An Oxford private school has applied to turn two houses in Summertown into accommodation for pupils.
The d’Overbroeck’s School has applied to convert 331-331A Banbury Road into housing for 16 pupils and two members of staff.
The school already has a number of boarding houses across the city as well as several in Banbury Road already.
The school has picked the new site due to its distance from the main teaching campus.
The plans say that the new accommodation would have 10 ensuite bedrooms comprising of six twin rooms and four single rooms.
There will also be a one-bed studio flat for a member of staff and an en-suite bedroom for a visiting residential member of staff.
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In the application's planning statement, it said: “The school also operates a number of boarding houses, primarily based along Banbury Road, within a walkable distance of the teaching sites (for example, Hayfield House, Islip House and Nash House).
“However, several houses are based further away and the school must operate a bus service to transport students from these houses to the teaching sites (for example, West Way).
“d’Overbroeck’s suffers from not having a campus of its own.
"This, combined with its central location in a very popular and desirable part of Oxford, means that opportunities for the provision of student accommodation within a highly sustainable distance of the main teaching sites are limited and rely on the take up of suitable space where opportunities in the vicinity materialise.”
It added: “At present, the school leases several properties on a short-term basis to meet its accommodation needs. This includes properties in for example, Botley and Begbroke.
"The leases of two properties are due to expire in 2025. As such, there is an immediate need to secure alternative provision in the event that the leases cannot be renewed for any reason.
“Thus in order to secure the provision of sufficient student accommodation, enhance the sustainable operation of the school and student safeguarding measures, there is a significant need to provide student accommodation within a highly sustainable distance of the main teaching sites.
“An opportunity to address the school’s student accommodation needs has materialised in the form of 331 and 331a Banbury Road.
"The landowner’s children recently graduated from the school. They have many fond memories of their child’s school days and wish to help the school offer the same experience to future students.”
The school was founded in 1977 by Malcolm van Biervliet and currently has around 700 pupils aged 11 to 18.
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About the author
Toby is a senior reporter who has a particular interest in covering planning and local government.
He joined in September 2024 having been a reporter at the Hampshire Chronicle for three years.
Toby studied at the University of Brighton and can be found on X through the handle @JournoToby
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