrasting step edges. The steps are slightly worn and uneven
• The ramp is 90 cm wide and has a handrail to the left (as ascending). The ramp turns back on itself half way along - there is a level landing here which widens out to 1.2m to give space to turn
• There are double doors at the top of the stairs and ramp. There is a push button to open the doors at just over 1m high. The doors are powered and open to a clear width of 1.5m

Click on link below to view a floor plan of the building showing level access routes: 

• Rewley House (PDF)

Enter through the main door and the reception desk is on the right. There is a section of the desk at a wheelchair accessible height with a knee recess. There is an induction loop on the reception desk. There is a large waiting area with a sofa, and plenty of space for wheelchair access.

There are standard male and female toilets on the ground floor and lower ground floor.

Accessible toilets

There are two accessible toilets in the building, one on the ground floor and on the lower ground floor. To reach the ground floor toilet, go through the first door on the left-hand side of reception. Instead of heading towards the lift, follow the long corridor past the library and reading room. Go around the corner to the left, and the toilet will be on your left-hand side.

To reach the lower ground floor toilet, pass through the door on the right-hand side of the dining room, then turn right and then immediately left (the toilet will then be on your left). Alternatively, you can go through the Acland Room, then follow the corridor straight on through one door and turn left through another. Unfortunately, both of these routes have 3 manual doors on them. At busy times, the route through the Acland Room will be easier, as tables can make access to the dining room door difficult.

There are many separate staircases in the building. The information below is an overview:

• The stairs leading down from reception provide the most straightforward access to the basement level. These have continuous handrails on both sides and contrasting markings on the step edges
• The stairs which begin by the dining room pass near to the Tawney Room, the computer teaching room and Pickstock Room. These have a handrail on the left hand side as you ascend, and contrasting markings on the step edges
• The steps which allow access to teaching room 012 have a rail both sides and contrasting markings on the step edges  
• The concrete steps up to the terrace from the basement level have a handrail both sides. There are no contrasting markings and the step edges have a slight lip. These steps may become slippery in wet weather

Door breaking up corridors all have full-length vision panels, although vision panels on teaching room doors are often only half height. Doors to teaching rooms will generally be held open at the beginning and end of a class. The same is true of the main lecture theatre doors, which are double manual doors with half height vision panels. Visitors with larger wheelchairs might need the second side of the door opened. The door to the student computer room on the ground floor is manually operated with a coded lock. Please ask the staff if you have difficulty opening it. 

The door to the garden from reception is a glass double door, and the library doors also have large glass panels. Visitors to the library who use large wheelchairs might need both sides of the door opening, and staff are happy to help. 

Both the Mawby Pavilion and the Common Room are accessed through large French doors with a slight step.

• Entrance is via large, manually operated double doors, which are kept open during opening hours
• The enquiry desk is low and fitted with a fixed hearing loop
• Access space to the reading room near the enquiry desk is restricted; wheelchair users may prefer to use the alternative entrance from the main corridor
• Level access to the lower library is available by lift to the lower ground floor. Staff can open a secondary access door for easier entry if needed
• Stairs to the lower library have a handrail on the right (descending) and visually contrasting step edges
• Reading room furniture is moveable
• Fixed tables are generally at a comfortable height for most wheelchair users
• There are two electronic height-adjustable desks, one on each floor. Ergonomic chairs are available for both desks if needed
• Some shelves are high; library staff are available to assist with access

• The lecture theatre is at the basement level
• There are double doors into the lecture theatre which are usually held open at the start and end of lectures
• There are ramps either side of the central rows of seating
• Seats on the front row can be removed to create space for wheelchairs
• Please contact the department in advance to request they remove seats for wheelchair access
• There is stepped access only to the stage. There are two steps up to the stage with visually contrasting step edges, and no handrails
• There is a fixed induction loop

