Somerville College
Somerville was founded (as Somerville Hall) in 1879 to provide an opportunity for women, who at that time were excluded from membership of the university, to gain some kind of higher education in Oxford. Now, it educates both female and male students.
The College has educated many eminent scientists, politicians and writers: Dorothy Hodgkin (Nobel Laureate), Dame Janet Vaughan (scientist), Indira Ghandi (former Prime Minister of India), Baroness Margaret Thatcher (former British Prime Minister), Shirley Williams (MP), Iris Murdoch (novelist), Dorothy Sayers (novelist), and Esther Rantzen (journalist), to name just a few.
Somerville College is well placed for visitors to Oxford. It has excellent facilities, particularly the Flora Anderson Hall (and Brittain Williams Room) and the Margaret Thatcher Centre, and offers a versatile environment for groups or individuals requiring meeting rooms, lectures, receptions, or dinners all year round. Somerville has a wide range of venues suitable for up to 192 guests or delegates and offers handsome surroundings for both indoor and outdoor events, including beautiful gardens and a wood-panelled dining hall.
The College can also accommodate large groups of residential visitors during college vacation periods and its spacious gardens can be used by guests throughout the year. We are able to cater for drinks receptions, tea parties, dinners and banquets as well as meetings for up to 200.
Somerville College Woodstock Road, Oxford OX2 6HD
This venue offers...
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Flora Anderson Hall (and Brittain Williams Room)
Recently refurbished, this is a modern and open space comprising of a large lecture room (Flora Anderson Hall) and ante room (Brittain Williams Room). Light and airy, the Flora Anderson Hall has inbuilt AV and a stage, with a lectern and static microphone. The Brittain Williams Room is often used to serve refreshments in or for break out space, and has a beautiful view overlooking the Quad.Venue Capacity
- 50 Boardroom
- 50 Cabaret
- 100 Classroom
- 250 Evening Reception
- 190 Theatre
Dining Hall
A beautiful, wood- panelled hall with south-facing sash windows, hung with velvet curtains, overlooking the College gardens. Portraits of the former Heads of the College adorn the walls below a majestic high ceiling. There are three steps leading to a stage and the High Table which seats 24. All other tables seat 12 to 14 guests on wooden chairs.Venue Capacity
- 192 Dining
Margaret Thatcher Centre
Opened in 1990, the centre comprises a spacious lobby, lecture room and anteroom, all with excellent disabled access opening out to a private garden. All three areas are interlinked; they can be used independently or on an open plan basis.Venue Capacity
- 25 Boardroom
- 36 Cabaret
- 40 Classroom
- 100 Evening Reception
- 60 Theatre
New Powell Room
Located on the ground floor of a residential block, the New Powell Room seats 18 boardroom-style with natural daylight.Venue Capacity
- 18 Boardroom
The Eleanor Rathbone Room
Intimate meeting room lined with books on ground floor of a residential block, Park 3 seats 14 boardroom-style with natural daylight.Venue Capacity
- 14 Boardroom
-
Flora Anderson Hall (and Brittain Williams Room)
Recently refurbished, this is a modern and open space comprising of a large lecture room (Flora Anderson Hall) and ante room (Brittain Williams Room). Light and airy, the Flora Anderson Hall has inbuilt AV and a stage, with a lectern and static microphone. The Brittain Williams Room is often used to serve refreshments in or for break out space, and has a beautiful view overlooking the Quad.Venue Capacity
- 50 Boardroom
- 50 Cabaret
- 100 Classroom
- 250 Evening Reception
- 190 Theatre
-
Dining Hall
A beautiful, wood- panelled hall with south-facing sash windows, hung with velvet curtains, overlooking the College gardens. Portraits of the former Heads of the College adorn the walls below a majestic high ceiling. There are three steps leading to a stage and the High Table which seats 24. All other tables seat 12 to 14 guests on wooden chairs.Venue Capacity
- 192 Dining
-
Margaret Thatcher Centre
Opened in 1990, the centre comprises a spacious lobby, lecture room and anteroom, all with excellent disabled access opening out to a private garden. All three areas are interlinked; they can be used independently or on an open plan basis.Venue Capacity
- 25 Boardroom
- 36 Cabaret
- 40 Classroom
- 100 Evening Reception
- 60 Theatre
-
New Powell Room
Located on the ground floor of a residential block, the New Powell Room seats 18 boardroom-style with natural daylight.Venue Capacity
- 18 Boardroom
-
The Eleanor Rathbone Room
Intimate meeting room lined with books on ground floor of a residential block, Park 3 seats 14 boardroom-style with natural daylight.Venue Capacity
- 14 Boardroom