Proposal: Demolition of existing Barnes Unit and link corridor and relocation of tissue building; erection of new Adult Intensive Care Unit over 5 floors to connect to the existing Trauma Building across 4 floors; new replacement link corridor within the AICU building connecting the Trauma Building with the main hospital entrance; ancillary works; and erection of new substation in Car Park 1 at the John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford (part retrospective).

Site address: John Radcliffe Hospital, Headley Way, Oxford.

The East Area Planning Committee is recommended to:

1.    approve the application for the reasons given in the report, subject to the receipt of a satisfactory drainage report and construction environment management and subject to the required planning conditions set out in section 12 of the report and grant planning permission; and

2.    delegate authority to the Head of Planning Services to review the final drainage strategy and construction environment management plan and finalise the recommended conditions as set out in the report including such refinements, amendments, additions and/or deletions as the Head of Planning Services considers reasonably necessary.

The Committee considered an application (20/02983/FUL) for planning permission for the demolition of the existing Barnes Unit and link corridor and the relocation of the tissue building; the erection of new Adult Intensive Care Unit (AICU) over 5 floors to connect to the existing Trauma Building across 4 floors; a new replacement link corridor within the AICU building connecting the Trauma Building with the main hospital entrance; ancillary works; and erection of new substation in Car Park 1 at the John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford (part retrospective).

The Planning Officer presented the report and confirmed that a revised drainage strategy with further justification for discharging to a private sewer had been received since the publication of the report and that consequently the County Council had removed its objection.

The Planning Officer then offered the following clarification in regard to the provision of disabled parking bays in Car Park 1. Although the development would lead to an overall reduction of 15 parking bays these would not be disabled bays.  The current provision of 15 disabled parking bays would be reduced to 8 operational bays during the construction phase of the development.  However, Condition 16 specified that a minimum of 15 disabled parking bays should be provided within 3 months of completion of the development.

Mark Patt, representing Headington Heritage spoke against the application. 

Dr David Garry, representing the OUH Trust, spoke in favour of the application. Charmaine Hope, Clinton Green, Craig Merrifield, Huw Mellor and Katherine Jones representing the applicant were present to answer questions.

The Committee asked questions of the officersand public speakers about the details of the application.

The Committee sought to establish whether the need for extra critical care capacity was a long-term or permanent issue or purely related to the COVID pandemic.   They were informed that the shortage of ICU beds across the region had been identified prior to 2020.

Planning Officers noted the comments made by the Committee regarding aspects of the drainage strategy and advised a final detailed drainage strategy would be negotiated prior to issuing of a decision as works had already commenced on site.

Planning Officers assured the Committee that the concerns raised about the need for a holistic approach to planning and traffic management at the JR site, and more generally at the hospital sites in Headington, was fully recognised and was the subject of wider strategic discussions between the OUH Trust and the Local Planning Authority.

In reaching its decision, the Committee considered all the information put before it.

After debate and on being proposed, seconded and put to the vote, the Committee agreed with the officer’s recommendation to approve the application.

The East Area Planning Committee resolved to:

1.    approve the application for the reasons given in the report, subject to the finalisation of a drainage strategy and construction environment management plan and subject to the required planning conditions set out in section 12 of the report and grant planning permission.

2.    delegate authority to the Head of Planning Services to:

·       review the final drainage strategy and construction environment management plan and finalise the recommended conditions as set out in the report including such refinements, amendments, additions and/or deletions as the Head of Planning Services considers reasonably necessary.

Councillor Hollingsworth joined the meeting at the conclusion of this item.