Welfare support
Welfare support
Staying well as a student is not just about keeping physically healthy but also about maintaining good mental health. Everybody gets stressed, anxious, or overwhelmed sometimes and there are a variety of sources of support available at Oxford from the GCR, the College and the University. We are all here to help you and we welcome the opportunity to talk with you, however big or small you feel your problem may be.
(Information about Academic support is available here.)
Please see here for information about the welfare support available in the College and beyond.
College Advisor | GCR Welfare Team | Peer Supporters | |
Harassment | University Counselling Service | Oxford University Student Union (OUSU) |
|
Nightline | Samaritans | Oxford Student Mental Health Network |
|
Student Minds |
All St Antony's College students are assigned a College Advisor, who is a Governing Body Fellow, Senior Research Fellow, Senior Common Room member or Emeritus Fellow of the College.
Your College Advisor can:
- provide pastoral support, including on any health, personal or coping issues, and/or direct you to appropriate persons for assistance;
- monitor your progress, by discussing your University supervision reports and by being available for consultation, either in person or by email;
- discuss with you any problems or difficulties you may be experiencing in your Department or Faculty, and/or with your supervisor;
- consult the Senior Tutor if there are concerns about your academic progress and if you appear to be experiencing difficulties with your academic work;
- offer guidance on sources of support available within the College and University.
In addition, your College Advisor may be able to offer you advice on academic-related matters such as applications for research funding, conferences and seminar attendance, publication and career plans (College Advisors would not normally be expected to provide academic references, as others are better placed to do so. They might provide a reference for other purposes or a character reference.)
Your College Advisor is not expected to perform the role of your Department or Faculty Supervisor(s) and is not directing your academic work or giving detailed academic guidance. At St Antony's College, your College Advisor will be a member of a different Department/Faculty to the one you are enrolled in.
You will first meet your College Advisor at the College Advisors' Drinks Reception in Welcome Week. New students will be informed of the date and time of this compulsory event in advance.
You are encouraged to contact your College Advisor as and when you need advice or help. (You should also feel free to consult other College officers as necessary; see below).
Details of your College Advisor will be emailed to you at the start of each term. Your College Advisor may be changed during periods of sabbatical or other academic leave. If you have a reason to seek a change of Advisor, you should contact the Senior Tutor.
If you have any questions, would like further information or have any problems liaising with your College Advisor, please contact the Senior Registry Administrator
In addition, all students are expected to meet with the Warden once a year to discuss progress and raise any issues they may have. These meetings are called the Warden’s Graduate Consultations. The Warden’s Personal Assistant emails students with the dates of these meetings.
GCR Welfare team
The GCR Vice Presidents for Welfare oversee a team that can help with issues relating to disability, childcare, equal opportunities, accommodation, financial hardship, and physical and psychological health of the student body.
Website: GCR website
Peer Supporters
Peer Supporters are current St Antony's students who work with the GCR welfare team. Peer Supporters are available informally for any fellow Antonian to speak about anything that is concerning you, be it stress, personal difficulties or just a need to get things off your chest. All Peer Supporters have been trained to listen effectively, communicate sensitively, respect boundaries and above all, maintain confidentiality.
Email: peer.supporters@sant.ox.ac.uk
Our current Peer Supporters are:
Emilie Curroyova, Joshua Parker-Allen and Irem Yildiz
University Counselling Service
The University has a professionally staffed confidential Student Counselling Service for assistance with personal, emotional, social and academic problems. The Service is available free to all matriculated students. It can take a while to get an appointment; if you have an urgent need to speak with a counsellor, please contact the College Registrar.
The Counselling Service website has excellent resources for students experiencing difficulties as well as for those supporting other students.
Website: University Counselling Service
Telephone: 01865 270300
Address: 3 Worcester Street, Oxford, OX1 2BX
Opening hours: During term (Weeks 0-9) reception is open 09:00-17:00, Monday-Friday. For pre-arranged appointments the Service remains open until 20:00, Monday-Thursday.
Harassment
St Antony’s is committed to equal opportunities and to providing an environment in which all senior members, employees, contractors and students are treated with
dignity and respect, and in which they can work and study free from any type of discrimination, harassment, or victimisation. If you feel that you have been/are being harassed or bullied and that this has arisen solely in the College environment or by another member of the College, please start by reading the College's Code of Practice on Harassment, available here. You can find information about contacting University Harassment Advisors here.
If the harassment has arisen outside the College or is by a member of a different College/Department, please refer to the University policy and procedure on harassment.
If a criminal offence has been committed, the College/University Harassment procedures may not be appropriate. These cases will include, but not be limited to, serious assault or threat of serious assault. Further guidance on dealing with cases of sexual assault or sexual violence is available from the University.
Oxford University Student Union (OUSU)
OUSU offers a range of services to students, including a Student Advice Service to help provide guidance on the many different support services available to you.
Details: OUSU website
Nightline
Nightline is a completely independent listening, support and information service run for and by students at Oxford University and Oxford Brookes University. Nightine aims to provide every student in Oxford with the opportunity to talk to someone in confidence. Nightline operates every night between 8pm and 8am from 0th-9th week.
Website: Nightline
Phone: +44 (0)1865 270270
Skype: oxfordnightline
Twitter: @oxfordnightline
Samaritans
Samaritans provides confidential non-judgemental emotional support, 24 hours a day for people who are experiencing feelings of distress or despair, including those which could lead to suicide.
Website: Samaritans
Phone: National number - 08457 909090 or Oxford branch - 01865 722122
Email: jo@samaritans.org
Address: Oxford Samaritans, 60 Magdalen Road, Oxford, OX4 1RB (usually open 8am-10pm)
Oxford Student Mental Health Network
Oxford Student Mental Health Network provides training and workshops and offers an excellent set of links to online resources from its website to support students and those who work with students. The website's Your Mental Health section has some good links to other organisations.
Website: OSMHN
Email: osmhn@brookes.ac.uk
Student Minds
Student Minds is the UK's student mental health charity. They say: 'we believe that peer interventions can change the state of student mental health. We deliver research-driven training and support to equip students to bring about positive change on their campuses through campaigning and facilitating peer support programmes.'
Website: Student Minds
Twitter: @StudentMindsOrg