JACK STRAWS LANE CARE HOME

The recently submitted application for Jack Straws Lane, Oxford – with Frontier Estates and Broadway Malyan – was an opportunity for us to explore new specialist design for the assisted living development.

The external gardens will be the primary external space for some residents, and so it is crucial that the external space is somewhere that they can meet with others, but feel happy and safe whilst doing so. The garden layout based on a biophilic design concept; creating a connection between humans and nature for a more productive and healthier lifestyle.
A series of well-connected spaces set around a circuitous route, calmer for resident wayfinding and will provide an identity that residents will easily perceive. Several key design principles were paramount to create a welcoming and versatile space, including communal spaces to encourage social interaction, productive growing beds and open areas for group activity that are large enough for social distancing, sensory planting to evoke the senses, natural shade and semi-covered seating to ensure the garden in accessible throughout the day.