A New Chapter: Oxford Architects Becomes OA Architecture
A New Name for a Growing Practice
We are excited to share the first step in our next chapter: OA Architecture.
Formerly known as Oxford Architects, our new name reflects how the practice has evolved over recent years. While our roots remain firmly in Oxford, the business has grown far beyond a single city, with established studios in Bristol and Cambridge supporting clients across the UK.
As our reach has expanded, it became increasingly important that our name reflected the full breadth of the practice. Moving from Oxford Architects to OA Architecture allows each of our studios to grow with equal confidence, without being limited by a name tied to one location. It marks a natural progression for a practice that has always balanced heritage with ambition.
This is the first step in a wider rebrand, with more exciting changes to follow over the coming months. While our name may be changing, our values, our people and our commitment to thoughtful, well-crafted architecture remain exactly the same.
Our History: From 1962 to Today
The story of the practice began in late 1960, when four small architectural practices, made up of seven partners in total, began discussions about forming a larger, stronger practice together. After 18 months of planning and collaboration, The Oxford Architects Partnership was officially established on 1 June 1962.
From the beginning, the practice was built around collaboration and teamwork - creating well-designed buildings that work beautifully for their users and respond sensitively to their surroundings. More than sixty years later, that founding ethos still shapes the way we work today.
Over the decades, the practice has evolved through multiple generations of partners, adapting to changing industries, technologies and client needs while maintaining the same design-led approach. We have worked through recessions, periods of significant growth and major changes across the built environment, always with the same focus: delivering architecture that stands the test of time.
Most importantly, our history has been shaped by the many talented people who have contributed to the practice, and by the trust placed in us by our diverse and longstanding clients.
Bagley Croft: Our Oxford Home
Since 1983, our Oxford studio has been based at Bagley Croft in South Hinksey - a Victorian house that remains at the heart of the practice today.
Before moving to Bagley Croft, the practice had been located in central Oxford since its formation in 1962. As the business grew, those original premises became increasingly constrained, and with the lease nearing its end, the opportunity arose to acquire the lease for Bagley Croft from the University of Oxford.
The move provided the practice with a larger and more characterful home, while retaining its important Oxford identity. It also offered a welcome step away from the rising costs and congestion of the city centre, creating a setting better suited to the long-term future of the practice.
More than forty years later, Bagley Croft continues to be a defining part of who we are - a place that reflects both our heritage and our continued ambition.
From Oxford Architects Partnership to OA Architecture
Over the years, our name has evolved alongside the practice itself.
We began as The Oxford Architects Partnership, reflecting the collaborative structure on which the business was founded. As the practice developed, this naturally became known more simply as Oxford Architects - a name that served us well for decades and became closely associated with our work across education, healthcare, transport, heritage and residential sectors.
Today, as we continue to grow across multiple regions, we are becoming OA Architecture.
It is a shorter, clearer and more flexible identity that reflects both our history and our future - retaining the recognition of our established name while creating space for the practice to continue evolving beyond its Oxford origins.
