Welfare Support
Call Emergency Services on 999 or the Main Porters’ Lodge on 01865 (2)77300. If you call the Emergency Services before the Lodge, please let the Porters know so they can direct the vehicle and crew and get help to you as fast as possible.
Call NHS 111 for 24-hour mental health support.
Oxfordshire Safe Haven
Safe Haven is a non-clinical service open every day for people who are experiencing mental health crisis. You must call first to book an appointment. Normal opening hours are 365 days are year from 11.30am - 9.30pm. Please check the website for up to date opening hours and service provision.
Papyrus
Prevention of Young Suicide is the UK charity dedicated to the prevention of suicide and the promotion of positive mental health and emotional wellbeing in young people.
Samaritans
A free and confidential listening service open 24/7 365 days a year.
Oxford Nightline
A completely independent listening, support and information service run for and by students of Oxford and Oxford Brookes universities. Check website for full details and current opening hours.
Other Mental Health Support
Togetherall offers a wide range of non- urgent mental health support and resources. Register with your Oxford email address
Oxfordshire Mind offers a wide range of support for non-urgent mental health issues. There are special resources for students.
Student Minds empower students to build their own mental health toolkit to support themselves and their peers through university life and beyond.
Oxfordshire Talking Therapies is a free and confidential talking therapy service which takes self referrals.
Shout text support service Shout is the UK's first and only free, confidential, 24/7 text messaging service for anyone who is struggling to cope.
LGBTQ+ helpline Switchboard is the national LGBTQIA+ support line. For anyone, anywhere in the country, at any point in their journey. We can discuss anything related to sexuality and gender identity whether it’s sexual health, relationships or just the way you’re feeling.
Oxford University Sexual Harassment and Violence Support Service The Sexual Harassment and Violence Support Service (SHVSS, or the "Support Service") provides a safe space for individuals to be heard, offering free and confidential support and advice to any current student at the University of Oxford who has been impacted by sexual harassment or sexual violence, whenever or wherever this took place. This is not an emergency service.
Oxfordshire Solace Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) provides confidential specialist support for anyone who has been raped or sexually assaulted, including advice on the choices available, forensic services and medical treatment. This is not an emergency service.
Oxford Sexual Abuse & Rape Crisis Centre (OSARCC) a feminist organisation committed to supporting survivors of sexual abuse, rape, domestic abuse, and harassment. OSARCC offer a free and confidential service to survivors who are dealing with the effects of sexual violence, and to anyone who is supporting them. This is not an emergency service.
St John's students can make an appointment with the college counsellor, Ellen Skidmore. Ellen is a Cognitive Behavioural Therapist and Integrative Psychotherapist and an accredited member of the British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies (BABCP). Ellen is available on Mondays in St Johns to see students for 50-minute therapy sessions which can be in person or online.
About Ellen: 'I have been delivering therapy to individuals since 2014, where I initially trained to be an Integrative psychotherapist. I worked in 2 different counselling services providing therapy to young people and young adults. I then continued in my professional development training to become a Cognitive Behavioural therapist in 2019, where I then worked in the NHS for 4 years. More recently, I have practiced privately, and also delivered clinical supervision to trainee therapists in their training in another university. I have been working for the student counselling service since Mach 2024, and I am really excited to now be part of St Johns college also.
I welcome students to come to see me presenting with all kinds of mental health difficulties, difficult life factors and hardship at university. We can meet and have an assessment together and then see what support would be best for you.
You can make an appointment with me by contacting me via email on ellen.skidmore@admin.ox.ac.uk, and I will get back to you as soon as possible. I work for St Johns college on Mondays, but I also work in the wider student counselling service on Wednesdays and Fridays.'
Counselling is also available via the University Counselling Service.
