St Michael at the Northgate, Oxford. Church open most days - see listing for services. Free entry, Admission Charge to Saxon Tower.

Details

Accessibility:

The entrance to the church and interior is quite flat with a ramped entrance up to the main door to avoid the steps. The Saxon Tower and roof are accessed via a staircase with rest places at regular intervals.
There is no regular parking near to the church but there are a number of car parks in Oxford, including: Broad Street (SP514064 - on-street parking); Gloucester Green car park (SP510064 - not accessible for wheelchairs); Oxpens car park (SP507057 - 8 disability spaces); St Giles East and West (SP512067 - on-street parking); Westgate car park (SP510059 - shopmobility is run from this car park); and Worcester Street car park (SP508063). Most of these are pay and display car parks. Detailed information in all of these car parks and their current Blue Badge concessions can be found here: https://www.oxford.gov.uk/directory/8/car_parks_in_oxford/category/53/categoryInfo/10
There is also Blue Badge parking permitted in resident permit holder bays and on yellow lines for restricted times. Please refer to this link for up to date information: https://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/media/global/wwwadminoxacuk/localsites/accessguide/images/symbols/CityCentreDisabilityParking.pdf

The following public toilets have disability facilities: Market Street Public Toilets (SP513063); Gloucester Green Public Toilets (SP510063); Oxpens Public Toilets (SP507058). There are also other public toilets in the town centre, but they do not have disability facilities.

Oxford city has a Shopmobility service which is accessed from within the car park for the Westgate shopping centre (OX1 1TR). The car park itself has 50 disability parking spaces, which are located close to the lobby area. Scooters and wheelchairs can be hired free of charge from the Shopmobility office, which can be booked over the telephone on 01865 263600 (Mon-Fri: 8am-5pm). Further information can be requested via email: westgate.oxford@landsec.com.

Brief Description:

The current building replaced the original structure in stages throughout the 13th, 14th and 15th century, with the Saxon Tower being the only original part of the original church. As well as the interior of the building, the tower and roof are open to the public as part of an exhibition including a 19th century clock mechanism and silver-work display. This is a working church which holds services, events and concerts.

Further Information:

Address:

St Michael at the Northgate, Cornmarket Street, Oxford, Oxfordshire, OX1 3EY

Telephone:

01865 240 940

Email:

Parish.Manager@smng.org.uk

Website:

http://www.smng.org.uk/wp/

Opening Hours:

The church is open for private prayer from 10.30am to 5.00pm (10.30am to 4.00pm in Winter) nearly every day of the year. The Saxon Tower is also open to visitors when the church is open.

Sunday service: 

8:00 am – HOLY COMMUNION

10:30 am – SUNG SERVICES (fully Choral on special occasions)

Monthly pattern:

1st Sunday – Holy Communion (Common Worship) with all-age participation

3rd Sunday – Holy Communion, (Book of Common Prayer) with the Choir

2nd & 4th Sundays – Mattins (Book of Common Prayer) with the Choir

For special occasions and 5th Sundays, check the Current Events on the web site

Children’s Church: every Sunday at 10:30am in the Parish Room of St Michael at the North Gate

Wednesday service:

1:15 pm Holy Communion (Common Worship) for approx. 40 minutes.

Friday service:

12:15 pm Holy Communion (Book of Common Prayer) for approx. 40 minutes.

Prices

Entrance fee for the Saxon Tower:

Single - £3.00

Child - £1.80

Family - £8.50 (Two adults and up to three children.)

Group (ten or more) - £2.50

Directions:

The church is in the centre of Oxford and can be tricky to get to by car. From the M40 J8a take the A40 west towards Oxford for 5 miles. At the roundabout continue straight to take the London Road/A420 for a further 2.5 miles. At the roundabout, take the 4th exit (past the pillared monument in the middle of the road) onto The Plain/A420 for around 400 metres/yards then turn right onto Longwall Street. Longwall Street turns slightly right and becomes St Cross Road. Turn left onto South Parks Road then, at the T-junction, turn left again onto Parks Road and turn right onto Broad Street then left onto Turl Street. Turn right onto Ship Street and the church can be found on the right-hand side.

OS SP 51282 06372

Transport:

Oxford is a very old city and travelling by car can be a problem. However, there is an excellent pubic transport system, which you can find further details of here: http://www.oxfordcityguide.com/oxford-tourist-information/getting-around-oxford

There are six Park & Ride sites located around Oxford's ring road; Bicester, Oxford Parkway and Pear Tree to the North, Thornhill to the East, Redbridge to the South and Seacourt to the West. The parking and bus into town are charged separately and there are no concessions for Blue Badge drivers. Each Park & Ride also has EV charge points for electric car drivers. Further details of the locations and charges can be found here: https://www.oxford.gov.uk/directory/8/car_parks_in_oxford/category/56/categoryInfo/13

The main bus services in Oxford are run by the Oxford Bus Company, Stagecoach Oxfordshire and Thames Travel. The services run throughout the city as well as the surrounding villages. Further details can be found on the following websites: https://www.oxfordbus.co.uk/, https://www.stagecoachbus.com/about/oxfordshire and https://www.thames-travel.co.uk/.

Oxford’s main railway station is located on the west side of the city centre with bus stops and taxi ranks just outside. There are frequent services to/from London Paddington, London Marylebone and Birmingham New Street. Details of the station can be found here: http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/stations/OXF/details.html. For ticket information you can telephone National Rail on 03457 484 950.

Amenities:

Refreshments are served in the Parish Room after the services. Further refreshments can be found at the many cafes, coffee shops, public houses and shops in Oxford town centre.