Three giant lab buildings approved at £700m Oxford R&D district

The three projects will be built as phase 2 of the £700m Oxford North life sciences innovation district being developed in joint venture by Thomas White Oxford, the development company of St John’s College, with Cadillac Fairview and Stanhope.

Plans for the 64-acre Oxford North scheme being advanced by St John College’s development company JV

The full Oxford North scheme will ultimately deliver one million sq ft of laboratory and workspaces, 480 new homes, hotel, nursery, cafes, bars, three public parks and infrastructure.

All three buildings planned for phase 2 will target BREEAM Excellent certification and have 100% electric heating and cooling, efficient lighting, high levels of fabric performance and optimised ventilation to incorporate heat recovery and solar PV technology.

This will achieve a 40% reduction in carbon emissions compared with 2021 Building Regulations.

May 2024 start plan for Fletcher Priest plot 2a building

Plot A has been designed by Fletcher Priest Architects, the project’s masterplanners, and is a flexible, four-floor laboratory and office building with dual frontage to the A40 and central landscaping which will total 117,300 sq ft.

Wilkinson Eyre designed laboratory/HQ

Plot B has been designed by Wilkinson Eyre and is a five-floor global HQ laboratory and office building and will have its frontage on the A40. The building will total 177,900 sq ft.

Plot C has been designed by Gort Scott and is a five-storey global HQ laboratory and office building, which will sit inside the central area and opposite the Red Hall and market square. It will total 162,900 sq ft.

Acting on behalf of Oxford North Ventures are Fletcher Priest Architects, WilkinsonEyre, Gort Scott, AKT II, Hoare Lea, Gustafson Porter and Bowman, Alinea Consulting, Stantec, Savills, PFB, Reef Associates, People Friendly Design, BSG Ecology, and EDP.

Work on the phase one Red Hall scheme started construction this summer

Laing O’Rourke is presently on site delivering phase 1a of the project, with target practical completion in Q1 2025.

This consists of the Red Hall project, which will deliver 43,500 sq ft of co-working spaces, meeting and workspaces for science and innovation starts-ups and Building 1 and 2 lab buildings which will total 115,000 sq ft.