St Anne's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It was founded in 1879 and gained full college status in 1959. Originally a women's college, it has admitted men since 1979. It has some 450 undergraduate and 200 graduate students and retains an original aim of allowing women of any financial background to study at Oxford. It still has a student base with a higher than average proportion of female students. The college stands between Woodstock and Banbury roads, next to the University Parks.
In April 2017, Helen King, a retired Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner, took over as Principal from Tim Gardam. Former members include Danny Alexander, Edwina Currie, Ruth Deech, Helen Fielding, William MacAskill, Amanda Pritchard, Simon Rattle, Tina Brown, Mr Hudson, Mākereti Papakura, and Victor Ubogu.
History
Society of Oxford Home-Students (1879–1942)
What is now St Anne's College began as part of the Association for the Education of Women (AEW), the first institution in Oxford with that aim. It then became the Society of Oxford Home-Students. Unlike other women's associations, the society had no fixed site, instead offering lodgings in houses spread across Oxford. This allowed students of various financial backgrounds to study at Oxford, as the cost of accommodation in women's halls was often prohibitive. Other hostels were run by Catholic nuns: the Society of the Sacred Heart in Norham Gardens, the Sisters of Notre Dame in Woodstock Road and the Society of the Holy Child Jesus at Cherwell Edge in St Cross Road. Springfield St Mary was vacated by the nuns in 1966, to make way for the construction of the new Wolfson and Rayne buildings on the college site.
In 1910, the Society of Oxford Home-Students, with the other women's societies, was recognised by the university. In 1912, the society acquired its first four tutors, in German, History and English Literature, In the 1920s, the principals of the women's societies became the first women to receive degrees from the university. The society in the early 1930s still had no centralised site, but within a few years the current location was chosen and by 1937 construction of Hartland House was underway.
St Anne's College (1952 onwards)
In 1952, the St Anne's Society acquired a royal charter as St Anne's College and in 1959 full college status along with the other women's colleges. The Principal at the time, Mary Ogilvie, pressed for a transition from many disparate dining rooms to a common building. This led to the construction of the dining hall completed in 1959 and visited by Queen Elizabeth II in 1960. Meanwhile student numbers grew to nearly 300, which called for more accommodation and led to the construction of the Wolfson and Rayne buildings in 1964 and 1968. In 1977, the decision was made to become coeducational, with the first male undergraduates matriculating in 1979.
In 2023, work began on the full reconstruction of the Bevington Road accommodation blocks, in order to make them more suitable for future generations of students.
The Ship
The annual magazine for former college members is called The Ship. When still the Society of Oxford Home-Students, the college had its first common room in Ship Street, central Oxford. It marked its centenary issue of 2010/2011 with anniversary content.
Location and buildings
Grounds
thumb|Rear of Bevington Road
The college grounds are bounded by Woodstock Road to the west, Banbury Road to the east, and Bevington Road to the north. These grounds house all of the college's administrative and academic buildings, undergraduate accommodation, as well as the hall, which is among the largest in Oxford. The College formerly owned a number of houses throughout Oxford used for undergraduate accommodation, some of which used to be boarding houses of the Society of Oxford Home-Students. Many of these properties were sold off to fund the building of the Ruth Deech Building, completed in 2005.
Accommodation
St Anne's generally accommodates undergraduates on the college site for two years of study, with students living out in their second year. Undergraduates at St Anne's are housed in 14 Victorian houses owned by the college and four purpose-built accommodation blocks. The college also supplies accommodation for some of its graduate students. All undergraduates pay the same amount for their rooms, and every student has access to a communal kitchen in their building.
Victorian houses
The college uses 1–10 Bevington Road (also known colloquially as "the Bevs"), 58/60 Woodstock Road, and 39/41 Banbury Road (also known as "Above the Bar") as undergraduate accommodation, typically for freshers. The junior (undergraduate) post room is located in 10 Bevington Road, the college laundry in 58/60 Woodstock Road, and the college bar, including a pool room, in 39/41 Banbury Road. Five additional Victorian houses (27/29 and 37 Banbury Road and 48/50 Woodstock Road) hold teaching rooms, seminar rooms, music practice rooms, and college offices.
Rayne and Wolfson Buildings
thumb|right|Wolfson Building
The Rayne and Wolfson Buildings were built in 1964 and are Grade II Listed Buildings virtually identical in design. They house administrative offices on the ground floor and student rooms. The majority of first years are housed here since the Bevington Road accommodation renovation project.
Claire Palley Building
The Claire Palley Building, completed in 1992 and named after Claire Palley (Principal 1984–1991), was the first accommodation block to have en-suite rooms. It also houses the Mary Ogilvie Lecture Theatre.
College bar
The College Bar is located on the ground floor of the building behind Trenaman House. There are some first-year rooms above the bar (known as 'ATB').
Trenaman House
thumb|A STACS coffee, in a college branded [[KeepCup]]
Trenaman House, built in 1995, holds student rooms and communal college facilities, including the gym, and since 2008, St Anne's Coffee Shop (STACS). It was named after Nancy Trenaman, sixth Principal of the college (1966–1984).
