Annual Business Plan 2025 to 2026

The Council Strategy 2024 to 2028 explains the Council's goals to make Oxford a sustainable and welcoming place for everyone. It focuses on helping people, communities, and different groups feel safe and supported.

Our Business Plan 2025 to 2026 is a yearly document that outlines the Council's main projects and activities for the year.

Priority 1: Good, affordable homes

We will improve existing housing and increase the number of new homes of all tenure types, especially affordable housing with priority given to homes for social rent, and work to prevent homelessness and reduce rough sleeping in the city.

1. Delivering more affordable homes
2. Preventing and tackling homelessness
3. Good quality homes for all

Year 2 actions - 2025 to 2026

1. Deliver a pipeline of new affordable homes and acquisitions over the next five years, to be owned and managed by the Council. (Linked with Priority 2 Action 4).
2. Work with Housing Associations to increase the number of new affordable homes in Oxford, and work with neighbouring Districts to ensure Oxford residents access new housing developments across Oxfordshire. (Linked with Priority 2 Action 4).
3. Continue to meet the challenges of increasing homelessness and temporary accommodation use through:
   1. Working upstream to prevent homelessness whenever possible, including using the new opportunity of the Renter Rights Bill due to be enacted in 2025.
   2. Bringing forward more temporary accommodation and move-on accommodation, including delivering new units owned by the Council and with our Housing Association partners.
   3. Reviewing our approach to housing allocations, consulting on a new Allocations Policy 
4. Bring down rough sleeping numbers, by progressing the Countywide Rough Sleeping and Single Homelessness Strategy with partners, including the transformation of the Homelessness Alliance, through decommissioning supported accommodation units that do not fit into our new model, while increasing the accommodation available for Housing First and Housing-Led provision. 
5. Deliver our improvement plans to ensure compliance with the Social Housing Act and Consumer Standards to improve services for council tenants and leaseholders including the delivery of the Asset Management Strategy and 5-year capital investment programme in our housing stock.
6. Launch and deliver the reset of tenant engagement work, to include the development of formal governance structure and a new Tenant Engagement strategy.
7. Undertake work and consultation on the new Local Plan 2042 to help ensure the delivery of the additional homes Oxford needs.
8. Ensure the continued improvement of the private rented stock in the city by delivering the renewal of the Additional Licensing Scheme in 2025/26 and Selective Licensing scheme in 2026/27, including public consultation for both schemes in 2025/2026.

Priority 2: Strong, fair economy

We will support economic growth, including significant new business and housing developments that provide good quality jobs for people in Oxford.

1. Secure, fairly paid, local jobs for Oxford’s residents and access to skills and reskilling training
2. Using Oxford’s unique strengths in a global economy to attract high quality investment
3.  Supporting development to boost economic activity and deliver benefits for all

Year 2 actions - 2025 to 2026

1. Continue to progress regeneration schemes in key areas of the city to support local economic development, including Oxpens, Blackbird Leys, 38-40 George Street, Templar's Square and East Oxford Community Centre.
2. Work with developers of large-scale regeneration projects, key employers and education stakeholders to develop an employment and skills framework, which aims to coordinate promotion of opportunities and delivery of skills across the city. Ensure the benefits of the growth are accessible to local people, through Community Employment and Procurement Plans, more apprenticeships and local job opportunities.
3. Progress work to secure Cowley Branch Line delivery stage funding, using the completed business case, local match funding.
4. Work with Government and key stakeholders as part of the new Oxford Growth Commission to unlock issues fettering growth and investment in Oxford, including the need to address sewage treatment and energy infrastructure issues. (Linked with Priority 1 Actions 1 and 2)
5. Explore the creation of an Accommodation Business Improvement District (ABID), facilitating conversations with key stakeholders as part of focused task groups. The establishment of the ABID is contingent on the decision of the levy payers, and not the Council.
6. Develop and roll out a programme of locality-based support to businesses in Oxford outside of the city centre.

Priority 3: Thriving Communities

We will work to improve health, wellbeing, skills and employment opportunities and reduce inequality in our city.

