Oxford’s County Hall hotel to have 190 rooms across 7 floors

The transformation of the Grade II listed building into a boutique hotel is due to cost more than £60 million and is expected to be completed by late 2028.

A new premises licence application for the hotel, submitted by leading UK financial services provider Legal and General, has revealed new details of the plans.

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Developer Reef Origin intends to turn the historic part of County Hall into a bar and restaurant and the more modern 1970s addition to the building into the hotel.

County Hall (Image: Oxfordshire County Council)

Once complete, the premises will be operated by EQ Hotels which runs The Store Boutique Hotel in Broad Street, formerly department store Boswells but owned by Legal and General.

The historic County Hall would be the ‘central atrium’ of the new development with a new bar area in it, flanked by a speciality restaurant and the Court Restaurant.

At the back of the building there would be private dining and meeting rooms with landscaped gardens, a terrace and an outdoor garden bar at the front.

Inside the new hotel – an artist’s impression (Image: Reef Origin)

The hotel would have two access points, via the historic County Hall or through a separate lobby with a 24 hour-manned check-in desk in the new building.

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Hotel rooms made up of ‘superior rooms’, ‘universal access rooms’, ‘double standard rooms’ and suites would be spread across seven floors, one below ground and six above it.

Bedrooms would also be licenced to allow the hotel to stock mini bars for guests.

The roof terrace will also be a seating a recreation area, the licence application states, with a small bar and restaurant.

The rooftop terrace at The Store hotel (Image: Andy Ffrench)

A spokesperson for the applicant Legal and General said: “This is to be a large hotel redevelopment of the iconic Victorian County Hall and later more modern building situated adjacent to it.

“The operator is experienced in running venues of this nature, indeed having built and operated The Store in the centre of Oxford.

“The premises will principally provide hotel accommodation of 190 rooms, there is little risk of adverse impact on the licensing objectives.

“Services required by guests staying at the site – in particular breakfast, lunch and evening meals, along with recreational facilities – will be provided on site.

What the new hotel could look like (Image: Reef Origin)

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“There is also to be provided meeting rooms and small conference facilities along with a distinct bar area and two restaurants, along with an external area.”

Reef Origin previously said its goal is to ‘celebrate the heritage’ of Oxford’s West End while ‘opening it up to the public in ways that were never possible before’ while ‘activating a key site’ and creating more than 100 jobs.

Oxfordshire County Council sold County Hall in autumn 2024, and will relocate its headquarters temporarily to Midland House in Botley later this year while Speedwell House, its permanent future office, is prepared for the council to move into in spring 2028.