Northbrook House and Windale House were originally built in the 1960s as sheltered accommodation and are two of the oldest schemes now used for over-60s housing.
We told residents in 2018 our long-term plans were to demolish both buildings and redevelop the sites for new council homes.
The condition of both buildings is deteriorating, including lifts and communal areas. While neither is yet at the end of its viable life, both blocks would require substantial and subsequent ongoing investment to prolong their current use.
The blocks do not meet modern design and accessibility standards. Some homes are bedsits which we have been phasing out across our housing as they are no longer popular housing options. It also means they are not big enough for a wet room and their doors are not wide enough to provide wheelchair access.
It would not be possible to bring Northbrook House and Windale House up to modern accessibility standards – including wheelchair access, bathroom design and adaptable kitchen layouts – without demolishing and rebuilding them.
The housing crisis
Northbrook House and Windale House are currently designated as housing for the over-60s, with areas like communal lounges built to 1960s requirements. In 2025, many people over the age of 60 don’t want to live in that type of communal setting and this is reflected in lower demand for this type of housing.
We have a number of blocks of flats for the over-60s and the waiting period is often just a few months. In contrast, most people wait years for general needs council housing and there is no guarantee of a council home however long you spend on the list.
In the last few years, the cost of living, record private rent rises and the delay in delivering a ‘no fault’ eviction ban first promised in 2019 have fuelled a sharp rise in homelessness in Oxford and across the country.
We are dealing with spiralling demand for temporary accommodation for people who become homeless in Oxford. In January alone, we provided temporary accommodation for a further 63 households. We have had to house more than 120 households in bed and breakfast or budget hotels as there is not enough temporary housing available.
There are more than 3,500 people on the housing register waiting for a settled home.
It would be better for us to invest our limited resources in meeting these urgent needs than in temporarily extending the life of both blocks in a piecemeal and increasingly expensive way.
Supporting people to move to a suitable new home
We met with tenants at both blocks on Monday 3 February to discuss our plans and address concerns about their future. While some people had understandable concerns about the upheaval this would mean, many residents took up our offer of one-to-one conversations about the support available to help them move.
We will support everyone to move in a responsible, planned way, ensuring their new home is suitable and meets their needs.
This means somewhere with the same or similar secure tenancy rights and is therefore likely to be a council or housing association home through our transfer list.
Two officers are providing onsite specialist support to help people move. Residents will be given high priority to bid for a new home of their choice and supported through every stage of the process.
All residents will receive a statutory Home Loss payment and we will provide extra financial and practical help with packing, moving and fitting out their new homes.
Where people need support with other options like extra care housing, we will arrange this.
What happens next?
We aim to help everybody move out of Northbrook House and Windale House by the end of April 2026.
When both blocks are empty – and not before – we will put them to meanwhile use as temporary accommodation while we make plans to redevelop the sites for new council homes.
Who gets housed in temporary accommodation?
We provide temporary accommodation to people who become homeless in Oxford – for example, because of a ‘no fault’ eviction from a private rented tenancy.
With very few exceptions, we can only offer temporary accommodation to people with a local connection. This usually means they must live in or have a recent history of living in Oxford, have a job here or close family in the city.
People in asylum hotels are the responsibility of the Home Office, which provides them with accommodation.
Oxford City Council is not legally allowed to provide asylum seekers with temporary accommodation or a council tenancy.
Northbrook House and Windale House will not be used by the Home Office.
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