Oxford Brookes University – Headington Hill Campus
Management Plan 2010 - 2015
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DEPUTY DIRECTOR, Property Services
Steve Simpkins– Executive Summary
We in the Grounds Section of Property Services are committed to improving the surroundings of our campuses and creating grounds that are fit for our students, staff & visitors. To this end, we are committed to achieving the National Standards for Parks – the Green Flag Award.
The University is entering into an exciting phase of redevelopment and the teams are playing a key role in making the vision of the Campus of the Future a reality.The staff are highly valued members of this Division, and encouraged and supported in furthering their natural abilities and professional skills.We maintain the functioning of over 180 buildings and over 190 acres of grounds to meet the expectations of all who work and visit our estate
In this Management Plan we aim to tell you what you can expect from us and how we intend to make continuous improvements to the grounds at Headington Hill Campus over the coming years.We have set out details of what we do and what we provide to you, our customers, and this will be updated annually so you can be sure of our continued focus on our goal of achieving quality. Our team has more day-to-day contact with other staff,students and visitors than most of the University and as such we are well placed to deliver.We are passionate about our daily responsibility to our customers-present and future-in ensuring that the University estate is a safe,functioning,pleasant environment in which to live,work,study and visit..
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Introduction & Background Headington Hill Hall has always been in the Parish of St Clements, and its original main entrance was via the grand park gates near the foot of the hill. But now its entrance is from the lodge at the top of the hill, Headington is pleased to adopt it as its grandest listed building. It was built in 1824 for the Morrell family and was occupied by them for 114 years, and then Robert Maxwell leased what he described as the "best council house in the country" from Oxford City Council for 32 years, since 1992 it has been leased to Oxford Brookes University
The Oxford brewer James Morrell senior (1773–1855) had married Jane Wharton, a 17-year-old girl who lived in Headington, at St Andrew’s Church on 17 December 1807, and visits to her family may well have influenced his decision to live there himself after her early death in 1814. He bought some grazing land near the top of Headington Hill from the Savage family in 1817 in order to move his three surviving young children from the damp unhealthy atmosphere of Fisher Row to a healthy country estate in Headington.
The house that James Morrell senior completed in 1824 was relatively modest, but later he bought extra land extending all the way down to the Marston Road, comprising the present Headington Hill Park.
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James’s son James Morrell junior (1810–1863) had grander designs, and between 1856 and 1858 built an Italianate mansion: the architect was John Thomas and the builder Joseph Castle. This eclipsed his father’s old house to such an extent that thenceforth the latter was only deemed suitable for a kitchen and nursery wing. This mansion, which boasted nineteen indoor servants, is the present Headington Hill Hall. On 8 November 1856, Jackson’s Oxford Journal (p. 5) reported:
The mansion now in the course of erection on Headington Hill for James Morrell, Esq, having been so far advanced that the roof is fixed, that gentleman celebrated the "roof rearing" by an entertainment, on Saturday night last, to all the workmen and boys employed directly or indirectly on the building.
Thus by 1858 the small country house had become a 51-room mansion housing 19 indoor servants. James Morrell junior also developed the exotic gardens that are now Headington Hill Park, and they were laid out by a Mr Baxter. The house had four lodges, and its laundry building was built well out of sight on the other side of the London Road, near Gipsy Lane. Its vegetable garden was also situated away from the house, just to the east of Cheney Lane, so as not to spoil the landscape.
But the couple only enjoyed the house they had built for five years: James Morrell junior died in 1863, and his wife Alicia in 1864. Their only child Emily Morrell (1854–1938) was left an orphan at the age of ten, so the Morrell Trustees took over responsibility for the Hall and let it out to Richard Corbet, a blind landowner from Shropshire. The wealth of the child Emily was enormous: at the age of 19 she is listed in the Return of Owners of Land of 1873 as owning over 569 acres in Oxfordshire with an estimated rental income of £2,046.
In 1874 young Emily Morrell married her third cousin George Herbert Morrell (1845–1906) and returned with him to her family home. The interior of the house was extensively remodelled at this time by William Wilkinson, the architect who also designed the Randolph Hotel and much of north Oxford.
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In 1876 the family of the deceased Tyrrell Knapp were planning to sell the farmland attached to his home at the Rise in Cheney Lane to developers. The Morrell Trustees stepped in to purchase the land, thus doubling the size of the couple’s estate, and linked it to Headington Hill Hall by a bridge over the road. Jackson’s Oxford Journal of 12 October 1878 (p. 8c) reported:
A new set of stables have been built near "Joe Pullin’s" tree, Headington Hill, for G. Morrell, Esq., by Mr. G. Castle. In their construction the latest improvements have been introduced, and they are considered some of the best stables in the County. Accommodation is provided for 17 horses, and there are ten coach houses, harness rooms, &c., with buildings for coachmen and grooms. A handsome bridge now connects the old portion of the estate with that purchased from the Knapp family, and this is also the work of Mr. G. Castle.