Ruth Deech Building
thumb|right|The [[Ruth Deech Building, which houses the Porter's Lodge]]
The Ruth Deech Building, named after the Principal in 1991–2004, was completed in 2005. The lower ground floor has the Tsuzuki lecture theatre, seminar rooms and dining facilities and a new Porter's Lodge on the upper ground floor with 110 en-suite student rooms. One notable feature is a glass lift, the only part of the building to exceed the roof line. The building was awarded the 2007 David Steel sustainable building award by Oxford City Council.
Robert Saunders House
Robert Saunders House, built in 1996, provides 80 rooms for graduate students in Summertown. It was named after a former bursar of the college, who did much to improve its finances.
Eleanor Plumer House
Eleanor Plumer House (known until 2008 as 35 Banbury Road) is named after Eleanor Plumer (Principal 1940–1953). It houses the Middle Common Room; facilities include a study area, computer room and kitchen. It also houses some graduate students.
Hartland Housethumb|upright|The first purpose-built college building and finished in 1937, the main entrance to Hartland House has the college's coat of arms and motto
Hartland House, designed by <!-- Not knighted until 1944 -->Giles Gilbert Scott, was the first purpose-built college building, finished in 1937 with another wing added in 1973. It houses the old library, the junior and senior common rooms and administrative offices. It features the college crest above the main entrance and engravings of beavers, the college mascot.
Dining Hall
The Dining Hall, built in 1959, is among the largest in Oxford with a capacity of 300. Three meals are served daily in hall apart from weekends, when only brunch is served. It is also used for college collections (internal college exams) and on occasion college 'bops' (costume parties).
thumb|The Tim Gardam Building
The original college library in Hartland House now houses the law, arts, and humanities collections (Dewey Decimal shelfmarks 340–349 and 700–999).
The new library and academic centre was named after Tim Gardam (principal 2004–2016) and completed in 2016. It is on the site of the former Founders' Gatehouse, which was built in 1966 and was the college lodge until 2005. It covers the area previously taken by the 54 Woodstock Road cottage. The centre provides various study and seminar spaces and 1,500 metres of bookshelves for the college's growing book collection. The plans by Fletcher Priest Architects were inspired by Oxford's historic buildings.
The Tim Gardam Building also features two gardens; a roof garden overlooking the dining hall, and a sunken courtyard accessible through the basement.
Traditions
The college has relatively few traditions and is rare amongst Oxford colleges in not having a chapel, due to its secular outlook. Formal hall is typically held fortnightly. Gowns are not usually worn except for official university occasions such as matriculation and certain college feasts. The college mascot has been a beaver since 1913.
College grace
The college grace was composed by former classics tutor and founding fellow Margaret Hubbard. It involves the Principal reciting the Latin words Quas decet, (Deo) gratias agamus. Amen. ("For what we have received, we give thanks (to God). Amen.") The inclusion of Deo (to God) depends on whether the grace is religious or secular in nature.
Room ballot
The college selects accommodation using a room ballot, with the exception of the first years. Those entering their fourth year select their rooms on the first day, followed by third-year rooms on the second day, and second-year rooms on the third and final day. Students are allocated a number within their year denoting their position in the ballot. In first year, this allocation is based on the quality of their previous year's accommodation. In second year, the JCR President, VP and Domestic Affairs Officer pull student numbers from a hat. Students would queue and rooms are allocated one by one. Rooms allocated are crossed off a large board listing all available rooms. Following the Covid-19 pandemic, the room ballot now occurs online, with a spreadsheet denoting available rooms shared with students. There is then a period of one week after the ballot where students can mutually agree on swaps. Unlike many colleges, JCR and MCR committee members receive no advantage in the room ballot for their position.
Sport and societies
thumb|St Anne's boathouse (centre) on [[The Isis, shared with St Hugh's College and Wadham College]]
The college has teams for all major sports and competes in inter-collegiate "Cuppers" tournaments. Fixtures are either played in the neighbouring University Parks, or in the college playing fields on Woodstock Road.
St Anne's College Boat Club (SABC) organises the college's involvement in inter-college rowing events, and the college boathouse, situated on the River Isis in Christ Church Meadow is shared with St Hugh's and Wadham colleges. The college has a joint rugby team with St John's College, which won Cuppers in 2014. The women's football team, which is also joint with St John's, was victorious in Cuppers in 2020. Meanwhile, the St Anne's men's football team (known as the Mint Green Army) won the Hassan's Cup plate tournament in 2018.
Notable people
Former members
<gallery class="center">
File:Amanda Pritchard.gif|Amanda Pritchard, first woman Chief Executive of NHS England
File:Danny alexander hi.jpg|Sir Danny Alexander, former Chief Secretary to the Treasury
File:Tina Brown at FT Spring Party crop.jpg|Tina Brown, editor of The Daily Beast and ex-editor of Vanity Fair and The New Yorker
File:HF-purple-with-chair.jpg|Helen Fielding, creator of Bridget Jones
File:Mr Hudson at Lovebox Weekender 2009 crop.jpg|Mr Hudson, rapper and R&B artist
File:Penelope Lively.JPG|Penelope Lively, winner of the Booker Prize and Carnegie Medal
File:Rattle BPH-Rittershaus2- Wikipedia.jpg|Sir Simon Rattle, principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic
File:Martha Kearney 2014.jpg|Martha Kearney, journalist and broadcaster
File:National Poverty Hearing Polly Toynbee.jpg|Polly Toynbee, journalist and writer
</gallery>
As a former women's college, St Anne's still refers to former students, female or male, as alumnae