Four plans for new labs in Oxford go before councillors on Wednesday – all with recommendations for approval.

Oxford City Council’s planning committee will consider plans totalling almost 50,000 sq m of labs and offices at its May 20 meeting.

The first two applications, both put forward by British Land, involve redevelopment of retail units at Botley Road Retail Park, all owned by the applicant.

The first, (pictured above) involves a 1.12-hectare site comprising Units 1 and 1A, a retail building currently used by Currys and Tapi Carpets. The existing 3,678 sq m warehouse plus a 242 space car park, will be replaced by two buildings totalling  21,470 sq m.

The scheme proposes one building of ground plus three floors and another of ground plus four and a plant level. It is intended there will be ground floor amenity space run by a community-based organisation and open to the public.

In a separate application British Land has applied to replace Units 2 – 5 with another laboratory scheme of 8,710 sq m (pictured above). The proposed scheme has ground plus three floors and a plant level.

Current occupiers of the 2,913 sq m of existing space are Pets at Home, Wren Kitchens, Bensons for Beds, and Screwfix across 0.41 hectares.

Those sites sit alongside two Mission Street schemes in which lab space is replacing warehouses at Botley Road Retail Park. And demand is proving to be high.

Already completed is Inventa, a 6,000 sq m R&D space, about to welcome its third tenant (yet to be disclosed) alongside Nucleome and Xyme. Just three ground floor lab suites and one office remain to be let.

And demolition and site preparation has now been completed for 17,200 sq m Fabrica. Main contractor Bowmer + Kirkland will start construction imminently and that work is expected to complete in late 2026 or early 2027.

A third proposal at Tuesday’s meeting is to develop Plot 27 at The Oxford Science Park for a 9,306 sq m laboratory building over five floors (pictured above).

All three applications seek full planning permission.

And in a fourth application Oxford University is seeking reserved matters permission for a building of three floors and a basement, totalling 9,731 sq m at its Old Road Campus in Roosevelt Drive, Headington (pictured above).

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