Brasenose College – Feasibility Study

Brasenose College has been part of Oxford for more than 500 years. But its estate tells a much bigger story.

Its 43 buildings range from some of the College's oldest Grade I listed historic spaces to more modern twentieth-century architecture. Finding a realistic route to Net Zero meant understanding what could work across a wide range of building types – and what it would cost.

Making sense of a varied estate

Supported by Low Carbon Skills Council funding, Brasenose College appointed a team of consultants to explore opportunities to decarbonise its estate.

The architect, Lee Fitzgerald, reviewed all 43 buildings and grouped them into around a dozen building archetypes. This created a practical way to assess a large and varied estate without needing to develop a separate solution for every building.

Working alongside the wider team, our cost management consultants and specialist MEP cost managers measured and costed the proposed interventions for each archetype. These ranged from roof and wall insulation and secondary glazing to air and ground source heat pumps. The right approach varied considerably depending on the age, construction and heritage significance of each building.

Building a realistic picture of cost

Costing a historic estate is rarely straightforward.

Even buildings grouped within the same archetype had their own characteristics. A proposed measure such as underfloor heating could have very different cost implications depending on the existing floor construction and conditions beneath it. We tested assumptions and developed costs that reflected the realities of working within a live, historic college.

We also looked beyond individual buildings. The study considered site-wide infrastructure, including ground source heat pumps capable of serving groups of buildings, as well as how the work could be phased over time.

From possibilities to priorities

The College needed more than a single figure for the cost of decarbonisation. It needed information it could use to decide where to start.

We presented the costs by building and archetype, as well as by individual intervention. This allowed the College to compare different options and identify potential quick wins. Roof void insulation was one example. These works could be carried out with relatively little disruption during quieter periods in the College calendar, while still making a meaningful difference to energy performance.

Our analysis also enabled the College to compare the potential carbon savings of different measures against their likely cost, identifying where investment could have the greatest impact.

Since the study was completed in 2023, Brasenose has already progressed some of the opportunities identified, including insulation improvements and the deep retrofit of Frewin Hall, one of Brasenose College’s student accommodation buildings.