As the terms in Oxford are busy and intense, vacations are an important time to take a break, spend time in different environments, see friends, family and loved ones, and to recharge and prepare for the next term.
Vacation times in college have a different feel to term-times, students leave, the dining hall is closed to students, and some services change or close.
This page offers information on the range of health and welfare support available over the vacation.
We hope you all stay well during vacations and enjoy a much-needed break, but should you need medical or mental health support you can find information on where to access help during this time here.
Click here for the University's vacation information
Hopefully you won’t be unwell during vacation, but it helps to be prepared. Consider if you have enough of the following to see you through a period of illness:
Consider making ‘just in case’ arrangements with a friend to bring some shopping in the event you are too unwell to shop for yourself. Many local supermarkets offer click and collect, so a friend could pick up an order for you, or you could arrange for a delivery. Deliveries to the college area including Sainsburys, Tesco Groceries, Ocado Online Groceries (M&S), and Co-op via Deliveroo.
Consider having some non-perishable items such as tinned foods, cereals, longlife milk, fruits that don’t need to be chilled and perhaps some ‘ready meals‘. Take away deliveries are also plentiful Uber Eats, Deliveroo, Just Eat (just-eat.co.uk) but can be more expensive than the supermarket option.
If you need medication and are too unwell to collect it yourself, consider if a friend could collect for you or contact your local pharmacy to enquire about delivery. The pharmacy nearest to college is Woodstock Road Chemist.
Keep in touch with your support network, family and friends, let someone know you are unwell and tell them when you feel better. Ask for help when you need it whether you are home or away.
For those of you in and around Oxford over the vacation, you may find The Oxford Vacation Guide useful. It details local events, dining, amenities and services. Daily Info is also a great source of information on dining and events in Oxford.
We understand that some students may not return to their family home for many reasons during vacations and instead may look to stay with friends, travel, take an internship or pursue other work and accommodation.
Alternative accommodation and short-term employment options are available locally: