Stansfeld Park development recommended for approval

Wednesday 8th February 2017

East Oxford Planning Committee has resolved to grant planning permission for the Oxford Trust’s Stansfeld Park development, subject to conditions and a legal agreement. It is expected that planning permission will be granted on Wednesday 15^th February 2017.

The Trust, which will invest over £11 million in the development, has exciting plans for the site, including:

• The Wood Centre for Innovation that will provide ~25,000 sq ft of much-needed innovation space in the city for entrepreneurs, start-up and grow-on companies working in the knowledge intensive areas of science and technology. It will capitalise on the site’s close proximity to the city’s fast-growing heath and data sciences quarter, centred around the University of Oxford’s Old Road Campus, clinical research facilities at local hospitals and Oxford Brookes University. The Oxford Trust has long-term expertise in innovation centres and will ‘twin’ the Stansfeld site with its existing central Oxford facility – The Oxford Centre for Innovation (OCFI.)
• The Science Oxford Education Centre which will be the UK’s first integrated indoor-outdoor science education centre dedicated to primary-aged children. Science Oxford is the arm of the Trust that focuses on education and public engagement. The knowledge and proven experience of our Science Oxford schools team, along with specialist content partners, will create, develop and deliver exciting curiosity based activities that combine both natural and physical sciences for children aged 4–12, their teachers and families.
• There will also be an on-site café and a flexible 100-seat theatre venue that is going to be a fantastic resource for the local area as well as for hosting business and public events for visitors and staff on-site.

The new centre sits in a neglected 18-acre mosaic of woodland, ponds and grassland, which will be rejuvenated to create a managed ‘urban wildspace’.
It will be used for a wide range of STEM learning experiences, providing a unique opportunity for young people to explore the natural world and learn what biodiversity is all about.

In addition, the woodland area will be open for the wider community to enjoy – although access is managed to ensure the preservation of the site’s ecology and educational remit. The Trust will work in partnership with environmental charity The Sylva Foundation to improve and manage the woodland. Sylva works across Britain advising on urban forest management, to ensure they thrive for people and for nature.

Steve Burgess, CEO of The Oxford Trust, said: “This is encouraging news and we look forward to receiving the go ahead for Stansfeld Park in due course.”
For further information please contact 
Jude Eades
The Oxford Trust
01865 810013 or 07784 584609
[email protected]