Work has begun in a three-phase, £3m project renovation project on Nuffield College, a graduate college of Oxford University
Beard Construction will deliver significant remodelling across Nuffield College, in a widesweeping renovation that has commenced with new accessibility improvements across multiple locations.
The Grade II listed building is a graduate college of Oxford University
As Nuffield College will remain live throughout building works, the renovation project has been split into 15 mini-phases to ensure access is maintained.
Beard’s team have set out partitions, walkways and fences, as well as a full-time traffic marshal.
Phase two will relocate the main entrance, moving the porter’s lodge to Worcester Street entrance to the College and equipping it with more modern and accessible facilities.
Phase three will transform the then-former lodge site into accessible meeting spaces, as well as a new 100-person lecture theatre.
Landscaping works will also improve ground floor access, with raised paving and ramped access between the quads.
The Nuffield College renovation works will require adaptive innovations
Beard will be retaining and reusing the old York stone paving slabs to reduce the loss of embodied energy.
The college’s arched entranceway will mean deliveries must be forklifted onto the site, while materials used for the landscaping will be transported using dumper trucks.
Dean Averies, Beard director for Oxford, said: “Beard has built a formidable reputation in the education sector and we’re incredibly proud of the longstanding partnership we have with Oxford University and its colleges. To be chosen once again to support the growth of one of the country’s finest educational institutions is certainly not lost on us.
“Working on any listed or heritage building presents its own challenges, especially when the building is still active and in regular use. However, we have plenty of experience in complex refurbishments in education and in live environments across Oxford and further afield. The college has clear ambitions to enhance its facilities – and we believe we have the skills and expertise to help make that a reality.”
