Legal & General and Oxford University gain planning consent for new £200m life sciences building, designed by NBBJ
The University of Oxford and Legal & General have achieved planning permission for The University of Oxford’s largest ever building project, the Life and Mind Building, representing a major milestone for the £4bn Oxford University Development (OUD) partnership and its first landmark scheme.
Designed by internationally renowned architect practice NBBJ, the building will house the Departments of Experimental Psychology and Biology, including Plant Sciences and Zoology. With a project cost of £200m and a gross internal area of 269,097 sq ft, it will provide research facilities to 800 students and 1,200 researchers.
Financed and developed by Legal & General, the project exemplifies its approach to inclusive capitalism, as it looks to put society’s pension money to work in order to foster and fund innovation in the UK, helping to solve some of society’s grand challenges. As part of this, in the wake of COVID-19, Legal & General has confirmed its position as a leading investor in the UK’s burgeoning science and tech sectors, including backing the creation of around 2m sq ft of science and innovation districts through its partnership with Bruntwood. Legal & General also continues to fund the University’s science and technology spin-out businesses through its investment in Oxford Sciences Innovation.