The Oxford to Cambridge Arc is a proposal to transform the stretch of land between the two university cities, to include a new rail link (East West Rail), new housing and business development covering Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Northamptonshire, Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire.  Long-term, sustainable economic growth, employment and lasting improvements to the environment, green infrastructure and biodiversity are key focuses of the Arc. 

Initially recommending 1million new homes, this project was trumpeted by the National Infrastructure Committee in 2017 which suggested it could increase GVA for the region to £250billion. Works on constructing East West Rail have already started and in February 2021, the Government confirmed plans to develop the scheme further through MHCLG’s Oxford-Cambridge Arc Spatial Framework.

The event will bring members up to speed on the proposals and as the lead Government Department for the Arc, MHCLG will provide an update on the project and OxCam Arc Spatial Framework. This will include information on the current status of the scheme, how it fits in with government priorities and detail on the forthcoming consultation, as well as how landowners can engage with the project.

The CLA expects biodiversity offsetting and natural capital to be a significant part of this project and so have also asked DEFRA to enlighten members on the environmental elements associated with the scheme, and what opportunities these may bring. We will also outline how best the CLA can represent and assist members with this project 

Victoria Vyvyan, CLA Vice President will be chairing the event and speakers include:

• Kris Krasnowski, Portfolio Director, Oxford-Cambridge Arc - MHCLG
• Rachel Fisher, Deputy Director Land Use Policy - DEFRA
•  Andrew Shirley, Chief Surveyor - CLA

An audience Q&A will follow the presentations, and the event will conclude with information on the next steps for the project from a CLA perspective, such as the formation of a member-led OxCam Arc Working Group. 

To join the event, please register below. 

The event will be run as a Zoom Webinar. Joining instructions will be sent out 24 hours before the event. Please click on the Zoom link to enter the event at 2pm on Tuesday 22 June. For those unable to join the event live, a recording link will be sent out afterwards. 

For further information or if you have any questions, please email events@cla.org.uk