The Building of St Edward's School: A Chronology (1870 - 2020)

P AGE N O : 106

1992 - Lodge now houses the Registrar, a Reception Area, the O.S.E. Office, the Development Director and the Porter’s residence Upper floors of the Warden’s house given over to the Apsley Housemaster Kitchens still being extensively renovated, after the original critical report by Health Inspectors, at a cost of £1,000,000 (£2,900,000 today) (Oxley, 2015) Whole School now feeds in the Dining Room, with a small private Common Room Dining Room added to the east side of the Main Buildings. The original small Dining Room/Apsley Games Room/ Linen Room now converted into a new Masters’ Common Room, with Apsley housed on a refurbished first and second floors (Autumn 1992 Chronicle) School acquires 315 Woodstock Road for £232,000 (£672,800 today) Subject to receiving planning permission, the Apsley (House) changes should be carried out during the summer holidays of 1992 on the larger Dining Room, Common Room Cloakrooms, Catering Staff Cloakrooms; Bursary move to the School Shop, conversion of the Lodge at the same time. The Bursar will be relocated to 293 Woodstock Road in the summer of 1993. The Warden will vacate the family area of his House and move to 289 Woodstock Road, also during the summer holidays with the Apsley Housemaster occupying the present Warden’s family accommodation prior to the start of the Autumn Term 1992 (Governors’ Meeting, March 1992) Warden concerned with the City Planners and ‘their propensity to say no’ (Warden’s Report to Governors’ Spring Term 1992) Oxford City Planners approve the conversion of the Shop to Office accommodation, but refuse the Kitchen and the ground floor of Apsley - these prompted by the intervention of the Victorian North Oxford Preservation Society as they would entail the demolishment of older buildings (Governors’ Meeting, March 1992) Current standing of the varied and many building changes now taking place: 293 Woodstock Road now being refurbished and due for completion by July, 289 Woodstock Road will commence work in June and should finish August. School Shop conversion work starts May with a completion date of August. Apsley (planning now received) work commencing July and finishing in August, Common Room work will commence during the summer holidays and will be partially ready by the start of the Autumn Term. The Main Kitchen (planning permission received at the end of May) improvements beginning ‘subject to listed building consent’ in the summer holidays with final completion in the summer of 1994 (Governors’ Meeting, June 1992) School proposes to purchase 279 Woodstock Road, a four bedroom property backing onto the School grounds and immediately next to Angle House - the price is £175,000 (£507,500 today) to be partially paid for by the sale of 30 Hobson Road for £115,000 (£333,500 today), a school property but ‘less attractive as it does not back onto School land’ (Governors’ Meeting, June 1992) Bursar moves into 293 Woodstock Road in July and the Warden into 289 Woodstock Road in August. The Housemasters of Apsley and Corfe move into their new surroundings a week prior to the start of term. The Bursary staff move into the School Shop also before the start of term and Phase 1 of the Kitchen/Common Rooms is also completed before the start of term. Phase 2, the conversion of pupils’ small Dining-Room to the Common Room Lounge and Bar is underway (General Purposes, September 1992)