We’re pleased to announce that we have submitted the Planning and Listed Building Consent Application for St Catherine’s College, to address the use of RAAC in several of its Grade I listed buildings. All of the 8,074msq roof roof area of these buildings is made up of some 5,333 RAAC panels .
The application, which was developed after an extensive pre-application process with Oxford City Council, Historic England, Twentieth Century Society and the Historic Parks and Gardens Trust, proposes the replacement of the affected roof structures to ensure the longevity of the College site by mitigating harm and preserving its iconic Jacobsen design.
Since September 2023, the College has restricted access to various areas within the College due to the presence of Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC) in the College’s roof structures, principally the original Arne Jacobsen site. This included the Kitchen, Dining Hall, JCR, SCR, Administration Block, Wolfson Library, the Bernard Sunley Building and the top floor of the Accommodation Blocks Staircases 1 to 16.
The proposed remediation plan would begin with the Kitchen, JCR, SCR, and Dining Hall, followed by the Bernard Sunley Building and Library, all forming the initial phase of the project, with works scheduled to commence in August 2024, subject to listed building consent and planning permission. A second application will follow to address remediation of the accommodation blocks.
We’re proud to be working on this project and collaborating with the College, AtkinsRéalis, Oxford Architects, Colvin & Mogridge, Ingleton Wood, AKS Ward, Bentley Consulting, MKA Ecology, Tree Frontiers, Beard Construction, Pendery Architecture & Heritage, Oxford City Council, Historic England, Twentieth Century Society, the Historic Parks and Gardens Trust and St Catherine’s College Governing Body. We wouldn’t have achieved the timescales required without the contribution of all of those involved in the project.
Finance Bursar, Professor Byron Byrne, commented:
“Removing and replacing the entire roof from a Grade I Listed Building is a huge challenge, but the robust interrogation and hard work of all teams involved ensures that we have found an optimal solution to address the problem of RAAC at St Catherine’s College. We as a College are grateful to our partners in this project and look forward to restoring the historic Jacobsen Campus to full operations over the coming year.”
For more information on the RAAC remediation project, including the Design and Access Statement and the Heritage Statement, view the RAAC at St Catherine’s College page.
If you’re looking for heritage and planning expertise to support your project, we can help. Get in touch with our team on 01865 731700 or email enquiries@edgarslimited.co.uk.