CPW’s Passivhaus Transformation Will Bring Life Back To Forgotten Oxford Backstreet
Work has started on site to transform a dated Oxford backstreet dominated by aging garages unfit for modern city centre life into a characterful, highly energy efficient modern mews that will be home to 33 students at St John’s College Oxford.
CPW is delighted to be the Passivhaus Designer on the Pusey Lane project, striving to meet Passivhaus - Low Energy Building Standard, as well as delivering the MEP and Acoustic design services.
The new development will create 5 townhouses and 8 studio apartments with energy efficiency at their core. Designed to complement the heritage of the area, the 2 & 3 storey scaled building has been informed by daylight analysis and 3D modelling to maximise natural light without compromising user’s privacy.
Occupancy comfort is a key success criteria of the project, CPW has given particular attention to mitigating overheating – a common issue with highly insulated buildings. Passivhaus design must consider the overheating balance where solar gains combined with gains from internal activity must not exceed the heat losses from ventilation and the fabric. If gains are higher than expected and/or ventilation levels are lower, then the building could overheat. Photovoltaic panels will also provide the building with a low carbon, renewable energy source. The new student accommodation aims to improve upon CO₂ emissions targets by 40% over Building Regulations 2021, through fabric and building service efficiencies alone.
This Passivhaus project sits parallel to the transformation of 19-21 St John’s Street, three Georgian listed buildings that will be sensitively restored to provide a low energy performing building that maintains the character-defining features of the design.
Jonathan Pollard, Associate Director at CPW said: “The redevelopment of this historic area of Oxford is a major opportunity to showcase how listed and modern buildings can both achieve excellent energy performance, without impacting their heritage. The existing Pusey Lane site is dark, dated and unwelcoming, with the current draughty 1970s flats proving difficult to keep warm and expensive to do so. Rebuilding to Passivhaus standard will ensure the students living here have a comfortable temperature all year round, with great air quality coupled with low operational carbon and energy costs.
“At CPW, we have a wealth of experience when it comes to Passivhaus buildings. We truly believe that passive design is the key to tackling the environmental impact of the built environment. Our vast experience covers a range of building types, from residential to educational. In Oxford, we’re pleased to also currently be working on the Global Health Building for the University of Oxford, a 4,700m² building which will accommodate around 400 members of staff with high-standard facilities including an agile-enabled, open-plan office setup, seminar spaces, global video conferencing facilities and SMART-connected amenities.”
The project team for the Pusey Lane project include: Fusion Project Management, TSH Architects, Beard, Worlledge Associates, CPW, Engineers HRW, and Adams Habermehl.
Find out more about our Passivhaus projects.