1. Working in partnership with communities, organisations, and agencies to reduce inequalities and create thriving communities
2. Championing diversity and inclusion in our own work and community partnerships
3. Helping people live healthily by providing services, support, and facilities to prevent and manage physical and mental health conditions

Year 2 actions - 2025 to 2026

1. Create local action plans targeting areas of deprivation and strengthen partnerships to address inequalities. Help to design development projects to promote healthy lifestyles and provide access to arts and culture, enhancing community wellbeing.
2. Review our approach to Oxford’s Community Centres and other community shared spaces:
   1. To understand their wide-ranging benefits and help decide their overall value to the community
   2. Work with partners to maximise the advantages of co-locating services, ensuring better resource utilisation and easier access for the community 
3. Develop and implement a new Anti-Social Behaviour policy to help maintain a safe and respectful environment for citizens and tenants, in line with the Council's responsibilities under the Social Housing Act 2023.
4. Continue to invest in the Council’s leisure and community assets to meet community needs:
   1. Deliver the Leisure Investment Programme in partnership with More Leisure
   2. Deliver the Youth Hub at Leys Pool and Leisure Centre
   3. Complete and open the refurbished East Oxford Community Centre
   4. Deliver the new Blackbird Leys Community Centre
   5. Review the operating model for the Museum of Oxford 
5. Continue to work in partnership to maximise wider resources to increase wellbeing, boost involvement and increase the independence of community groups:
   1. Support programmes to tackle health inequalities
   2. Review how the Council awards grants including assessment process and criteria allocation policy
   3. Assess the feasibility of setting up a cross-sector Cultural Compact for Oxfordshire to share costs and lever in more private sector funding 
6. Create a new more commercial Events Strategy, and work with partners to develop, support and manage more and larger events. Review and improve the Council’s event processes and promote event spaces.

Priority 4: Zero Carbon Oxford

We will prioritise climate change goals to cut carbon emissions from buildings, and develop low carbon infrastructure and support households, businesses and institutions to save energy and cut emissions

1. Decarbonising homes and other buildings and securing the additional funding required to meet the 2030 and 2040 targets
2. Maintain and improve parks, green spaces, biodiversity and access to nature
3. Develop low carbon infrastructure and support households, businesses and institutions to save energy and cut emissions.

Year 2 actions - 2025 to 2026

1. Continue to build learning to successfully bid for and deliver funding to achieve the Council’s energy efficiency target for its housing stock of 95% EPC C by 2030, and EPC B across the Council’s non-housing assets.
2. Continue to provide targeted support for communities in fuel poverty and deprivation.
   1. Support residents via retrofit campaigns with access to Warm Home and other available grants.
   2. Work with County and neighbouring Districts on a joined-up approach to deliver joint retrofit work streams.
   3. Prepare for the Government new Community Energy Funding programme to maximise benefits to deprived communities 
3. Work with consultants to deliver a Local Area Energy plan for Oxfordshire and start to shape more detailed plans for the city. Continue to use the Council’s convening role to speed up the delivery of extra grid capacity for Oxford.
4. Lead a citywide collaboration to further develop options and opportunities for a heat network for key areas of Oxford.    
5. Deliver expansion of Zero Carbon Oxfordshire to form a successful countywide climate action partnership to help achieve a net zero Oxfordshire by 2050. Commission an updated 2040 Net Zero Road map and Action Plan for the city of Oxford.
6. Use findings from the review of 2030 Council-wide Net Zero targets to determine ongoing prioritisation of decarbonisation workstreams, including fleet.

Priority 5: Well run council

We will be more efficient with our resources by offering better digital services, prioritising our activities and balancing spending with income growth.

1. Be easy, engaging and efficient to deal with
2. Support citizens through value of money services
3. Maintain good, accountable governance
4. Recruit and retain a motivated and diverse workforce that reflects the city it serves.

Year 2 actions - 2025 to2026

1. Enhance our compliance culture by focusing on improving practices such as Health and Safety, Safeguarding, and Risk Management to ensure a safer and more secure environment for everyone involved.
2. Prioritise our activities and balance spending with income growth to continue to build financial resilience. Identify additional efficiencies and income streams, including financial returns generated from our two wholly-owned companies Oxford Direct Services and OX Place, and other local limited partnerships.
3. Deliver the Council’s People Programme to ensure diverse and accessible recruitment, developing internal skills, supporting career progression, strengthening succession planning and ensuring our workforce represents our communities.
4. Review how Oxford Direct Services is being commissioned and managed and develop a clear plan to improve these processes. This will help ensure that services are delivered more effectively and better meet the needs of the community.
5. Continue to invest in ICT equipment, AI, connectivity and staff training to boost productivity, improve services, cut costs, and engage with our citizens more. This will help foster innovation and adaptability, making services more efficient, transparent, and responsive.
6. Work with our communities to provide early prevention support:
   1. Improve how we use our main contact channels with our citizens to manage demand better,
   2. Offer more self-service options
   3. Ensure a consistent and inclusive experience for everyon 
7. Work with ODS, neighbouring Districts and County to develop potential business case options for joint waste operations to deliver significant operational efficiencies.
8. Work with Oxfordshire and other Thames Valley councils to develop and implement proposals for devolution and local government reorganisation that provide the best possible outcome for Oxford’s residents, businesses and communities.