Oxford North launches ESG annual report and Social Value Charter for shaping a sustainable future
Oxford North, the new global innovation district in Oxford, has published its 2024 ESG annual report that has reviewed the progress made against its ESG strategy with an ambition to push beyond conventional practice to deliver a ‘net positive’ development and its Charter to ensure that the project, and its future companies based there, will continue to enhance the lives of individuals and achieve positive social outcomes.
The ESG report (environmental, social and governance) has highlighted significant developments by Oxford North Ventures, the joint venture company of Thomas White Oxford, the development company of St John’s College, Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and Stanhope.
These have included infrastructure installation, construction of the first phase buildings: The Red Hall and 1 & 2 Fallaize Street, the commencement of the new two-acre public park and market square, and extensive community engagement.
The report has detailed the incorporation of ESG goals into development practices and emphasised transparency in impact reporting. The project has aimed for a ‘net positive’ outcome across six key pillars which address environmental and social objectives, complete with specific targets and reporting standards.
The six pillars are: towards net zero, circular resources, ecosystem resilience, healthy places, connected communities, and opportunities and shared prosperity.
Highlights have included:
– 10% & 7% reduction in embodied carbon of The Red Hall and 1 & 2 Fallaize Street respectively from design to construction
– electric powered buildings and heated by ground source heat pumps and on-roof photovoltaics
– £10.5 million investment in active and public transport routes which has included 1.4 km of new cycle paths along the Witney and Woodstock Roads
– 100% construction waste diverted from landfill and 91% recycled or reused.
The social value data reported feeds into the whole masterplan which has included The Hill Group’s Canalside Quarter new homes development.
Across the whole masterplan, to date:
– more than 1,725 construction jobs have been created, of which 18% live in Oxfordshire
– 49 apprentices have started their careers at Oxford North
– 636 volunteering hours have been delivered.
The key priorities for 2025/6 have been identified as:
1. supporting occupiers’ transition into Oxford North and their new labs and offices in the most environmentally responsible way possible which will include helpful guidance on how to optimise the energy use of spaces and reduce waste during fit out
2. building a sense of community on-site and through its partnerships to create social value. This is through Oxford North’s Social Value Charter which provides a vision and action plan on how it will continue to support local communities and economies which will include Oxford North’s art, culture, social value and legacy programme
3. continuing to measure and monitor during operation, maintaining a high standard for data collection and transparency. This will be via its intelligent building management system to measure energy consumption which can be used to engage with occupiers on their usage and guide them to make improvements
4. taking learnings from Phase 1a design and construction to feed into future phases.
David Camp, chief executive officer, Stanhope said: “Our ambition is to push beyond conventional practice and to pursue a net positive development. We are creating a low carbon innovation district, following a net zero carbon pathway, employing circular design principles in construction and operation, while creating a climate-resilient and biodiverse district. Our ESG strategy clearly sets out how we work to achieve this and our 2024 annual report details what we have achieved so far and our focus for this year.
“Oxford North provides an amazing opportunity to help grow a community at the forefront of innovation in Oxford. The buildings, landscape and amenities have been carefully designed with sustainability at the core. We look forward to welcoming our occupiers and driving sustainability into operation.”
Simon Ruck, managing director, Oxford North added: “Oxford North is truly about people, shaped over the years by teamwork and meaningful partnerships. Working together is at the heart of our journey towards success measured by positive outcomes for people’s lives and society.
“This spirit of collaboration extends to our Social Value Charter. We know that the built environment has the power to shape our lives in profound ways. By working together as a community, we have a unique opportunity to deliver tangible social impact for our local community and beyond.
“Our Charter builds on the work already completed and provides the connecting link for our community, the project and delivery teams, occupiers and external stakeholders. It clearly defines what we mean by social value, provides targeted opportunities that respond to local need, and states what we need to do to ensure that Oxford North remains a vibrant place that delivers improved economic, social and wellbeing outcomes.”
