The new campus for the Ellison Institute of Technology in Oxford incorporates more than 30,000m2 of research laboratory space, as well as educational and meeting spaces to support EIT’s primary mission of solving four of humanity’s most challenging and enduring problems. The sustainable development returns nature to the site and is targeting BREEAM Outstanding and WELL Platinum accreditation.
Littlemore House
A number of existing buildings, including the historic Littlemore House, are being restored and connected to new pavilions along the eastern edge of the site. The new additions create a C-shaped configuration with a green courtyard at its heart. The courtyard is a landscaped outdoor area - with a circular water feature and seasonal planting - for patients, scientists, researchers and clinicians to enjoy together. Spaces between the buildings visually connect the courtyard with the surrounding streets, while sculptural fins on the façades of the new buildings provide shading, climate control and privacy.
The functional spaces are arranged in a nonlinear way, to encourage chance encounters and collaboration between disciplines. Littlemore House has been restored and transformed into a single volume space, containing a library and study area that can also be adapted for informal meetings and events. Flexible laboratories can be adapted easily to meet the Institute’s changing needs over time.
A sunken 250-seat auditorium, located beneath the courtyard, serves as a central meeting space for lectures and large-scale events. Light filters through the water feature above and dances on the walls of the auditorium.
Oxford Science Park
A new building with additional laboratories and educational spaces is located on the Oxford Science Park plot, one of Europe’s leading science parks. The building is lifted up on stilts - due to the adjacent Littlemore Brook - allowing landscaping and fresh air to flow directly underneath it. A wooden geodesic dome, with rotating solar shading, provides another striking forum for events, lectures and collaborative endeavours at the top of the building.
Purpose-built laboratories, including those for generative biology, plant sciences, robotics, and AI, as well as other dynamic spaces for research and education, are located on western part of the Oxford Science Park site. Taking cues from the city’s historic colleges, the new laboratory buildings overlook two green quads that connect researchers directly with nature. A cohesive material palette ties together the different buildings across the campus masterplan.
