The Spencer Building at Corpus Christi College Oxford

Founded in the 16th century, the Library at Corpus Christi College houses collections of national, architectural, and historical importance. Among its holdings are more than 20,000 early printed books and 546 manuscripts, including works by Galileo, Erasmus, and the Venerable Bede. Built in 1517, when the College was established by Richard Fox, Bishop of Winchester, the Grade I listed Library remarkably remains in use today, though it no longer met the needs of a modern university community.

The Spencer Building marks a major milestone in the College’s 508-year history, extending the library for the first time. Designed to address urgent needs for accessibility, sustainability, and the safeguarding of collections, it ensures that Corpus Christi’s world-class collection can be preserved and made accessible to future generations of students and researchers.

Consolidating the College’s exceptional collection into a single, purpose-built home, the Spencer building also introduces 55 new reader spaces and six dedicated research desks for accessing rare materials. The scheme is among the first of its kind at Oxford to be Passivhaus certified, setting a national benchmark for sustainable design in heritage contexts.

Modest in scale, the Spencer Building is carefully meshed into a constrained site between Corpus’s Grade I-listed Old Library, a surviving section of the medieval city wall, and a listed facade facing the Garden Quad. Historic fabric is retained on three elevations, while a refined new limestone facade on Oriel Square replaces a 1950s garage, restoring a dignified civic presence.

A large ‘library window’ punctuates the facade, borrowing from the College’s distinctive windows that traditionally mark key social spaces such as the Hall and Chapel. By night, low-level lighting casts a warm glow across the new forecourt, turning the building into a discreet beacon for students returning to College.

This dialogue between old and new is accentuated by the Spencer Building’s new staircase, aligned on axis with the Old Library. From the new library, you can look both inward towards the Old Library’s end wall and the Chapel’s beautiful stained-glass window, as well as out of the large window across Oriel Square to the Radcliffe Camera.

With extensive experience designing buildings with similar complexities, Wright & Wright was able to approach this project with an innate understanding of its challenges and opportunities.  Working closely with the College to support their ambitions, the client brief was fitted into a greatly reduced area with a project cost of less than half of a previous proposal’s.  Despite being in the highly sensitive Oriel Square Conservation Area, the proposal was granted planning permission.

The Spencer Building is conceived as a space for meaningful exchange between students and researchers - a place for focused study, original research, and the sharing of past knowledge to inspire future discovery. 

Three distinct reading rooms offer varied atmospheres - from monastic individual carrels to collaborative study tables - each filled with daylight and views over the Garden Quad. Bespoke oak and brass furniture, combined with careful detailing, enrich the student experience.