Accessibility

Support and Provision

Medical facilities
Darwin students are expected to sign up with a GP at the local medical practice (five minutes walk from the main site). A student counselling service is provided and funded by the College. A number of College staff are First Aid and Mental Health First Aid trained and there is an AED located at the Porters’ Lodge.

Emergency procedures
PEEPs should be filled in at the Porters’ Lodge by all visitors and residents requiring assistance in case of an emergency. Evac chairs are positioned at the main staircase. Reasonable adjustments are made for residents with medical requirements (e.g. vibrating fire alarms).

Individual needs
Arrangements for students with specific learning difficulties or needs are made on an individual basis, in conjunction with the Accessibility and Disability Resource Centre. Please discuss your needs with the Deanery or your Tutor.

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On-site accessibility

Detailed access guides to the College site are available here.

Many of the core College facilities are located on the ground floor in the main buildings, and a lift from the Porters’ Lodge allows access to the common room, bar, café and dining hall. Due to the nature of our estate and age of our buildings, some areas on the ground floor are not completely step-free. The main (front) entrance, leading to most public areas, has four steps up with a handrail. A wheelchair lift is installed at the garden entrance into the main College. Level access to the garden is through a gate on Newnham Road (hall and garden) and at the side entrance on Silver Street (library/study centre and garden).

College offices
Tutorial offices  (known as The Deanery) are on the first floor, but staff can easily arrange meetings elsewhere in the College as necessary. Most other College offices are on the ground floor off the main corridor.

Laundry
Accessible from the garden bridge entrance or down four steps from the main corridor. Separate laundries are also provided in hostels.

Library
Level access from the garden. Two levels, with stairs only to upper level. Individual study rooms on the ground floor. Disabled toilet.

Porters’ Lodge and post room
Level access from the main corridor.

Toilets
There is a disabled toilet on the main corridor, and another in the library and study centre.

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Accommodation

Wheelchair-accessible rooms
A limited amount of accessible accommodation is provided in hostels, close to the main College site. If you have any specific requirements or need for adjustments, please let the College know as early as possible, to allow time to complete any necessary works.

Live-in assistants and assistance dogs
Live-in assistants and medical assistance dogs can be accommodated, but please notify us of  your needs well in advance. Requests to bring a registered Emotional Support Animal (ESA) onto University and/or College property will not normally be granted. Any request to bring an ESA onto College property should be made well in advance to allow the case to be considered. Any ESA which has not been formally approved will be subject to a request for immediate removal.

Catering arrangements
Kitchens in most accommodation are shared facilities, so students will not always be able to store or prepare food separately from others.

In the Catering department, allergens are always clearly marked and staff are well trained in allergen awareness.

Chapel and prayer spaces
Darwin is a secular community without its own chapel or prayer spaces. Members are more than welcome to book meeting rooms for the purpose of prayer, and Darwinians can also make use of the Chapel or Faith Centre at Queens’ College, our near neighbours on the other side of Silver Street.

Information on faith communities and places of worship either affiliated with the University or local to Cambridge can be found here.

Computer facilities
Special hardware or software for visually impaired users can be acquired as necessary.

Alarms
Visual or sensory alarms suitable for hearing impaired users have been used previously and are moved and installed as required.

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