Said Business School plans unveiled

A view of the proposed common room in the new Said School

Oxford University and the Said Business School Foundation have unveiled the proposed design for the building which will become the new home for the Said Business School and act as a focal point for the University's plans to develop Europe's leading business school over the next five years. Subject to planning permission, the building, designed by leading architects Dixon Jones, will be built on an undeveloped site directly opposite the main entrance to Oxford railway station. The building will provide an imposing new `gateway' to the city for visitors approaching from the west, and will greatly assist in the regeneration of this area of the city. An outline planning application has been submitted to Oxford City Council and the full design will be submitted in the next few weeks. The building has been designed to create two new public squares for the city. Arriving by road from the west, the first view beyond the railway station would be of a new town square incorporating the main entrance to the Said Business School, its symmetrical front faìade faced with stone. The plans to be submitted show a 300-seat lecture theatre together with four horseshoe-shaped lecture theatres at the core of the building, surrounded by informal areas designed to encourage students to carry on the discussion when formal teaching ends. The University is also taking great care to ensure the conservation of the former London Midlands and Scottish station, which is on the proposed site, and has to be relocated from its current position because of the County Council's proposed road-widening scheme. Extensive discussions have been held and are continuing with English Heritage, who will also need to agree the plans to move the LMS station. The University proposes to dismantle it and transport it to a new protected position at the railway heritage site at Quainton in Buckinghamshire, where it can be fully restored and displayed to the public. The station was originally built as the terminus for the Buckinghamshire Railway Company, a subsidiary of the London and North Western Railway (LNWR), which was absorbed into the LMS railway company in 1923. Quainton is the home of the Buckinghamshire Railway Centre. The University's Business School, currently located in part of the Radcliffe Infirmary, has been named after Mr Wafic Said, the businessman and philanthropist, who has given £20 million towards the cost of the building. Mr Said has also contributed significantly towards the improvement of the station forecourt itself, including provision for the planting of mature trees. Mr Wafic Said said: `I am delighted with the progress of the Business School under Professor Kay's leadership in, admittedly, temporary and far from ideal premises. The School is of real importance to Britain, to the city of Oxford and to the University. `But to take its place in the forefront of international Business Schools, it needs first class facilities. I believe that Jeremy Dixon's and Ed Jones' design will add a building of real merit to Oxford's architectural heritage and will give the School a building and facilities comparable with the best in the world.' The architects, also responsible for rebuilding the Royal Opera House in London, have concentrated on producing a quiet and attractive environment inside the building with a series of courtyards and glazed walkways. They visited leading business schools in the US to see how teaching methods influenced the design of their buildings. The School has made rapid progress in developing its reputation as a first class provider of high quality business and management education. It is planning to treble the number of MBA students to 200 by the year 2001, and will shortly announce a series of new appointments to its 26-strong faculty of professors and lecturers. The 60 students in this year's MBA intake have already recorded the highest GMAT entry score of any European MBA programme. Professor John Kay, Professor of Management and Peter Moores Director of the Said Business School, said: `We are very excited about the new plans which will provide probably the best facilities of any business school in the world.' The School's development will also serve as a significant resource for the local business community.