Oxford, United Kingdom
Rhodes House, designed by Sir Herbert Baker and completed in 1929, is located in central Oxford within extensive gardens and serves as the historic headquarters of the Rhodes Trust, overseeing the prestigious Rhodes Scholarships and other global fellowships. Stanton Williams has modernized and extended this Grade II* listed building, allowing the Trust to evolve while retaining its heritage. The project involved major structural changes, creating a 300-seat Conference Hall, foyers, offices, and refurbishing the East Wing with new bedrooms and a residential courtyard. A new glass Pavilion in the West Gardens serves as a solar collector and meeting space.
Rhodes House won an 2025 International Architecture Award from The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design.
A vaulted roof crowns the Conference Hall, which was formed by converting former archive spaces beneath the main rooms. Access has been newly arranged with a stone staircase at the Rotunda, the building’s main entrance, leading into a foyer flooded with daylight from glazed lightwells. The West Garden Pavilion offers a serene setting for interaction among scholars and visitors.
The East Wing restores its original residential function and adds 21 ensuite bedrooms, while a new courtyard adds 16 more rooms around a communal terrace that echoes the historic façade. Accessibility is improved throughout with new lifts.
Sustainability is a key focus. The redesign repurposed basement archives to unlock new program space with minimal structural changes. The Conference Hall roof uses a lightweight, efficient concrete vault with coffers, reducing material use. Passive cooling is achieved through ground-coupled earth ducts, and solar heat collected by the Pavilion is reused for heating. The courtyard and offices feature earth-sheltered, insulated designs to minimize heat loss, with carefully sized glazing for natural light without overheating.
Durable new materials were selected, and historic elements like timber panels, doors, stone paving, and walling were salvaged and reintegrated. Insulation upgrades and more efficient building services improve energy use and adaptability for future needs.
This transformation balances the preservation of historic character with contemporary function, enhancing Rhodes House as a landmark of heritage and innovation.
Architects: Stanton Williams
Lead Architect: Paul Williams
Design Team: Stanton Williams, Webb Yates, Skelly & Couch
Original Architect: Herbert Baker (1929)
Conservation Architect and Heritage Consultants: Pendery Architecture & Heritage and Marcus Beale Architects
Archaeology Consultants: Museum of London Archaeology
Landscape Architects: Bradley-Hole Schoenaich Landscape Architects
Client: The Rhodes Trust
General Contractor: Beard Construction
Photographers: Hufton + Crow
