Conference FAQs

You may check in at the Porters’ Lodge from 2pm on your day of arrival. The Porters will issue you with a map and keys for your room. If you arrive before check-in opens, we can store your luggage safely.

If you are expecting to arrive after 11pm on your day of arrival, please call the Porters’ Lodge in advance.

Please vacate your room and hand in keys to the Porters’ Lodge by 10am on your day of departure. There is the opportunity to store luggage.

The Lodge is located by the main gate to the College on Holywell Street, and is adjacent to the New Buildings. It is the first port of call for any questions or problems, and the Porters are available twenty-four hours a day.

You can telephone the Lodge on 79500 (internal phones) or +44 (0)1865 279500 (mobiles and external).

All guests are provided with towels in their room, a welcome toiletry pack, a mini fridge and hospitality tray (tea, coffee, kettle etc).

Our rooms are used for our students during term-time, and so all feature a desk and a wardrobe. Please note that hairdryers are not provided.

For our residential guests, breakfast is served in the Hall between 8am and 9am. A full English and continental breakfast is served, with a selection of juices and hot drinks.

Laundry facilities (washing machines, dryers, irons) are available within the College, and can be located in 2 New Buildings.

Irons and ironing boards are available free of charge, but the washers and dryers are pay as you go and require payment by credit or debit card.

In order to access the College network you need to connect to ‘NC-Conference’ wi-fi. The Porters will also give you this information when you check-in.

If you are having difficulties connecting to the network, there may be incorrect settings on your computer. The Lodge can provide a connection guide with steps on how to disable private MAC addresses. If you are still having issues, please email the IT Office or pop along to 12 Old Buildings.

They are open Monday to Friday, from 8:30am to 4pm.

If you use an email client that uses an SMTP server, this will not work within the Oxford network. During your stay, you should change your SMTP server to ‘smtp.ox.ac.uk’, or make use of your organisation or hosting provider’s web-based services.

The Gate to New College Lane is open between 11am and 5pm. Outside of these hours, you will have to walk around to the main entrance on Holywell Street.

If you have been provided with delegate badges, please wear these to assist the Porter on duty.

The main gate on Holywell Street is open between 6am and 11pm. Outside of these hours, you should press the red doorbell button on the keypad outside, so that the Porter can let you in.

Please take the time to familiarise yourself with the fire procedures, a copy of which is printed on the back of all bedrooms doors and in all seminar and meeting rooms.

In the event of fire, you will hear a continuous alarm, and should leave the building immediately.

Secure luggage storage is available for delegates staying beyond their room check-out time. Please ask at the Porters’ Lodge.

All items are left at your own risk, and it is advised that expensive or important items are kept with you throughout the day.

Owing to the age of the grounds and building, many surfaces are uneven. Please take extra care when walking around the College. It is always worth wearing a sensible pair of shoes.

In particular, please take care and use the handrail when taking the staircases to the Hall, which can be particularly slippery when wet and are somewhat uneven.

Smoking is not permitted within the College’s buildings or grounds. Delegates wishing to smoke are advised to make their way to Holywell Street or New College Lane.

The nearest newsagent, “The Tuckshop” is located at the end of Holywell Street (two minutes walk), and is open from 7am to 7pm Monday-Friday.

Sainsbury’s Local and Tesco Express can also be found at the end of Broad Street (five minutes’ walk), adjacent to Flying Tiger on Magdalen Street.

Tesco Express is open from 7.30 am-10 pm Monday-Saturday, and 11.30am-4pm on Sunday.

Sainsbury’s Local is open from 7 am-10 pm 7 days a week.

The nearest cash machines (or ATMs) can be found on Magdalen Street outside Tesco Express and Sainsbury’s Local (five minutes’ walk).  These machines accept all major cards and are not subject to any transaction fees.  

Sadly, parking within New College is not available.  However, if you are a blue badge holder we will endeavour to find you an appropriate space within the main site.

If you are expecting to travel by car, it is advised to make use of the Park & Ride facilities. Oxford has 5 Park & Ride car parks located around Oxford’s ring road, each with a bus service taking you straight to Oxford City Centre.  The connecting journey takes around fifteen minutes, which includes a five-minute walk from the bus stop to the College. 

On-street parking is available close to the college on Mansfield Road and Longwall Street, but is limited.

Alternatively, we recommend Just Park.

Taxis within the City typically run on a metred service.  Our recommended taxi firm is Royal Cars who can be contacted on: +44 (0)1865 777333.