OX Place and Oxford City Council success at Oxford Preservation Trust awards

The council’s housing company was a three-time winner in the New Buildings category. Its development of 43 new homes at The Oval and Ashurst Way in Rose Hill was one of three Plaque winners, with new homes at Cumberlege Close and Edgecombe Road each picking up a certifcate.

The OPT Awards seek to recognise the contribution that projects, large and small, can make to Oxford’s character and communities. OX Place’s three winners come from a field of 54 entries in six different categories.

Affordable and sustainable

The OPT awards bear testament to OX Place’s commitment to high quality design and making a positive contribution to the public realm with affordable low carbon homes.

The three developments include 34 affordable council homes. All but three of these have been let at social rent, which is typically around 40% of an equivalent private rent. The council’s tenancy strategy bases affordable rent on local housing allowance (LHA) levels, and the remaining three council homes have been let at less than two thirds of market rents.

The other 25 homes are shared ownership, which helps people onto the property ladder by buying a share in a home they wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford to buy on the open market.

OX Place’s ‘fabric first’ approach mean all its developments feature enhanced insulation and air tightness standards as a minimum. Together with additional features like solar panels, this means OX Place homes are highly energy efficient and go beyond government carbon reduction targets.

OX Place is aiming for net zero carbon for new developments by the end of this decade.

Comment

“OX Place is committed to building high quality, affordable, low carbon homes, and I’m thrilled that OPT recognised this with three awards. Not one, not two, but three!

”Success has many parents, and our OPT awards wouldn’t have been possible without collaborative working with architects, contractors and many colleagues from Oxford City Council. Thank you all.”

Helen Horne, Managing Director of OX Place

“It’s great to see OX Place getting much deserved recognition for some outstanding projects at the OPT Awards. OX Place is leading the way in providing affordable low carbon homes in Oxford, and these awards bear witness to the team’s hard work in delivering homes fit for our city’s future. Congratulations!”

Councillor Alex Hollingsworth, Cabinet Member for Planning and Housing Delivery

Rose Hill

OX Place’s biggest development to date saw the construction of 43 new homes in Rose Hill and was completed in August 2021.

The 43 homes are in a mix of one-bed and two-bed flats on two previously developed sites. Each is made up of two blocks, with 18 council homes on the site of the old scout hut and advice centre and 25 shared ownership homes where the 1950s community centre once stood.

The use of solar panels means that the new homes go 62% beyond carbon reduction requirements in 2013 building regulations.

As part of Project LEO, OX Place and the Low Carbon Hub are also working in partnership to trial a groundbreaking Solar Saver energy offer using electricity generated by the solar panels.

All 43 homes were built to the Lifetime Homes standard, which means they are fully adaptable to cope with people’s changing needs throughout their lives.

The new homes were designed by Levitt Bernstein Architects and built by Feltham Construction. The development was supported with £1,615,000 in funding from the Oxfordshire Housing and Growth Deal.

Cumberlege Place

This development of nine council houses was completed in October 2021.

Built on a previously developed site once used for sheltered housing, the new homes are in three stepped blocks. Gable ends, pitched roofs and construction in buff brick and grey tiling provide a modern take on nearby homes while remaining sympathetic to the overall character of the area.

The use of solar panels on four of the houses mean that Cumberlege Close goes 19% beyond carbon reduction requirements in 2013 building regulations.

To encourage biodiversity the development includes bat and bird boxes, as well as bee bricks in outside walls of the houses. Bee bricks provide nesting spaces for solitary bees to lay their eggs.

Cumberlege Close was designed by Levitt Bernstein Architects and built by Feltham Construction. The development was supported with £495,000 in funding from the Oxfordshire Housing and Growth Deal.

Edgecombe Road

OX Place completed this development of seven council homes in November 2021.

Edgecombe Road includes one four-bed, two three-bed and four two-bed houses. They were built on the former site of the Royal British Legion Club, which was demolished in September 2020 after lying derelict for more than four years. A poppy motif was incorporated into the brickwork to commemorate the site’s heritage.

The use of solar panels means that Edgecombe Road goes 57% beyond carbon reduction requirements in 2013 building regulations.

The development includes two covered areas for storing up to 17 bicycles. Bird boxes were also installed for swifts.

Edgecombe Road was designed by Levitt Bernstein Architects and built by Rigg Construction (Southern) Ltd. The development was supported with £340,000 in funding from the Oxfordshire Housing and Growth Deal.