Over the Christmas period, the opening hours of our services will be changing. However, do not worry! You will still be able to access the help and support you need during this time. Below, we have provided a summary of the Christmas opening hours of our services so know how and when to you will be able to access the support you need.
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‘Ask us a Question’ on the RISIS portal is the main method for contacting support centres with non-urgent queries. Over the Christmas period (from 23 December), you will be able to use the ‘Ask us a Question’ service but responses will be made when staff return to the office on 3 January 2023.
From 3 – 9 January, opening hours will be:
- Front desks open in person: 10:00- 12:00 and from 13:00 to 16:00
- Phone lines – 0118 378 5555 – open 10:00 to 16:00.
Normal hours will resume from 9 January, open in person from 10:00 -12:00 and from 13:00 – 17:00. Phone lines will be open from 09:00 – 17:00.
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The Student Financial Support Team:
The Student Financial Support Team will be closed from the 23 December to the 2 January. Leading up to the Christmas Closure period you can book a virtual appointment, call the team on 0118 378 5555, or access free online support for managing your finances on Blackbullion. Please note the service will be operating its out of term time hours.
Please note that the Student Financial Support team staff will continue to assess/process Student Support Fund applications but cannot guarantee payment or decisions will be made before the Christmas closure period.
The Student Financial Support Team will be available again from 3 January 2023.
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The University of Reading Careers and Placements team:
Careers and placements will close on the 22 December at 13:00 and will reopen at 09:00 on the 3 January 2022. From the 3rd – 6th January, they will be open from 09:00 – 14:00, and regular hours of 09:00 – 17:00 will resume from the 9th January 2023.
Outside of this period the Careers centre will be open as usual. Students are encouraged to book an appointment online with a careers consultant for advice, or you can phone 0118 3788359 to book an appointment.
Careers information and help sheets can be found on the Careers website. Careers webinar recordings and further materials can be found on Careers 24/7 in Blackboard.
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Outside of term time the Student Services Reception will be open:
- Monday to Friday 10:00 to 13:00 and 14:00 to 16:00 (You can also 0118 378 5555 or email studenthelp@reading.ac.uk)
- Student Services Reception in Carrington will close at 2pm on the 7 December only
The Student Services Reception will be closed from the 23 December until the 2 January. It will reopen on the 3 January for face-to-face enquiries.
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Disability Advisory Service (DAS):
The Disability Advisory Service will be open as usual up until the 22 December. On the 22 December the Disability Advisory Service will close at 1pm and remain closed until the 2 January. Normal opening hours will resume from the 3 January.
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Campus Jobs is closing from 23 December to the 3 January 2023.
During the rest of the vacation period the services will be open as usual 10:00 until 16:00. Apart from the 9 December and 22 December, where services will only be available in the morning.
Outside of term time, students are encouraged to book an appointment in advance. Appointments can be made on the Campus Jobs portal, by email (campusjobs@reading.ac.uk), or by phone (0118 378 4499).
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University of Reading Library:
The Library will be closed from 23 December to 3 January. Between 10 and 22 December 2022, opening hours will be as follows:
- Monday – Thursday: 08:30 – 19:00
- Friday: 08:30 – 17:00
- Saturday & Sunday: Closed
After Christmas, opening hours will be as follows:
- 3 January to 5 January: 08:30 – 19:00
- 6 January: 08:30 – 17:00
- 8 January: 08:30 – 21:00
Normal term time opening hours to resume from the 9 January onwards.
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The International Student Advisory Team:
Closing from 23 December – 2 January 2023
To book an appointment before the Christmas closure, please see the Appointments page. You can also contact the team via email or phone 09:00 – 17:00, Monday – Friday.
- General enquiries, please email int.adv@reading.ac.uk
- Immigration and visa enquiries, please email immigration@reading.ac.uk
- Telephone: +44(0)118 378 8038
During the Christmas closure, you can email immigration@reading.ac.uk. Emails will not be monitored over the Christmas break; the team will respond to emails on their return.
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DTS/ IT Service Desk:
The IT Service Desk will be closed completely from the 23 December 2022 to 3 January 2023, in line with the University closure dates.
The telephone line (0118 378 6262) will close at 6pm Thursday 22nd December. The IT Service Desk in the Library will close at 5pm Thursday 22nd December
Both will reopen at 8am on Tuesday 3rd January 2023.