Oxford North’s Phase 1a began construction in 2023 to form the first three buildings: The Red Hall with the ground floor to provide a cafe-bar, retail units, community space, and co-working spaces and four floors of workspace, along with two laboratory buildings to boost science and technology discovery. The Witney Road (A40) and Woodstock Road (A44) have been transformed to promote walking, cycling and bus use and a new street has been formed named Thomas White Street. The Hill Group’s first new homes on Canalside Quarter are under construction and have recently welcomed the first new residents.
Oxford North is due to open in autumn 2025.
View Oxford North’s ESG guide for occupiers which looks at what the new innovation district is to deliver and how it will benefit the community and companies that work on-site: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/o93ucvppivfgy9mn5o14q/NBT4057_ESG_Brochure_Digital_AW-rev.pdf?rlkey=jrm7igz73cq0vcqvwzgadmoat&dl=0
View Oxford North’s ESG annual report 2024: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/0az1mbi5rbb3mketid1u2/ON_Annual-Report_2024.pdf?rlkey=4h49oh9db6v5oeortg0pd8bka&dl=0
View Oxford North’s Social Value Charter: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/canx5bja2rgmbnxabcrl4/Oxford-North-Social-Value-Charter_Feb-2025.pdf?rlkey=wklpw53elvgi5b0u77q074kml&dl=0
View Oxford North’s ESG webpage: https://www.oxfordnorth.com/about/esg
For further information, please contact:
Olivia Lane-Nott
Spacecraft Consulting for Oxford North
olivia@spacecraftconsulting.com
07968 081 128
***High resolution images attached***:
1. Oxford North Phase 1a buildings with on-roof PVs
2. Oxford North Phase 1a buildings with on-roof PVs
3. Oxford North launches ESG Annual Report 2024 and Social Value Charter – view across Fallaize Park
4. Bucks Recycling – providing waste and recycling services to Oxford North
Notes to Editors
About Oxford North
Oxford North is a new £700 million global innovation district being built on 64 acres of land within Oxford city’s northern boundary.
The new place starts with people, their ideas and ambitions. It’s being built to celebrate and enable them, providing a place for people who want to make their mark on the world.
Oxford North will connect academia and commerce, invention and investment, providing a sustainable place to work, live, learn and socialise. Oxford North will be a thriving and vibrant new district with innovation and sustainability at its heart.
The project will deliver one million sq ft of new labs and workspaces including a new innovation centre, and 480 new homes. Around 4,500 people will work there alongside 1,500 residents and who, along with the local community and visitors, will enjoy amenities including a hotel, nursery, shops, bars and cafes, three public parks, and significant investment in travelling around sustainably.
The new district will be a unique home and workplace, for scientists, technologists and inventors, transforming lives and enhancing one of the world’s greatest cities.
Setting a new standard for placemaking, Oxford North will blend culture with low carbon innovation, sustainability with leisure, and open spaces with science.
It offers a new model for the future, supporting business, enabling discovery and, above all, improving lives, all in one place.
With access to wide open public spaces and public art throughout, Oxford North is configured to enhance wellbeing. The landscape is designed to enhance biodiversity across the newly-created public parks and facilitate access to nature for residents and visitors.
Woven into the new public parks are spaces for entertainment, events and exercise. Integral to the plans are areas for families and children to enjoy natural play while opening eyes and discovering the future.
The new two-acre public park, the equivalent size of Trafalgar Square in London, forms the central landscape and is to be named ‘Fallaize Park’ in honour of Professor Elizabeth Fallaize (1950 – 2009) who was St John’s College first female fellow and a pro-vice chancellor of the University of Oxford.
Oxford North will contribute circa £150 million per year in GVA to the economy.
About Oxford North Ventures GP LLP
Oxford North Ventures was established in March 2022 as the 50:50 commercial development joint venture company of Thomas White Oxford, the development company of St John’s College, with Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and Stanhope to deliver substantial investment into carbon-efficient laboratories and workspace, amenities, public space, power and utilities, in addition to the infrastructure improvements to the A40 and A44 alongside public funding support.
Find out more: www.oxfordnorth.com
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