One of our three core ambitions is to build truly sustainable homes. This supports our and Oxford City Council’s commitments to Net Zero, reduces the running costs of homes, making them more affordable and gives us the opportunity to pioneer ground-breaking building projects that have environmental benefits built in.

Our aim is to achieve 40% below building regs requirements for carbon in new homes. Our developments so far have over-achieved. At The Curve, all our new homes average 56% below building regs standards. At Cannon Court, we averaged 89% below building regs standards. And at Bracegirdle where we created 8 best in class bungalows, we achieved an average of 96% below building regs standards.

With the introduction of new building regulations in 2023, we know repeating this level of success will be extremely challenging, but we are bringing consultants and contractors into the development process earlier to try to “build in” sustainability from the ground up.

Our “fabric first” approach means we are creating homes that retain as much heat as possible, vastly reducing the need for heating and cooling. And our Energy Quality Assurance Approach means regular site inspections ensure the build matches the plan. Inspectors look at every element of the build, to ensure, for example, insulation is installed to the specified thickness, that there are no gaps where heat might be lost and that the specified materials for every task.

In housebuilding, it is often these small margins that make the difference between good and outstanding and at OX Place, we are committed to outstanding.