Historic buildings at the former Littlemore Hospital are set to begin a new chapter after plans were approved to transform the site’s former chapel and superintendent’s lodge into a public restaurant.
Oxford City Council has granted permission for The Chapel and Lodge, a new hospitality venue proposed by Ellison Oxford Limited, the company behind the ambitious Ellison Institute of Technology (EIT) development currently under construction at Oxford Science Park.
The approval represents another significant investment by the organisation in Oxford’s hospitality sector. Alongside its new science and innovation campus, EIT is also restoring the historic Eagle and Child pub in Oxford city centre, broadening its vision of creating public spaces alongside research and innovation.
The restaurant will occupy two of the most historically significant buildings within the former Littlemore Hospital, one of Britain’s earliest purpose-built mental health institutions. Today, the buildings are used as offices by construction company Laing O’Rourke, which is delivering the Ellison Institute campus, and the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust.
Planning documents describe the chapel as having lost much of its historic character through decades of office conversions and twentieth-century alterations, while the adjoining lodge has undergone numerous unsympathetic changes since it was built in the late nineteenth century. The approved scheme will remove a series of modern extensions before carefully restoring both buildings, reconnecting them with a new glazed walkway and adding a conservatory.
In approving the application, Oxford City Council’s planning officer welcomed the approach to the heritage assets.
“The proposals’ retention of the Chapel and Lodge buildings whilst stripping away the more recent, unsympathetic additions and alterations is commendable,” the officer said.
“The proposal would re-establish the relationship between the historic buildings with considered additions and reinstatement of an interconnecting walkway between the two.”
Once complete, the venue will accommodate up to 150 guests across the two buildings. Parking provision will reduce from 42 spaces to 24 as part of the redevelopment.
According to the applicant, the restaurant forms part of a wider ambition to create places where research, culture and the wider community intersect.
“An important part of EIT’s vision is to create meaningful public places, vibrant hubs that spark conversation and bring together some of the greatest minds Oxford has to offer,” the design and access statement says.
It adds that, like the Eagle and Child, the Chapel and Lodge will invite the public to experience historic buildings that “honour their treasured past while reimagining them for the future as a contemporary food and beverage destination.”
The proposals have also attracted local support, provided the venue remains genuinely accessible to residents.
Councillor David Henwood, who represents Littlemore on Oxfordshire County Council, previously welcomed the prospect of a new restaurant serving the area but stressed that affordability should remain a priority.
He said the plans for a publicly accessible venue operating throughout the day were “particularly positive”, but noted that Littlemore is an area of significant deprivation.
“It is essential that the institute gives careful consideration to both accessibility and affordability so that local residents can genuinely benefit from the development,” he said.
The approval marks another milestone in the Ellison Institute’s expanding presence across Oxford, combining the restoration of historic buildings with new public amenities that sit alongside its investment in scientific research and innovation. If delivered as proposed, The Chapel and Lodge will provide a distinctive new dining destination while preserving an important part of Littlemore’s architectural heritage.