The enlarged garden was described in detail in the Gardeners' Magazine of 1880. The new part of the garden comprised the present South Park as well as the area covered by Morrell Avenue, a road of high-standard council houses which was built in South Park in 1929–-31.
Herbert Morrell died in 1906, and his wife Emily at the age of 84 in September 1938. A year later the government requisitioned the Hall for use as a military hospital, and its contents were sold. After the war the Hall became a rehabilitation centre run by the Red Cross and the Order of St John.
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In 1953 Emily’s elder son, James Morrell III , sold Headington Hill Hall to Oxford City Council for a mere £13,700: this price included 37 acres of land, as well as its four lodges and outbuildings, and there was applause in the council chamber when the purchase was announced. The original plan was to demolish the Hall and build council offices on the site, but finances did not allow this, and so the council appropriated 20 acres to form Headington Hill Park and offered the rest of the estate on a 21-year lease to the highest bidder.
This proved to be Robert Maxwell , Director of Pergamon Press, with a tender of £2,400 a year. Initially he rented the estate purely as business premises for the Press, but soon he and his wife Betty and eight children took up residence in the Hall, relegating the Press to the old stables. Maxwell restored the house, which had become dilapidated, ripping a 150-year-old chimney piece out of the old Pergamon offices in Fitzroy Square, London to put in his new home. He filled shelves with dummy books, and installed cinema-screen televisions in most of the rooms.
The original Victorian stained-glass window on the stairs, showing Samson at the gates of Gaza, was damaged during the war, and was replaced by the Maxwell’s. The new window ( left ), created by an Israeli artist, casts Robert Maxwell himself as Samson. He has around his neck a large pendant, which is supposed to depict the head of Penelope and to indicate that behind every successful man there is a strong female presence. (This seems rather odd; in view of the damage Delilah did to Samson, and the fact that Penelope is a figure from Greek myth, not the Old Testament….)
The grounds, meanwhile, were becoming littered with ugly prefabs to house Pergamon Press, and when Maxwell requested a longer lease in 1962, one of the conditions was attached was that he must erect, "within a period of 36 months from the granting of the lease, a new building of a type and design and on a site approved by the Council, to replace the existing five temporary huts, and within three months of the completion of this building, to demolish the five huts, clear their concrete bases, and reinstate the sites to their original condition".
In exchange for his original 21-year lease, he was granted 75 years' tenure at an annual rent of £4,500, to remain fixed for the entire term (an incredible decision by the city council at a period of inflation). Maxwell did build a new office block, but the other promises he made (that he would make more of the Hall grounds available to the general public; that staff would have to use a new entrance at the back of the estate; and that no Pergamon cars would be allowed to use the main driveway, which would become a public footpath) were ignored.
In 1978 Maxwell managed to extend his lease yet again, to 99 years, with the annual rent increased to £7,600 until 2002 (when there would be an annual increment until it reached £14,540 per year in 2076). With nearly a hundred years of security ahead of him, Maxwell turned the Headington Hill Hall site into a fortress. Guards were posted at the main entrance, the fence was reinforced with barbed wire, and video cameras were fixed to trees. Staff was kept away from the main house and its swimming pool and tennis court, although the old kitchen wing of the
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mansion was used as offices. Speakers were fitted to every office so that Maxwell could make announcements to the staff, who called the firm they worked for Purgatory Press.
In March 1991 Maxwell sold Pergamon Press to Elsevier, and on 5 November that year Maxwell’s body was found in the sea. On 20 December Grant Thornton announced that they had been appointed receivers to 33 properties owned by PHL Estates Ltd (part of the Maxwell Group), including the 84 remaining years of the lease of Headington Hill Hall.
In 1992 the Council negotiated a long lease with Oxford Brookes University . In 1996 the School of Art, Publishing and Music (Richard Hamilton building) was opened in the old stables, and the Pergamon Press offices were converted into the Helena Kennedy Student Centre.
Headington Hill Hall now forms the most glamorous part of Oxford Brookes University, and is the home of the School of Social Sciences and Law. It also has handsome function rooms, and is the only place in Headington licensed to hold civil wedding ceremonies.
Headington Hill Campus now forms part of the Oxford Brookes University and is the main accommodation area (halls) for the Gipsy Lane site opposite.
