Architects were instructed to design an ‘academic’ wing with teaching areas on the ground floor.The south wing consists of the main dining hall and kitchens. The eastern elevation has a reception, finance office, shop, lift, toilets and lobby. The temple is designed so that it can be used at its full size or reduced down by partitions, to provide two further large teaching or workshop areas.

On the first floor,visiting student accommodation can be seen above the academic wing, bedrooms for Lamas, monks and visitors can be seen above the south wing, and offices are placed above the eastern elevation. Above the temple there is an audience room, dining room, kitchen and private rooms for the Dalai Lama, Karmapa, Thrangu Rinpoche and any other visiting high teachers. On the second floor (not shown here) there will be a shrine room, to complete the temple.

Existing building costs within Oxfordshire depend on the nature of the building, location, and the size of operation. The range of building cost is normally between £1000m2 to £2000m2. The anticipated cost of building the monastery to a fully serviceable status excluding the supply and fitting out of religious statues and decorations should be in the mid-range of £1500m2, plus the cost of walkways and covered areas. The costs involved in building the monastery are shown in the table below.

If necessary, the monastery could be built in stages; for example the east and south wing could be built for around £2.0 million pounds, leaving the north wing for completion for £1.0 million pounds at a later date. In terms of land, the size and scale of the development will restrict the number of suitable sites within close proximity of Oxford city. However, occasionally suitable sites do become available subject to timing and funds. It would seem that there are two main options for the provision of a suitable site. Firstly, brownfield (previously used) sites do become available within Oxford or its outskirts, although this land is very sought after by developers. Secondly, there are some opportunities to purchase existing farms or country houses that can be included within the design brief.

The countryside sites will be further away from Oxford than the brownfield land and the implications of this need to be considered. Due to the quick turnaround and intense competition for development land it is difficult to put a definitive on land values, as these depend on many local factors such as location and the type of planning permission that may be attached. Given the information that has been provided by property agents and taking all into consideration, it should be possible to acquire a suitable site for around £1.0 million pounds.

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