SJC Wellbeing Community offers students 4 supportive resources to "Be Your Own Best Friend" and prioritise your wellbeing . We have a Wellbeing Community Centre (The Graves Room near TW8 staircase) where events are held, a professional Wellbeing Team, access to 1 to 1 wellbeing support, and many free and inclusive Wellbeing events to support students in the middle of their busy College lives. The events are based on the 5 Ways to Wellbeing (Connect, Get Active, Take Notice, Keep Learning and Give) and need no previous experience or skill. All events are held in or close to College and led by our professional Wellbeing Practitioners.
The Graves Room. SJC Wellbeing Community Centre.
You can also find out more about our Wellbeing Community events below.
College nurse
St John’s College Nurse is Kinneret Milgrom. Kinneret can be contacted at 01865 277369. The surgery is open during term at the following times:
- Mondays 13.00-17.00
- Tuesdays 15.00-18.00
- Thursdays 9.00-11.30
The Nurse’s office is North Quad 5, room 1 and is fully accessible. Current students can book an appointment on the Intranet here. Appointments can be face to face or online via Teams. If you feel you need a longer appointment e.g. to discuss a mental health issue such as anxiety or depression, please book two consecutive slots. Consultations are strictly confidential.
College GP practice.
The St John’s College GP practice is Beaumont Elms Practice. There is a page on the practice website especially for students. The practice is a 10 minute walk from College. You can book an appointment online or call the practice on the phone.
An induction video for the GP practice is available here.
For advice about urgent, non-emergency healthcare issues contact the NHS 111 service.
Please note, if you are a UK national, you will be eligible automatically for NHS healthcare. If you classify as an overseas student, you may or may not be eligible to access all services provided by the NHS depending on your residency status. Check the NHS website or contact a member of the wellbeing team for help.
Dental health
You may be able to register in Oxford with a dentist. Check with individual practices for details. Some may offer to take NHS patients and others may only offer to take private patients. You could also try Studental which is located in Headington. Contact our College nurse if you need help and support accessing dental care.
Sexual health
You can make an appointment with the College nurse or your GP to discuss any concerns around sexual health.
Oxfordshire Sexual Health Services offer a wide range of sexual health services and support. Details about the services and the clinic opening times are all on the website.
You can find details of the whole St John's Wellbeing Team in our information for current students.
Support is available from the University Welfare Support Services for all Oxford students. The three main services are the Counselling Service, the Disability Advisory Service and the Sexual Harassment and Violence Service. If you are interested in finding out more about how the services work or would like some help and support to contact them, feel free to reach out to the St John’s Wellbeing Team.
The Equality and Diversity Unit offer some resources to support mental health
Exam panic is common and there is support available. Contact the Wellbeing Team for help and support.
Harassment Advisor Network or contact the Harassment Advisory Service at harassment.line@admin.ox.ac.uk.
Support in College
You can reach out to the Head of Student Wellbeing or one of the College harassment advisors at any time to talk about any incident of harassment. You can find our Harassment policy here.
Support from the University
Find out more about the Harassment Advisor Network | Equality and Diversity Unit (ox.ac.uk) You can contact the Harassment Advisory Service at harassment.line@admin.ox.ac.uk
Oxford SU have an Advice and Wellbeing team which offers impartial, confidential and independent advice to all Oxford students.
Talk to Frank is a UK-based service that provides facts, support and advice on drugs and alcohol
Honest information about drugs | FRANK (talktofrank.com)
Turning Point has an Oxford based service which is available for all Oxford residents. They also have a dedicated officer who liaises with the University supporting awareness raising around substance use and how to access support and information.
St John’s College is keen to support all our students with any issue they may have. We understand that the transition to University life could present students with certain difficulites if they usually have caring responsibilities at home and are worried about those whom they care for or if they are coming to university as students independent from families or guardians.
Care Experienced or Standalone students can speak to any member of the welfare team to find out about help and support available from College and the University.
See also Care Experienced Students and StandAlone Students
Peer Supporters are students trained to support other students with questions around welfare and well-being. Read more about student Peer Supporters here. You can find out about St John’s Peer Support team here.