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Location
Headington Hill is a hill in the east of Oxford, England, in the suburb of Headington. The Headington Road goes up the hill leading out of the city. There are good views of the spires of Oxford from the hill, especially from the top of South Park.
Between 1644 and 1646, Headington Hill was used by the Parliamentarian forces while besieging Oxford during the First English Civil War. Headington Hill Hall, built in 1824 for the Morrell family (local brewers), stands on the hill.
Coordinates: 51°45′22′N 1°13′30′W/ 51.756°N 1.225°W / 51.756; -1.225
OS Grid Reference – SP531063 Parish – Un-Parished District – Oxford County – Oxford Region – South East Post Town – Oxford Post Code District – OX3 Police Thames Valley Fire Oxfordshire Ambulance South Central EU Parliament South East England UK Parliament Oxford East
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The Landscape
The campus is set in grounds covering some 12.3 acres (4.97 hectares) and can be described as a University Campus sitting within a Victorian Estate. A gradually sloping site to the East with views through to the “Dreaming Spires” of Oxford.
Vegetation Cover For the most part an informal layout with grass and trees many of which are fine specimens planted by the Morrell Family in the early 1800’s many are typical of the period. The gardens surrounding the Hall and leading down the slope are formal in design and are managed and maintained for the most part in keeping with the former owners of the estate.
Geology
The campus lies within the area known as the "Oxford Heights". The area occupies the northerly part of a belt of low limestone hills that surround Oxford and separates the low-lying clay vales which lie to the north and south. This is an area of prominent relief and complex geology and soils, which contrasts markedly with the adjoining clay vales.
The hills are composed of Upper Jurassic Corallian limestones and sands which outcrop in a broad belt from Headington Hill north-westwards to Beckley and have historically been the source of superior building stone. Elsewhere these rocks are overlain by Kimmeridge Clay and a capping of Lower Greensand which forms the higher ground at Shotover Hill, Forest Hill and above Garsington. In the north, the hills descend sharply into the low-lying Cherwell Valley and Otmoor lowlands which are overlain by extensive deposits of Oxford Clay, while to the east and south the hills descend into the alluvial floodplain of the River Thame and its tributary, Baldon Brook.
(Acknowledgements to South Oxfordshire District Council Landscape Assessment)
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Hydrology Headington Hill Campus’s not located in an identified flood plain.
Flora Headington Hill Campus consists of formal landscape gardens, trees, shrubs and closely mown amenity grassland and grass sports areas. The trees and shrubs include several exotic species.
Fauna Headington Hill Campus has an abundant variety of birds and mammals and it’s planned to collect data on the local fauna, enlisting the assistance of the RSPB, and Oxford Wildlife Trust.
Trees Headington Hill Campus has a good tree cover; many of the species are ornamental imported from the Americas a fashion during the period of the great plant collectors during the early part of Queen Victoria’s reign. A survey of the trees of Headington Hill was undertaken in 2008; all trees have been numbered and catalogued.
Car Parking Car parking is available for students, staff and visitors including dedicated bays for disabled parking. Considerable parking is also available at the Gipsy Lane Site opposite this campus.
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HEADINGTON HILL MANAGEMENT PLAN
Our vision:
Our Vision for Headington Hill Campus Grounds is to:
‘Provide a safe, attractive and sustainable environment for the benefit of all students, staff and visitors now and in the future’
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Assessment & Analysis
A full review of the campus grounds has been undertaken and the various areas of improvement have been identified. These improvements are identified under each of the headings set out in the Green Flag – The National Standard for Parks & Open Spaces.
The actions and financial commitment have been assessed and an action plan with costings has been produced. The Grounds and University Staff, Students and local residents have been consulted on many aspects of the plan and on-going works to improve the campus. . On-going assessment and analysis will continue throughout the life of the plan so as to inform all future plans and to ensure wherever possible the Grounds of Headington Hill remain relevant, accessible and well managed for all to enjoy.
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Headington Hill Campus Management Plan
AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
Oxford Brookes ensures that adequate funding is available to maintain the quality and the fabric of the campus to high standards recognising the value of its open spaces. This Management Plan sets out how these standards are being achieved, and the current management and future actions to achieve the vision and objectives. The primary aim is that the campus grounds shall remain safe, clean and aesthetically pleasing places for its staff, students and visitors that come to Oxford Brookes every year. The plan sets out how the campus will remain a place of relaxation, enjoyment and beauty.
Key objectives: • To ensure the effective implementation of resources both financial and staffing, to deliver a high level of quality management and maintenance. • Positively welcome people into the grounds in terms of both physical and social access. • Ensure a healthy, safe and secure experience for users. • Provide well-maintained and clean grounds. • Improve the environmental quality and sustainability of practices carried out in the grounds. • Maintain the landscape character, whilst ensuring provision for contemporary users. • Provide opportunities to increase community use and involvement, particularly through events, education and interpretation. • Ensure effective promotion of the grounds and facilities as a local community resource.