• Teaching rooms have desks and chairs which can be rearranged as needed
• Rooms are usually arranged around a central table, but are sometimes set out in rows
• There is usually good circulation space around the edges of the rooms
• There is step free access to all of the main teaching rooms (including a lift a ramps for some of the rooms)
• To get to the Mawby and Pickstock Rooms you will need to use the lift, then go through a narrow door with a clear width of only 67 cm
• As some of the rooms do not have step free access it is advisable to contact the department in advance to if you require step free access (use the contact information on this page)
• There is a fixed induction loop in the Sadler Room
• There is also a small portable loop system available on request. Please email the Student Support Administrator or your Course Administration Team if you need to use this 

The Common Room is accessed from the garden at lower ground level. This entrance has a pair of double French doors, and a small step. To get to the common room using a level route from the courtyard, go past the main sliding doors to the common room (on your left) and turn left up the slope marked 'Night Exit'. The entrance is a single door on your left. Coming from the dining room, come up the slope and turn right and ramp is on the left.

Once inside, there is plenty of space to move around the various chairs and sofas. There is self-service tea and coffee, and a staffed bar at certain times. The bar doesn't have a reduced height section, but staff are happy to help.

The Ruth Windsor Suite consists of a wheelchair accessible bedroom and ensuite bathroom, with a connected bedroom for a support worker/carer if needed. The ensuite accessible bathroom has doors either side - 1 into the accessible bedroom, and 1 into the carer bedroom. Note that the door between the bathroom and the carer bedroom can be locked for privacy if required. 

The bedroom has transfer space at the side and end of the bed, pull cord alarms by the bed and a height adjustable desk. The room is fairly spacious. There is a standard wardrobe. There is a freestanding armchair which can be moved to provide extra space if required.  

The bathroom has a toilet with fixed and drop down rails, a tip up shower seat with fixed and drop down rails, and a height adjustable sink. This is a large bathroom with plenty of space to manoeuvre. 

Entrance to the dining room is from the lower ground floor. Those needing level access should exit the lift and go through the powered door into the garden (at the end of the corridor on your right). Go around the outside of the garden and to the top left hand corner (via a ramp downwards). Turn right, and go down another ramp, then pass through two sets of double doors to reach the dining room. The second ramp is quite steep, but has a handrail on both sides. Those who don’t require level access should take the stairs down from reception. They can then either go through the garden or take the internal route. Furniture in the dining room is moveable, and the staff are very helpful. Breakfast is self-service from a long buffet table, but dinner is usually served at tables. The staff are happy to serve individual tables as necessary.

Coffee/tea during teaching courses will either be placed in the common room or the Acland Room (adjacent to the dining room). This is self-service, but cups and saucers etc. will already be out. Please ask for help if you need it.

The terrace area of the garden is directly accessible from the reception area, and the main courtyard is accessible from the lower ground level through a powered glass door. Exit the lift and go round to your right to get outside. This area is paved, with a range of benches and tables. If you do not need level access, you can reach the main courtyard area through a door at the back of the lecture theatre. A flight of steps will then take you to the courtyard.

• There are fixed induction loops in the Lecture Theatre and Sadler Room
• There is a fixed induction loop on the reception desk
• There is also a small portable loop system available on request. Please email the Student Support Administrator or your Course Administration Team if you need to use this 

Accessible computers

There are two computer spaces at Rewley House; the Computer Teaching Room (CTR) and the student computer facility. The student computer facility is on the ground floor, around the corner from the Tawney Room and adjacent to the library office. The door has a coded lock, which some building users might find difficult to operate.  Once inside, there is adequate space between the computers, and the chairs are moveable.

The Computer Teaching Room is on the first floor, and level access is only available by going up a ramp and through the Pickstock Room next door. As the door to the Pickstock Room has a frosted visual panel, it can be difficult to see when the room is in use, and there is a total of 4 doors on route from the Pickstock Room to the computers. If staff are aware of your access requirements, they will make every effort to schedule room use accordingly. Please contact reception on 01865 270360 or [email protected].  The CTR also has a coded lock, and back-to-back rows of computers with moveable office chairs.