Overview
Oxford City Council has redeveloped East Oxford Community Centre to create a sustainable, cultural hub for future generations.
The redevelopment of East Oxford Community Centre is part of Oxford City Council’s commitment to supporting thriving communities by investing in high-quality facilities for local use.
Delivered by ODS, the £5.9m redevelopment has transformed the original site into a modern, accessible space for residents and local organisations - while preserving the centre’s history.
The work included a full refurbishment of the original building - once an old school on the corner of Cowley Road and Princes Street - creating a new kitchen, upgraded toilets (including accessible Changing Places toilet and shower facilities), and four flexible community spaces, alongside essential refurbishments to preserve the heritage of the much-loved centre.
The redevelopment also saw the demolition of the former Chinese Community & Advice Centre and Fusion Arts buildings, replaced with a low-carbon, three-storey extension on the new centre which features a balcony, solar panels and heat pumps.
The new community centre was delivered by ODS and aims to provide a modern, accessible, purpose-built centre with a lower carbon footprint.
The project will also see OX Place, the council’s housing company, build 12 energy-efficient flats for social rent next door to the community centre. This will provide one- and two-bedroom council flats in a great location, with a hub of activities and community support on their doorstep.
Location
View location of East Oxford Community Centre in Google Maps.
Timeline
- The first public consultation on plans to redevelop East Oxford Community Centre took place in 2016
- The community centre's 'B block' was demolished in 2019 after a surveyor found it was no longer safe to use
- Planning permission for the redevelopment of East Oxford Community Centre was given in December 2020
- Demolition to clear the way for the new community centre started in May 2023 - Watch 'East Oxfordshire Community Centre Demolition Timelapse' on YouTube (30 seconds)
- Oxford City Council approved further investment in East Oxford Community Centre in June 2023
- Building work started on site in March 2024
- Completion of new roof in November 2024
- Construction completed on community centre redevelopment in November 2025
Community input to the project
Public consultation on the community centre
The redevelopment plans follow from a public consultation in 2016 which offered options to maintain the current centre or completely redevelop local community space. Complete redevelopment was the most widely supported option. Community groups were part of a project steering group with the council since 2016 to ensure their views were heard.
The council worked with community groups at the three local community sites since 2016. The Film Oxford (Catherine Street) site and East Oxford Games Hall (Collins Street) will be redeveloped for housing to help fund the project, and those community groups will move to the redeveloped East Oxford Community Centre.
There were two public consultations on the community centre designs in 2019. Download the East Oxford Community Centre site plans from 2019.
Community engagement event for housing redevelopment
An engagement event focused on the housing element of the redevelopment was held in 2020, before the pandemic. This is an integral part of the funding for the new community centre plans, and will enable us to build a multi-million pound centre for the next generations in East Oxford.
The first housing consultation event took place on Tuesday 25 February 2020 at East Oxford Community Centre. View the first draft of the housing plans for the Collins Street and Princes Street sites and the final plans for the community centre that were shown at the event.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why didn’t you just update the original facilities?
The original site was aging and some buildings had been condemned. The community was consulted on options in 2016, including the option of updating current buildings, and the complete redevelopment was the most widely supported option.
The redevelopment aims to create a more sustainable, flexible accessible, modern facility to meet community needs than could be achieved by updating the current buildings.
Why was the site redeveloped and not retrofitted?
The new build part of the centre includes solar panels and heat pumps to significantly cut overall carbon emissions compared to the community spaces that are currently used. This replaces a number of old buildings, at Princes St and other sites, which are very energy inefficient. Bringing them together on one site creates cost efficiencies, meaning we can provide better facilities and higher energy efficiency for the centre overall.
How was the project being financed?
This was a £5.9m redevelopment project. The funding for this significant investment came from the housing aspects of the project as well as core council funds. A mixture of social housing, affordable housing and market priced properties will be built across sites at Princes St, Catherine St and Collins Street.
What was the consultation process?
The community was consulted with on this project a number of times. We have held four public consultations, and worked closely with tenant organisations over several years. We formed a reference group with tenants and kept them updated on the project, including updates on designs, costs and facilities, and responded to their feedback through this group.
Who will manage the centre going forward?
The Cabinet agreed in 2021 agreed that the council would come forward with a management option within three years of the centre being open. It will take time for the new centre to settle into its role in the community, and we believe it would not be responsible to put this onto the community in this phase.