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A Welcoming place
The main entrance to the campus is via a small country lane off the A40. The tree lined entrance with its finely cut grass gives the visitor a sense of well-being and is the pre-cursor to the rest of the site. Visitors are welcomed by an attractive and well signed entrance and a fully staffed reception centre offers the new or occasional visitor a reference point for the rest of the visit. If travelling by bus the bus stop is situated close by and extensive car parking is available close at hand.
An open site with a range of building, lecture theatres and colleges sit within a pleasant green environment managed with horticultural excellence in mind.
Current Position : The entrance area and the welcoming arrangement are working well and no immediate improvement is planned. Car Parking is becoming a problem and will require a review.
Future Plans: The welcoming aspects of the site will remain under review, car parking will be reviewed in 2011 and any action required will be included in future versions of the action plan.
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Healthy, safe and secure
Oxford Brookes University has put in place policies, procedures and assessments that will act positively to minimise the incidence of all workplace & site risks as required by the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and its associated legislation. All activities are carried out with the highest regard for the health and safety of all staff, students, visitors and the public at large. Our aim is excellence in health and safety, by means of continuous improvement of standards, systematically removing the causes of accidents/incidents and ill-health. This, together with more specific aims and objectives, demonstrates Oxford Brookes University’s commitment to the Health Promoting University initiative. Wherever possible, legal requirements should be regarded as the minimum standard to be achieved.
The Board of Governors and Senior Management Team are committed to providing the financial and physical resources necessary to ensure that a high standard of health and safety is achieved. Within their areas of responsibility Deans of Schools and Directors of Directorates will make provision from within their budgets for adequate resources to maintain and improve a healthy and safe working environment. People are our most valuable resource, and the safeguarding of human as well as other resources through health and safety is important, not only for its own sake, but also as a way of minimising costs.
The successful implementation of policies requires total commitment from all members of staff, students and visitors.
All policies & procedures are reviewed annually or in the light of legislative or organisational changes. Risk assessments will be reviewed and amended as required.
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Organisation of health and safety The Board of Governors and the Vice-Chancellor have overall responsibility for the health, safety and welfare of all the University’s employees, students and visitors. The authority to implement policies is delegated to the Deputy Vice-Chancellors and through them to the Deans of Schools and Directors of Directorates. The Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Registrar supervise the implementation of these policies.
• Deans of Schools and Directors of Directorates accept the employer’s responsibility for compliance with legislation and the University's Health and Safety Policy in the areas under their control.
• All employees and students shall take reasonable care for their own health and safety and that of other persons who may be affected by their acts or omissions at work or study.
• All employees are required to co-operate with the University so far as is necessary to enable health and/or safety requirements to be performed or complied with.
• Visitors and external contractors will be given sufficient information and supervision to ensure that they comply with policies and any/all other relevant Oxford Brookes University Health and Safety Notices.
• Oxford Brookes University has appointed competent persons to advise all staff on health and safety issues and assist in meeting, and where appropriate exceeding the minimum statutory legal requirements.
• Emergency procedures are designed to ensure the safe access to and egress from the premises and to give warning of imminent danger to allow all staff, students and visitors to move to a place of relative safety
• Health surveillance and monitoring will be provided for specific workers where required by legislation and best practice.
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Healthy, safe & secure – General
Security Security staff is on campus from 8pm to 8am Monday to Friday and 6pm to 8am at weekends. This ensures the campus has 24hr security cover. If for any reason the security guard is not at the reception desk (e.g. if he/she is completing his/her rounds) you can contact security simply by picking up the yellow telephone on the outside wall of reception. You do not have to dial as you will be immediately connected.
Four caretakers cover shift patterns between 7am and 9pm Monday to Friday and 8am-6pm at weekends. The caretakers have responsibility for:
• Clearing rubbish from the campus to suitable waste containers ensuring the campus is free from litter • Collection and delivery of internal and external post, setting and re setting teaching rooms • Locking and unlocking academic areas Ensuring adequate supplies of toiletries are maintained at all times • Clearing entrances, roadways and pathways from any form of obstruction • Immediate response to any alarm call • Assisting with parking control
Health and Safety of Staff and Users of the Grounds Systems are in place to ensure health and safety is always high on the agenda. A Health and Safety Folder is kept at every staff depot.