Greenlands IT/AV Support will remain open until Friday 23 December, but will close at 6pm on Friday 23 December and reopen at 8am on Tuesday 3 January 2023.
The IT team will be able to accept enquiries by email (dts@reading.ac.uk) and via the Self Service Portal during the closure period, but these will not be responded to until after the Christmas closure period. However, the team will be monitoring any urgent systems and services.
You can find more information via the DTS hub.
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The Counselling and Wellbeing Team:
Between 12 and 21 December, the Counselling and Wellbeing service will be open between 10:00 and 16:00 Monday to Friday.
The service will close at 1pm on Thursday 22 December and remain closed throughout Christmas. During this time, the phone line and email account will not be monitored. The service will reopen on the 3 January 2023.
If you would like support, follow the link to register with the service. For general enquiries please call us on 0118 378 4216 or email Counselling@reading.ac.uk.
For urgent support that can’t wait until after the Christmas period, please contact your GP, or call the CRISIS team on 0800 129 9999.
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The Student Welfare Team’s offices will be closed from 1pm on the 22 December until the 2 January. Services will resume as normal from the 3 January.
If you need help urgently during the Christmas break, please see the useful contact numbers below:
- For any urgent Halls matters, please ring the Halls hotline on 0800 029 1984 who are still operating a 24/7 service
- If you need campus Security Service please call 0118 378 6300.(24hr service)
- NHS 111 – for medical help that is not an emergency (24hr support). For life-threatening emergencies, call 999 for an ambulance.
- NHS Mental Health Crisis Service on 0300 365 2000 or 0300 365 9999 (out of hours 9pm -9am)
- Call 116 123 to talk to the Samaritans, or email: jo@samaritans.org (for a reply within 24 hours)
- Text “SHOUT” to 85258 to contact the Shout Crisis Text Line, (24 hr service)
- PAPYRUS HOPELINE (supporting young people with thoughts of Suicide) 0800 068 4141 ( 9am to midnight ) www.papyrus-uk-org
For helpful support resource information check out the Support and Wellbeing section on Essentials.
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The offices will be closed on the 23, 28, 29 and 30 December, however staff will be working remotely and available from 08:30- 17:30 via phone and email (accommodationonline@reading.ac.uk and 0118 200 5011).
The service will be closed completely on the weekends and Christmas bank holidays. Normal service will resume from Tuesday 3 January, 08:30 – 17:30
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Outside of term time, there will be no drop-in service. Bookable 121’s are still available until the 22 December, you can book appointments through this form.
Study Advice will be closed for the Christmas period from the 23 December until the 2 January. Normal service will resume from the 3 January.
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If living in halls, wardens will be available throughout the Christmas period, and you can call the Halls Hotline on 0800 029 1984
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The Helpdesk will be closed from 12:30 on Thursday 22 December until Tuesday 3 January.
All Undergraduate students are encouraged to send in any enquiries they have through the RISIS Student Portal, ‘Ask a question’. This will be monitored during the opening times. Please note these will not be looked at over the closure dates and will be picked up when normal service resumes on the 3 January.
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Support over Christmas
- Student Space is open every day throughout the Christmas period and has great resources and helplines.
- Urgent concerns about your mental health? Call the Berkshire NHS Crisis number; they are available 24/7.
- If you are feeling suicidal or desperate to talk to someone, you can call the Samaritans for free 24 hours a day, 7 days a week on 116 123.
- PAPYRUS is the national UK charity dedicated to the prevention of young suicide and offers a telephone and text service on 0800 068 4141. The service is staffed by trained mental health professionals 10:00 – 22:00 weekdays and 14:00 – 17:00 at the weekend.
- Your doctor/GP practice. If you are registered with the University Medical practice in Northcourt Avenue, the number is:0118 987 4551. Otherwise, please contact the doctor with whom you are registered.
- Non-urgent NHS medical help/advice: 111.
- Emergency services:999.
- University Security Team emergency number: 0118 378 6300.
- University Security Team non-emergency number: 0118 378 7799 or securitycontrol@reading.ac.uk.
- For any urgent Halls matters, please ring the Halls hotline on 0800 029 1984 who are still operating a 24/7 service.