Brookes Restaurant to close

20-Sep-2019 - Last updated on 27-Apr-2021 at 12:33 GMT

Oxford Brookes university is to close its Brookes training restaurant at the end of the current academic year, with a date provisionally set for 1 May.

The decision follows ‘a formal consultation process’ that had prompted an outcry from hundreds of people, including fellows and alumni of the university.

In a statement regarding the closure, Oxford Brookes said: “Brookes Restaurant has maintained an excellent reputation over a number of years, reflecting the quality of its service.

“However, despite a number of initiatives over the past decade, the restaurant has consistently made a significant annual operating loss.

“Over the last four academic years the restaurant has lost an average of £280,000 per year on direct operating activities.”

A petition that had been set up to save Brookes Restaurant, describing it as an "integral part of the curriculum”, has so far received 1,359 signatures.

One of the signatories was Oxford Brookes’ former vice-chancellor Sir Clive Booth, who described it as a jewel in the university’s crown.

Meanwhile Bob Price, the former leader of Oxford City Council who was also Oxford Brookes' director of human resources between 2002 and 2013, previously wrote that closing the restaurant would be an act of vandalism.

"It is a brilliant teaching resource as well as a great venue for public 'outreach' taking the University's skillset to the outside world.”