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Staff Training and Welfare An on-going training programme for all staff ensures high levels of safety awareness and further ensures staff goes on to develop their career in horticulture and parks. All staff receives induction training in all aspects of the management and maintenance of the grounds including: • health and safety, • dealing with the public, • incident reporting, • use of machinery • horticultural skills training Oxford Brookes recognises the value of its front line staff and ensures staff training; facilities and welfare are up to acceptable standards.
Current Position:
Health, Safety and Welfare is given a high priority at Wheatley and the arrangements currently in place meet the needs:
Health & Safety has the highest priority and regular reviews are planned over the life of the management plan.
Future Plans: All relevant assessment and policies/procedures are under regular review and all requiring updates are provided with new copy. Any training arising out of new documentation will be undertaken at the first opportunity.
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Clean and well maintained
Grounds Maintenance
The grounds and horticultural features are maintained by a permanent staffing under the direction of the Grounds Manager. Works are undertaken based on a schedule of maintenance, a method which ensures that all areas receive regular, appropriate and consistent attention. Areas have been defined based on a set of priorities, locations and usage or issues relating to site safety.
Regular site inspections are undertaken by the Grounds Manager and all matters arising or corrective action required are dealt with on a priority basis. The staff & student body are also involved in ad-hoc reporting of issues affecting their safety and are encouraged to report defects or issues relating to the landscape. All matters arising are actioned or reviewed as required. Dog fouling is not considered a problem at Headington Campus with few dog owners using the site; however users are encouraged to pick up after their dogs. Dog users are only permitted to use the outer campus areas. As there is not a current problem no dog bins have been deployed at this stage. The situation will be kept under annual review.
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Graffiti Removal
While not an issue at Headington Campus, management believes that to create an environment where users feel safe, secure and are not afraid to enter the grounds it is necessary that all graffiti is removed immediately following it being reported.
Required standard: • All Graffiti and Fly Posting must be removed within one working day • Graffiti removal where possible must be carried out using environmentally acceptable products that do not cause harm to either the operator or users of the grounds.
The maintenance of hard landscaping, buildings, equipment and other features The building maintenance team look after buildings, roofs and hard landscape areas within the University, undertaking installations, responsive repairs and planned maintenance; and where required ensuring statutory compliance.
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Building maintenance responsibilities The building maintenance team is responsible for the following;
• building external and internal fabric, including brickwork,
• doors and windows,
• asbestos removal,
• fencing,
• paving,
• flooring; including minor carpet repairs
• surface water drainage,
• roofing, guttering and down-pipes
• painting, decorating and carpentry works.
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Current Position:
Grounds Maintenance is generally of a high standard and much has been achieved in the last two years. Maintenance to buildings and facilities are of an equally high standard and all services are currently achieving their objectives. However changes to the current grounds maintenance regimes are anticipated and therefore improvements will be made during the life of the management plan.
Future Plans: Continue to raise standards wherever appropriate and update staff skills. Greater emphasis will be placed on the ecological and natural side of management & maintenance.
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Tree Maintenance & Managing Risks – A pro-active approach Oxford Brooks University manages many trees, which are often directly adjacent to busy locations like student and administrative accommodation, roads etc. With such large organisms in such close proximity, there is a high potential for risk. In light of this, a strategy is employed to manage the risk posed by trees consistently throughout the campuses.
A recent progression towards this proactive approach is the investment in a comprehensive tree survey and inspection system. Every major tree (above 5 metres) on campus has been individually inspected and recorded on a tree inventory system. This survey allows the University for the first time ever to take a fully pro-active approach to tree management, which is an enormous step forward in the Universities risk management programme. Every tree is now subject to regular inspections, at least once every 2 years, with high priority trees inspected every 6 months.
Condition/Current Position:
The current tree stock has been fully inspected and catalogued. Further inspections and actions are planned.
Future Plans: See Tree Strategy (Supporting Documents)
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Environmental Quality
Removal of detritus is carried out to fulfil the principals of the Cleanliness National Indicator 195 Grade B. This means the grade of cleanliness as set out in National Indicators for Local Authorities and Local Authority Partnerships: Handbook of Definitions issued in February 2008 by the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG). The Indicator incorporates four sub divisions of which NI 195b – Detritus, is one. Further information can be found at http://www.ni195.com
Detritus comprises dust, mud, soil, grit, gravel, stones, rotted leaf and vegetable residues, and fragments of twigs, glass, plastic and other finely divided materials. Detritus includes leaf and blossom falls when they have substantially lost their structure and have become mushy or fragmented. A significant and avoidable source of detritus is uncollected grass cuttings.
Litter Collection
Litter collection is carried out in such a way as to fulfil the principals of the Cleanliness National Indicator 195 Grade B. This means the grade of cleanliness as set out in National Indicators for Local Authorities and Local Authority Partnerships: Handbook of Definitions issued in February 2008 by the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG). The Indicator incorporates four sub divisions of which NI 195a – Litter, is one.
