E. Middle Way South and related cross roads
General overview
This area to the West of Banbury Road is marked by changing domestic architecture, from the Pre-Victorian style of Rogers Street to the1930s Art Deco style further North.
As its name suggests, Middle Way is situated between, and runs parallel to, Woodstock and Banbury Roads. The road contains many styles of building, demonstrating the transition from the early Victorian South Parade houses towards modern commercial buildings.
At the Southern end traditional cottages follow on from the Old Slaughter House Mews and the North Oxford Spiritual Church. This progression is interrupted by more contemporary infills. The two office blocks backing onto Alexandra Park: the grandiosely named ‘Free Thinking House’ and ‘Summertown Pavilion’, are examples of 1960s architecture which contrast with the rest of the street.
Rogers Street is at the heart of the original village of Summertown. Its houses are of varying character, some built when plots were first released in 1820 now almost 200 years ago. Others are much more recent. On its northern corner with Banbury Road, we find the ‘Gothic Cottage’ with large horse chestnut trees in its garden, opposite a small butcher and fishmonger’s shop (the last of its kind in Summertown). The Gothic Cottage sets the tone for this characterful street where the houses are either red brick or plastered and painted in white and pastel colours. Rogers Street has much charm and still conveys an impression of how the early 19th century rural settlement of Summertown might have looked.
Grove Street, which has one-way traffic, has no front gardens or any other substantial greenery. At the end near Middle Way, there are cottage-styled terraced houses, some very picturesque, some average. The end near Banbury Road has been more recently developed as terraced houses, some of which are divided into apartments. The new buildings are sympathetic to the scale of the old, and the old and the new do not conflict.
Hobson Street starts the transition from the terraced houses on its South side to larger free standing and semi-detached houses on its North side. The Southern side of the street has an ordinary, in part utilitarian, terraced section succeeded by more attractive well-detailed brick houses and a more recent terrace with front parking. Hobson Court, near Banbury Road, completes the street.
This street is another ‘mixed bag’ of styles and periods including Cavendish Court – an infill enclave of larger terraced houses with distinct steeply-pitched roofs.
The East end of Osberton Road is built in a harmonious style, based on integrated continuous half-roofs projecting over the ground floor bay-windows. Towards the West end there is a large and more recently developed apartment building, providing residential accommodation for the elderly. On the North side, near Woodstock Road, there is an impressive country mansion.
A typical aspect of the area is the relatively recent growth of developments in available spaces e.g. Dudley and Martin Courts, which are apartment blocks in generous green settings.
History
The Southern part of this area formed the very first development of the Summertown village. It is a vital part the Summertown heritage together with the roads below South Parade and the West side of the shopping parade. Its charm lies in its scale, which possibly provided an early affordable sector to balance the larger Victorian houses of North Oxford.
Issues
– The scale –traditional and intimate – makes parking and traffic an issue
– Lack of green spaces
Assets
– The main asset is its location, close to the Summertown shopping centre
– A place away from the heavy traffic of the two main artery roads.
– Several remarkable individual houses, some almost 200 years old
– Good use has been made of available space for more recent developments
– The Old School building at the corner of Rogers Street fully deserves its protected status
Guidance for new development
-The ‘in between’ location of Middle Way could be part of a North South cycle route, avoiding the main artery roads
-Most streets can be enhanced by responsible traffic calming using street greenery/trees in containers
-The opening up of Alexandra Park will greatly improve the amenity of this area
-The development of the various court based apartment blocks demonstrates that old and new can exist together, provided there is generous additional landscaping
Download this Character Assessment as a pdf
Download the original volunteer written character assessments as a pdf:
