Building 33 (Barrack Block)

This barrack block dates to 1934 and was built by the Air Ministry’s Directorate of Works and Buildings to drawing number 1778/34. Constructed of dark red brick in stretcher bond, the building features hipped slate roofs. The plan consists of dormitory rooms accommodating a maximum of 16 airmen on each side of a central entrance and staircase, with a short service block to the rear. The layout forms a T-plan with a short center arm.

The building is single-storey and has windows predominantly of timber 12-pane sash design, with some 8-pane windows and smaller windows in the service block. The facade is articulated into sections of 2+2+2 bays, with windows evenly spaced in the older sections and paired groupings in the later ones. The central section has square turrets that project slightly, each with a separate hipped roof. A central pair of 3-panel doors are located under a deep, recessed panel with projecting flat concrete hood. Windows have flush, chamfered concrete lintels with run-out stops, and stooled sills. Roofs are swept to box eaves with deep soffits. The original doors and joinery are retained internally.

This building represents the architectural style of the initial phase of construction at RAF Bicester, reflecting the first permanent designs for Britain's independent air force. Bicester is the best-preserved of the bomber bases created as part of Sir Hugh Trenchard's expansion of the RAF, and retains a significant layout and fabric relating to pre-1930s military aviation and the development of Britain’s strategic bomber force. The site provides an important historical record of the expansion of the RAF and its continued development through wartime and the Cold War. For further historical details, see Building 16 (Officers’ Quarters and Mess).