The Environmental Protection Act 1990 (s.87) states that litter is ‘anything that is dropped, thrown, left or deposited that causes defacement, in a public place’. This accords with the popular interpretation that ‘litter is waste in the wrong place’.
• As a minimum, all bins must be emptied at least once a week. • All waste that has been collected on site must be removed from site on the same day or placed in a secure location • All sharps (i.e. needles, broken glass etc.) must be immediately placed in a designated “sharps box”, when full, the box must be appropriately disposed of.
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• All litter and re-cycling bins should be checked at least once a month and washed, if necessary, to be kept free of graffiti, bird droppings and dirt etc.
Sweeping - Required Standards
• Sweeping as required (at least weekly) and more often should this be required to maintain the grounds in a clean condition • Litter bins emptied at least 3 times a week and more if required • Loose litter to be removed as when required • Broken glass and dangerous debris is removed immediately following a report
Current Position:
The current arrangements for cleansing, litter collection, graffiti control, dog fouling are able to meet the current frequencies of operations and are adequate.
Future Plans: As the campus develops it is envisaged that management & maintenance methods and frequencies will need to change to meet the challenges therefore the frequency of operations will be will be kept under regular review over the life of the management plan.
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Facilities Toilets, drinking water, first aid, public telephones and emergency equipment are all available, relevant to the site. Adequate signage directs users to the various facilities on site.
Condition/Current Position:
Facilities are adequate and there are currently no plans to improve or increase the range offered to staff, students or visitors.
Grounds Maintenance Equipment Grounds Maintenance equipment is recorded on both Insurance and Asset Registers, these registers record the machine type, fuel type, insurance log; digital images are also maintained for insurance purposes. All activities regarding the equipment are reported and recorded. All major plant is serviced by a local service agent in accordance with manufactures recommendations. All motorised equipment is inspected before use. Small tools are maintained by staff and stored as appropriate.
Fuels and oils are stored and maintained as required by University Policy and current legislation.
Vehicle fleet The current fleet meets as a minimum the Euro 4 standard.
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Machinery The current fleet of grounds care machinery is under annual review and a replacement programme is in place. The purchase of new machinery i.e. pedestrian lawn mowers, ride-on machines and leaf blowers etc., will be based on achieving the lowest possible and practical level of carbon emission and the reduction of noise levels. Grounds maintenance management has set a maximum noise level for all machinery of 108 decibels in 2010 including leaf / litter blowers. With a view to further reducing noise levels below 100 dB in 2011
Future Actions:
The current fleet meets the needs of service delivery and legislation; however consideration is being given to the use of duel fuel and electric vehicles where practical. Also the emissions from Grounds Maintenance equipment is under regular review and all motorised equipment is subject to annual review and a replacement programme ensures all plant and equipment is fit for purpose. Improvements are planned over the life of the management plan.
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Sustainability
Horticulture Prior to 2008 Headington Campus had received less than the required level of maintenance and much has been done and is planned to improve its record on its horticultural sustainability. All new planting projects will include drought resistant plantings, plants will be purchased from the most local sources wherever possible and steps will be taken to reduce the use of scarce resources.
Use of mulches As part of an on-going programme shrubbed and herbaceous areas are being mulched during the autumn and winter periods each year thereby reducing the need for watering and assisting with soil improvement. Wherever possible mulches and ameliorants will be sourced from the universities own green waste recycling systems or if in deficit from local sources.
Green Waste disposal All horticultural arisings are recycled, soft wastes are composted and woody wastes are chipped/shredded and composted within the boundaries of the campus. Once composted green wastes are re-used on campus. Other wastes are recycled as appropriate and non-recyclable wastes are collected by Oxford City Council.
Conservation of scarce resources - Water Following the drought of 2005/6 the design of all future planting schemes and the selection of plants will be based on plants ability to withstand dry periods without the need for watering. The use of membranes, the incorporation of organic matter and the use of heavy mulches will become the norm.
Pesticides
Oxford Brookes University restricts the use of pesticides to the absolute minimum with a requirement that all cultural methods must have been tried and failed before pesticides can be used.
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Use of Peat
Oxford Brookes Grounds Management will phase out the use of peat and peat products by 2012.
Condition/Current Position:
The Headington Hill campus currently achieves its objectives and is providing good quality facilities for students, staff and visitors.
Future Plans: While the current systems are more than adequate, it is planned to reduce the “carbon footprint” wherever possible. Machinery, travel arrangement, fuels, materials will, all comes under the spotlight during the life of this plan. Greater emphasis will be put on Biodiversity as Headington Hill offers opportunities for wildlife and for the education of the wider community.
