Gardens
Worcester has award winning gardens that make it one of the most stunning Oxford colleges. A team of 9 gardeners fill the college with life year round (check out some of their past work on their blog and current seasonal updates). The college is unique in having a lake on site, with resident ducks, oystercatchers, geese, swans and assorted other visitors throughout the year (over 50 different bird species have been recorded on college grounds!).
Benches are available throughout the grounds, and students can regularly be seen studying or reading on tree trunks or on the grass.
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- the lake bridge runs to the provost’s gardens
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- plants like wisteria make spring a glorious time
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- worcester front quad in snow
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- secluded benches make great study spots
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- the herbaceous border runs along the 13th century cottages
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- baby cygnets on the lake
Housing
The College aims to provide one year’s accommodation for most first year graduate students, with the possibility of accommodation for a further year, subject to availability.
16, 17 & 19 Richmond Road: (built c1870) just outside the College curtilage. 5/6 rooms per building with shared bathroom facilities. 1 shared kitchen with laundry facilities.
Franks Building: (built 1999; refurbished in 2017-18) just outside the College curtilage. 27 en-suite rooms (2 disabled rooms). 4 kitchens plus 1 laundry room.
17 Worcester Place: (built c1870) just outside the College curtilage. 6 rooms with shared bathroom facilities. 1 shared kitchen with laundry facilities.
Worcester House (171 Walton Street): (built c1870) just outside the College curtilage. 11 rooms with shared bathroom facilities. 1 shared kitchen. Laundry facilities in Mitchell Building next door.
Worcester Cottage (172 Walton Street): (built c1700 with twentieth century additions; completely renovated in 2010) just outside of the College curtilage. 6 en-suite rooms. 1 shared kitchen with laundry facilities.
42 Nelson Street: (built 1974) just outside of the College curtilage. 6 two-bedroom flats with laundry facilities.
You can find more information about graduate housing on the college website.
Food
Worcester runs meals from the dining hall as well as ‘grab and go’ light meals from the Nash Cafe (8:00 – 14:00 Monday – Friday).
The college bar, located in the historic pump quad, is also open every night from 18:00.
Worcester Dining Hall is open 0th – 9th week of term (breakfast & lunch are available out of term on request):
| Meal | Days | Times | Price |
| Breakfast | Monday – Saturday | 8:00 – 10:00 | ~£2 – 4 |
| Lunch | Monday – Saturday | 12:00 – 14:00 | ~£3 – 4 |
| First Hall (dinner) | Sunday – Saturday | 17:30 – 18:30 | ~ £4 – 5 |
| Formal Hall (dinner) | Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday | 19:15 | £12 (guests £16) |
Hall can cater for dietary preference, allergies, medical diets, and most religious diets. Just ask catering staff when you arrive or reach out to the MCR before hand.
Worcester is known for having high quality food, especially vegetarian and vegan options (we’re ranked #2!). Worcester’s fabulous chefs run their own Instagram account and we promise it tastes as good as it looks!
Eating in hall is an excellent place to meet other students and have interesting conversations. The MCR additionally runs special guest night formals once or twice a term for the entire graduate community.
Sports
Worcester is lucky to have extensive sports grounds on site, including space for football, rugby, cricket and other grass sports. Tennis & netball courts are on site also. Students can often be found on a sunny day tossing a frisbee or playing with the college croquet set.
Worcester has an active boat club for rowing. In Trinity Term the college also rents a punt out of Magdalen boathouse.
The new Nazrin Shah Centre, at the heart of Worcester, has a dance studio which can be booked for dance practice or exercise. Regular yoga classes are offered during term there as well.
The college has a small gym which is free to use, but you must take a safety induction first (watch for signups in the first two weeks of term). The main university sports gym is located about 15 minutes away by bicycle.
There are two gyms located nearby in city centre (Buzz Gym and Pure Gym), both about a 10 minute walk from college.
