The High Street Project
All Souls College is restoring and redeveloping the buildings at 10–15 High Street, between the College and Oxford’s Covered Market.
The project will bring a group of historic buildings back into fuller use, creating new academic and meeting spaces for the College while improving the shopfronts and passageways at street level. It is the College’s most significant building project since the construction of the buildings around the Great Quad, including the Hawksmoor Towers in the early 18th Century.
What is happening?
The project involves the careful repair, restoration and adaptation of buildings that have developed on this part of the High Street over many centuries.
The upper floors will provide Fellows’ studies, seminar rooms, staff offices and a rooftop garden. One of the seminar spaces will be a lecture theatre seating around 100 people, allowing the College to host larger academic events and discussions.
At street level, the historic High Street frontages will be restored, with new shopfronts designed to complement their surroundings. The passageways linking the High Street with the Covered Market will also be improved through better lighting, signage and finishes.
Throughout the project, historic features of the buildings are being retained and revealed wherever possible, including early stonework, roof timbers and historic ceilings. The completed buildings will also be fully accessible.
A sustainable approach
Reusing and improving the existing buildings is central to the project.
The design takes a ‘fabric first’ approach, improving insulation, airtightness and glazing while introducing more efficient building services. Air-source heat pumps and solar panels will provide renewable energy, and low-carbon and renewable materials are being prioritised where possible.
The rooftop garden will provide outdoor space as well as supporting biodiversity through climate-resilient planting and integrated habitats for birds and bats.
Why is the College doing this?
All Souls has grown considerably within buildings that were largely designed for the needs of earlier centuries. Space within the College’s historic main site is now limited, while the number of Fellows and Visiting Fellows has increased and there is growing demand for study rooms, seminars, meetings and public-facing academic activity.
The acquisition of 10–15 High Street offered an unique opportunity to create additional space close to the College while giving a new purpose to an important group of historic buildings.
The project combines the needs of a contemporary research community with the long-term care of a significant part of Oxford’s historic centre.
The project has four main aims:
- Supporting research and academic life by creating modern, flexible and accessible spaces for Fellows, visitors, staff, seminars and events
- Caring for Oxford’s heritage by repairing and conserving historic buildings and restoring the character of their High Street frontages.
- Contributing to the city centre by improving the buildings, shopfronts and connections between the High Street and the Covered Market.
- Reducing environmental impact through a low-energy retrofit that improves the performance of the existing buildings rather than replacing them.
When is it happening?
As with any complex project involving historic buildings, the programme may change as work progresses.
The College has appointed Kingerlee Ltd to deliver the project, along with the support of the Project Team.
We will publish significant project milestones and any updates affecting the surrounding area through the College’s News pages. The current key milestones for the project can be seen below.
The project is taking place in one of the most historically significant and heavily used parts of central Oxford. The College and project team are therefore working closely with Oxford City Council, the Covered Market, neighbouring businesses and residents, and heritage organisations throughout the development.
Our aim is to ensure that the project not only provides the College with the space it needs for the future, but makes a positive and lasting contribution to the High Street and the wider city centre.
Key Milestones
The Project Team
- Ridge and Partners - Project Managers, Contract Administrators, BRPD
- Wright & Wright Architects - Lead Architects
- Gardiner & Theobald - Cost Consultants
- Max Fordham - MEP, Sustainability
- engineersHRW - Structures and Civils
- Carter Jonas - Planning Consultants
- Donald Insall Architects - Heritage Consultants
- Oxford Archaeology - Archaeological Consultants
- Sidleys - Party Wall Surveyors
- Cluttons - Property Managers