In a significant boost to Oxford’s thriving life sciences sector, planning approval was recently granted by Oxford City Council for Railpen’s extensive transformation of an existing business park into a leading-edge life sciences campus.
With high demand for specialised life sciences facilities in Oxford, the Scott Brownrigg-designed Eastpoint Science Park will offer 200,000 sq ft of premium flexible space just two miles southeast of Oxford’s city centre and close to both Oxford Business Park and Oxford Science Park. Arranged across three new four-story laboratory buildings and a single-story amenity building, the development will incorporate a flexible mix of 55% CL2 laboratory space and 45% office space to support advanced research and collaboration.
Community integration is high on the agenda, and the scheme includes a revitalised public realm with pedestrian-friendly pathways, and active ground-floor spaces, along with a range of amenities. Key features include a ‘Learning Lab’ where local students can access state-of-the-art STEM facilities and interact with industry professionals. A publicly accessible café, social hub, and green spaces will also help create a vibrant community centre.
Commenting on the scheme in a recent statement, Richard Van Lente, Senior Asset Manager at Railpen, said: “There is strong demand for state-of-the-art laboratories in Oxford, which our plans for Eastpoint will help to address. More than that, however, they will make a significant contribution to the STEM sector in the city, facilitating meaningful interaction between research, commerce, education and the community. We believe this approach will further increase the appeal of the space among leading national and international research companies, which in turn will deliver enhanced long-term returns for our members and a lasting legacy for Oxford.”
Waterman has been involved with Eastpoint Science Park from the outset, seeing us provide multidisciplinary support. Our structural specialists developed a design solution which delivers optimum floor-to-ceiling heights, whilst maximising the flexibility of floorplates to accommodate multiple tenancies. With a strong focus on sustainable design methods and specifications, the specific vibration and load-bearing requirements of life sciences tenants and their specialist equipment have been incorporated across each of the buildings. In addition, our environmental team delivered a wide range of specialist designs and reports for Eastpoint, including civil engineering, flood risk, acoustics, ecology, air quality and arboriculture, whilst our sustainability experts conducted the pre-demolition audit.
With sustainability central to the design, BREEAM ‘Outstanding’ has been targeted, in addition to WELL, Wired, Smart, and Cycle Score ‘Platinum’ ratings. Taking a fabric-first approach, the scheme will incorporate renewable energy systems, whilst external biodiverse balconies and roofscapes will provide a welcome refuge for local wildlife.
Waterman’s Director for Structures, Huseyin Hussein, said: “I’m thrilled to see the exciting plans for Eastpoint Science Park given the green light. With sustained demand for life sciences laboratory and R&D space in Oxford, Eastpoint offers premium facilities designed specifically for this purpose from the ground up, whilst also facilitating the re-calibration of internal spaces to suit tenant growth and changing requirements. It was a real pleasure working with Railpen, Scott Brownrigg and the design team on this scheme, and I look forward to continuing this as we move on to the next project phase.”
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Images courtesy of Scott Brownrigg