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Conservation and heritage
Conservation The landscape at Headington Hill Campus being one predominantly man-made and of a formal design offers comparatively little opportunity for native fauna especially invertebrates. The surrounding woodland areas and the Council Park below the site provided some opportunities. Therefore scope exists to increase the opportunities for local wildlife. The entrance building, old stable and staff block and the house itself are major features and of historic value, therefore plans are in place to protect and enhance the building wherever possible. To enhance and develop the opportunities for wildlife it is planned to produce a Biodiversity Strategy for all landscaped areas across Oxford Brookes’ sites and specific action plan for the Headington Hill site in co-operation with residents, local groups and interested parties and will be complete by 2014.
The BAP will undertake a series of surveys to establish the range of flora and fauna on the site and the actions required to conserve them. In addition plans will be put in place to increase the style and type of plantings (native) where appropriate that would lead to improved enhance opportunities for wildlife and the further enjoyment, knowledge and education of the student body, staff and visitors to the campus.
As part of a review of the campus grounds the maintenance and planned replacement of the tree stock and the enhancement of the plantings around the house will be given a high priority. But the following will also be reviewed; • Maintain and enhance the structural diversity of trees and shrubs. • Maintain and enhance the existing native flowering plants, shrubs and trees. • To increase the opportunities for native flora & fauna across campus.
The Current Position: The natural areas around the campus have not been developed.
Future Plans: The natural areas around the campus have not been developed and therefore opportunities exist to develop areas as a local resource for schools, staff, students and the visiting public. Action should be taken to improve the area for flora and fauna as well as developing information and interpretation.
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Heritage
The Headington Hill campus offers staff, students and visitors an insight into Victorian life, and much could be done to increase education and interest in the site.
The Current Position:
Current levels of information about the site are limited and much could be done to provide information to staff, students and visitors.
Future Plans: Increase information about the campus’s history and develop links with schools and local groups.
Marketing
Unlike Parks & Open Spaces in general where there is a need to market its services and opportunities to the wider public, Headington Hill Campus has mainly an internal market. However given the historic significance (recent and past) opportunities exist to increase the opportunities to local people, groups and societies and to this end it’s intended to produce a brochure providing information about the grounds and the production of tree and gardens trails.
The Current Position: The formal areas around the campus have not been developed with education in mind and therefore opportunities exist to develop the area as a local resource for schools, staff, students and the visiting public. Action should be taken to improve the area for flora and fauna as well as developing information and interpretation.
Future Plans: Increase awareness of the site and its opportunities
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Community Involvement Having a university like Oxford Brookes on the doorstep brings some real benefits. We are here to serve our communities, not just through teaching and research but by making our resources available to as many people as possible, and working with local communities to benefit everyone.
Our public lectures bring some of the country’s leading figures to Brookes to talk about today’s important issues and – as the name implies – they’re open to everyone.
Our student volunteers work with the Citizens’ Advice Bureau and the Oxfordshire Short-Term Advocacy Scheme helping disadvantaged people to find out about their rights. Others raise money for community projects such as an ‘eco shelter’ for the Barracks Lane Community Garden in East Oxford and a drop in café in a youth centre in Botley.
Our researchers lead on a range of community projects. Academics have recently taught teenagers from the Blackbird Leys estate and Cowley area about regeneration, urban design, planning and architecture in the Urban Buzz: Rootscape project. The Oxford Brookes Poetry Centre has run a series of initiatives to take poetry out beyond the walls of the university.
Local people and residents are consulted fully regarding campus developments and their views are greatly appreciated and help us manage and develop our plans in the longer term.
Being part of the community is really important to us, and we are always keen to find new ways of making a contribution.
Future Actions:
Greater involvement is envisioned and therefore steps will be taken to widen the involvement of local residents and the wider community. It is planned to form a "friends Wheatley Campus" group or a local user group, this group would be formed of local residents, regular visitors, and students, academics and Grounds staff.
It is anticipated that friends would work in partnership with the University and participate in the development of environmental improvements and seek to encourage a wider active participation.
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Management The Management of the grounds is undertaken by the Grounds Manager, his staff undertakes maintenance activities across all Oxford Brookes sites with permanent staff being based at Harcourt Hill, Headington Hill & Wheatley. The Grounds Manager plans and delivers the required maintenance to the required and agreed standards for all sites and undertakes regular inspections and supervisory visits.
Future Plans:
To consolidate the recent improvements in horticultural and sports turf maintenance and management and seek improvement whenever and wherever possible.
