Frequently Asked Questions
Since its completion in 1964, the Waynflete Building has long been criticised for its design, which is in contrast with the College’s otherwise superlative architectural estate. Its stark, brutalist style clashes with the surrounding townscape, including its prime riverside location and position as the Eastern gateway to central Oxford.
Over time, the building’s shortcomings have become more apparent, making it clear that the Waynflete is no longer fit for purpose. With deteriorating building fabric and challenges such as poor accessibility, energy inefficiency and a lack of social spaces, it is clear there are many problems that need addressing.
Recognising these challenges, the College has undertaken extensive studies to understand if the existing building might be suitable for refurbishment. Studies have also been carried out to understand the resulting carbon impact of refurbishment, extension or redevelopment of the Waynflete site.
It was concluded that the only feasible scheme that could provide suitable accommodation was for a new building constructed and designed to outstanding sustainability standards that would offer a substantially longer life span with excellent energy performance.
In 2019, Magdalen College commissioned a Masterplan to identify opportunities that would serve the College’s long-term needs, improve its sustainability and enhance interaction with the wider community. The Masterplan identified the Waynflete site as an area for redevelopment that could positively respond to the College’s long-term vision.
Our vision is to create a single interconnected campus that orientates itself around the College’s greatest asset, the water meadow. We want to connect the buildings and facilities around the around the perimeter of the 120-acre estate, using footbridges and pathways that provide access to the main college site.
We will be redeveloping the Waynflete Building on the eastern side of the water meadow as well as the complex of buildings including the Old Kitchen Bar, which faces on the west bank of the Cherwell.
The new development has been designed by award-winning architects Stanton Williams, known for their work on historic and sensitive sites, including Rhodes House in Oxford and the Royal Opera House in London. Their design celebrates and reflects the architecture of Magdalen’s architecture and improves the site’s relationship to this surrounding context.
Honey-coloured stone will be used for the gateway buildings that face central Oxford, and rendered buildings that harmonise with the listed buildings on St Clements will face The Plain. A new riverside garden will improve biodiversity and greatly enhance the views from the iconic Magdalen Bridge.
The new Waynflete quad aims to deliver a high-quality, truly sustainable development. The project offers the opportunity to develop a best-in-class, low-energy building that fits into the College’s decarbonisation strategy. The project targets Passivhaus standards and the BREEAM excellent rating to create an exemplary sustainable development for Oxford.
The redevelopment of the site also offers an opportunity to significantly improve the river ecology and biodiversity in the area, opening up views to the Cherwell River and enhancing the site as a green gateway into Oxford.
To commemorate the Waynflete building’s important place in Magdalen’s history, we will be restoring and displaying the inscription that currently exists on the Cherwell side of the Waynflete building:
A • D • MCMLX • COLL • B • M • MAGD • IN • HON • WW • FUND • POST • AN • D • HOC • AED • FI • FE • EX • ALUM • MUN
In unabbreviated form, this reads:
“Anno Domini MCMLX Collegium beatae Mariae Magdalenae in honorem Willelmi Waynflete fundatoris post annos D hoc aedificium fieri facerent ex alumnorum munificentia”
And in English:
“In the year of our Lord 1960 the College of St. Mary Magdalen had this building built in honour of its founder William Waynflete after 500 years, out of the generosity of its Old Members”
The lettering will feature prominently in the new design as an homage to the original building.
The Waynflete Building has traditionally housed first-year undergraduates. However, the current site only accommodates 70 students, which leaves the remaining 45 students housed in separate buildings along the High Street, creating an undesirable divide in the year group.
With the new Waynflete quad, we plan to reconfigure our accommodation offering. We plan to house all first-years within the College walls. In doing so, we hope to facilitate a greater sense of community and Magdalen identity from day one, creating habits of using College facilities such as Hall, the Bar, the JCR, the library and the lawns, and making the most of living in the historic heart of the College.
The new Waynflete quad will instead accommodate second and third-year undergraduates. We plan to create accommodation that is so attractive that it will be a favoured choice for our senior undergraduates in the room ballot, with generously proportioned rooms arranged around family-style shared kitchens, a space that is quiet, homely and comfortable.
From October 2025, we will move incoming first-year undergraduates to the main site. The students we expect to be displaced by the three-year period of planned construction (which will affect the academic years 25/26, 26/27 and 27/28) are some fourth-year undergraduates and second-year graduate students, on whose behalf the College will provide private accommodation as close to College as possible.
The redevelopment of the Waynflete Building and the planned transformation of the Old Kitchen Bar complex reflects a pivotal moment in the College’s history. These exceptional opportunities have been created by the College’s joint venture with GIC to develop the Oxford Science Park, which significantly increased the College’s endowment.
The total cost of these two projects is estimated at £90 million. The College is committed to funding half of this amount through its resources, including the increased funds from the endowment (and borrowing if required). However, to bring these transformative redevelopments to fruition, we rely on alumni and friends’ support for the remaining £45 million.
Thanks to the support of our community, we are delighted to have already secured £32.5 million in pledges. We are now seeking the remaining funds to complete this once-in-a-generation investment in the College. We hope you will join us in supporting these inspirational projects.
You can find out more information about ways to support here.
We would be delighted to discuss naming opportunities with you; there are a number of these available. Gifts can be made over a period of several years and can be done tax-efficiently.
For more information, please contact:
Sean Rainey, Fellow and Development Director
+44 (0)1865 286796