Easter closure 2024; everything you need to know

As we head towards the end of the term and many of us take a break away from UCL, please do ensure that you and your teams are prepared to close and switch off safely and sustainably by Wednesday 27 March.

On this page: 

• Join UCL’s Easter Switch Off campaign
• Guidance on closing laboratories and making constantly running equipment safe. 
• Out of hours work: stay in touch, stay safe.
• Library Easter opening hours. 
• Support for students over the spring break.
• Support for staff over the spring break. 
• Cafes and refectories. 

Join UCL’s Easter Switch Off campaign

UCL spends an astonishing £3,000 per hour overnight on our overall electricity use. Sustainable UCL and the Estates team are working hard centrally to reduce our energy, but all of our personal actions can make a difference too! The Christmas Switch Off Campaign saved UCL £144,194 and 100 tonnes of carbon – that’s equivalent to planting 1,667 trees. Join UCL’s Easter Switch Off campaign, for resources on what you can switch off across campus, and be in the chance of winning some egg-cellent prizes.

Guidance on closing laboratories and making constantly running equipment safe

The following procedures apply to the UCL's main sites, defined as all buildings except those of the postgraduate medical institutes and sites away from Central London. Before leaving for your break, Laboratory Superintendents and others where appropriate, unless otherwise instructed by the Head of Department should ensure that:

• all lights, heaters and computers are switched off in their department. 
• all gas and water taps are turned off and that hoses connecting apparatus to water taps are securely wired both to the water supply and to the apparatus. 
• the Security Office has received by 12pm (midday) on Monday 25 March a copy of a list of places, such as laboratories with constant operating equipment, where there is a possible danger from flooding or fire via securitysystems@ucl.ac.uk  
• the Security Office has received by 12pm (midday) on Monday 25 March written details via securitysystems@ucl.ac.uk of persons who can be contacted in cases of emergency (other than those already on the Control room database).

Take a look at our 'Leaving the Lab checklist' to make sure you've got everything covered! 

Out of hours work: stay in touch, stay safe

Staff are reminded of the need to take care when working during periods of closure and that any procedures which have been assessed as having a significant level of risk should not be carried out by persons working alone. We also ask you to consider the environmental impacts of running campus buildings for a very small number of occupants.  

If any members of staff are unsure of their personal access rights, they can clarify this by contacting Security Systems. You can also download SafeZone, the College's mobile app that allows all students and staff to alert, contact, and directly speak to the Security team in the event of an emergency. If you choose to use SafeZone you must use your UCL login and password when you register. This will connect you to the UCL SafeZone account. When you receive a temporary password to log in you can then change this to a password of your choice. SafeZone is available on the Apple App Store and Android's Play Store as well as other major app stores. SafeZone requires all permissions enabled on your phone to work fully. 

UCL Security would like to stress the importance for individuals to maintain internal security within their departments. Any incident which appears suspicious should be reported to the Security Control Room on the UCL Emergency Number (020 7679 2222, or extension 222 from an internal landline) or via SafeZone. If you need to report an incident at UCL East you can contact the security team via e-mail ucleast.security@ucl.ac.uk or call One Pool Street Reception: 020 8016 8500 and Marshgate Reception: 020 8016 7900. 

Library Easter opening hours  

You can still visit four libraries and access online resources during the Easter closure period. The Student Centre, Main Library, and Science Library will be open 24 hours a day for UCL students and staff. The Cruciform Hub will be open from 11am to 9pm (opening 1.30pm to 9pm on Saturday and Sunday) every day during the closure period. All other services will close by 5pm on Wednesday 25 March.

Please bookmark the Library opening hours webpage for more information and opening hours on all our library sites. 

Support for students over the spring break

There will be a full range of support services over the break inlcuding the wellbeing support line, same-day and pre-booked appointments for mental health, disability, and wellbeing, as well as the Flourish programme of events (see your hall for details). For full details on the range of services and how to access them, see the Spring Break 2024 student support and services page.

Support for staff over the spring break 

Confidential, 24/7 mental health support, as well as information on legal, financial, housing and family related issues, is available to all UCL staff via our Employee Assistance Programme: Staff Support Service. Support is available for both personal and work-related matters.

Cafes and refectories 

UCL’s cafes including the Lower Refectory will be closed for the duration of the break and resume normal opening hours from Thursday 4 April. The SU’s cafes will operate “out of term hours” which are 8am to 6pm Monday to Friday. This includes Gordon’s, George Farha, Print Room and Bloomsbury Cafes. 

• Food at UCL 

• Students’ Union UCL Cafes and Bars

Please note: 

All general access to campus during the closure period will be via the main Gower Street entrance on production of a UCL ID card. UCL East will run on weekend opening hours for the entire closure period. You can get more details about what's open and when at UCL East.

Thank you in advance for your help and co-operation in implementing these arrangements and we wish you all a happy and peaceful spring break.