Monitoring The in-house service is self-monitoring with the Grounds Manager reporting to the Deputy Director of Grounds & Facilities Management; however the adoption of this management plan gives substance to the service and directs and leads the Grounds Manager and his team to achieve a set of objectives agreed by the University.
Measuring Success, Monitoring Action Plans & Developments
The success will be measured against how well it succeeds in delivering the aims and objectives identified within the Management Plan, and Action plan. The Action Plans and relevant associated documents will be reviewed and up-dated annually (or sooner if required) in order to monitor progress and ensure the Management Plan remains a viable document that reflects the agreed improvements. Works not completed in any one work period/year may if appropriate be rolled over to the following year.
It will be the responsibility of the Grounds Manager to deliver the annual action plan in consultation with the Deputy Director of Grounds & Facilities Managements.
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Monthly Report The Grounds Manager will provide monthly reports to the Deputy Director including the current status of the action plan. Annual site visits will be undertaken by independent specialists to confirm that standards and objectives for the campus sites are being met. Monthly reports are either written or delivered verbally and cover the following areas; • The status of works within the action plan • Staff update • Items which may improve the performance of the contract. • Proposals for new work programmes and practices • Items affecting Health and Safety • Emergency call out arrangements for the month. • Progress set against targets and objectives • Compliments and complaints.
Performance Indicators The performance of the service will be judged against the following criteria: • Complaints from students, staff, visitors and or visitors • Compliments from students, staff, visitors and or visitors • Completion of works to schedule • The health of the plants • The overall cleanliness of the grounds • The visual impact of the grounds
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Action Plans - Headington Hill Campus 2010 - 2012 Heading Task Year(s) Budget
Welcoming Review Signage 2013, 2015 Within current budgets
Good and safe access Review access for all users 2012 Within current budgets
Equal access for all Review Car Parking for persons 2013 Within current budgets with disabilities Healthy, Safe and Secure
Safe equipment & facilities Produce site specific 2011 £2500 assessments Personal security Review Security Annually Within current budgets
Appropriate provision of facilities Ensure facilities are accessible Annually Within current budgets for all (Review) Quality of facilities Review Monthly Within current budgets
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Clean and Well Maintained Task Year(s) Budget
Litter & waste management Street furniture to be in Annual Review Within current budgets keeping with historic nature of site , review litter collection frequencies Grounds maintenance and horticulture Develop replacement Annual Review Within current budgets programme to include planting appropriate to the house and grounds Update staff skills 2011/12 £5,000 Develop a landscape strategy that ensures the grounds remain as historically significant 2010 Completed Control encroaching woodland onto areas of historical significance Building & infrastructure maintenance Review with others Annually Within current budgets
Equipment maintenance Annually Review all mechanical Annually Within current budgets equipment, update equipment list as required
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Sustainability Task Year(s) Budget
Environmental sustainability – All new planting to be from From 2012 then on- £3,000 pa local sources, increase native going Energy & natural resource plantings, increase levels of conservation, pollution sustainable material. Review plant & equipment for Annually Within current budgets pollution & noise control Pesticide use Cease to use pesticides 2012 Within current budgets
Peat use Sign up to Peat Free Charter 2012 Within current budgets
Waste minimisation Reduce all forms of wastage On-going £3,000
Arboriculture & woodland management In-house inspection of trees at Annually or as required £3,500 on at risk register Biennial Full Inspection of 2010/11, 2013, 2015 £5,000 Trees 2011 Develop trees replacement Immediate effect Management programme Cease ad-hoc planting of memorial tress. Produce list of 2011- Management trees (Coniferous and Deciduous) for memorial trees Develop tree strategy
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Conservation and Heritage Task Year(s) Budget
Conservation of natural features, wild fauna & flora Develop BAP 2012 £7,500 Increase opportunities for wildlife 2013 On-going Develop information leaflets 2011 £5,000 (all campus and information areas) Conservation of landscape features Develop strategy to conserve 2012-13 £3,500 the historic landscape and its features Conservation of buildings & structures Conserve historic features and 2013 £6,000 install interpretation boards, provide information – Pamphlets, Web Site, Interpretation Boards Community Involvement
Community involvement in management & development Through a Friends Group 2012-2015 Management encourage participation and encourage visitors Appropriate provision for community Develop a “Friends” of Group 2012 Management
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Marketing Task Year(s) Budget
Marketing & promotion Increase awareness of facilities On-going In-House available to local people/students/visitors. Provision of appropriate information Develop information 2011-2012 £7,500 pack/information Provision of appropriate educational/information Improve web site 2011 £3,000
Management
Implementation of management plan Regular reviews Quarterly Management External Audit Annually Management
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