We have looked at Sheffield, Birmingham, Brighton & Leicester with plans to visit other universities this year.

Our approach has been to utilise locally sourced contractors and employment. Regular reporting will take place on the proportion of local labour, under-represented groups and apprentices that are engaged on the project. Materials will also be sourced as locally as possible, so this supports the local economy and has the benefit of minimising emissions from the transportation of materials.

We will share regular updates on the campus developments with our local, national and global communities through our wide-ranging communications channels:

• Social media channels
• News articles and press releases
• Student and staff newsletters
• Community newsletter (Sign up here)
• Campus visits and events

When complete, Castle Meadow Campus will feature state-of-the-art facilities and will be a hub for collaboration for the whole community – from local schools and businesses to academics and industry.

The campus will provide an additional new base for Nottingham University Business School (NUBS), which will capitalise on the city centre location to develop new opportunities for teaching, research, and partnership activity, enabling it to grow its postgraduate offer and increase collaboration with strategic partners.

It will also be the home of the university’s Digital Nottingham project, which will harness digital and data knowledge and innovation to support a thriving regional digital sector and help solve challenges across the city and region. 

The university envisages opening up the campus as a venue for events, installations, demos and digital showcasing – including immersive technology, AI and Robotics and digital 3D mapping tools. In addition, it hopes to be able to offer digital skills education for local professionals and young people as well as regional networking opportunities for small and medium sized businesses.

We will work with the City to enhance the pedestrian and cycle routes that serve the campus – particularly on key routes that link to Broadmarsh, Castle Boulevard, the Meadows and the rail station/tram. 

Our other campuses are well known for their excellent external spaces, and we want CMC to be considered in the same way. Whilst the campus will have a defined footprint, we want to open it up and blur the edges with the surrounding area – particularly the canal. On the campus, the development of the landscaping will be a fundamental part of the campus experience and will provide outdoor space that encourages its use for teaching, study or decompressing and relaxing away from studies. It will provide an excellent external environment through enhancements such as the creation of collaborations spaces, enhanced biodiversity, links to the canal, meeting spaces, and external seating.

The local authority conservation team are generally content with our plans and we will work with them to ensure we can align our thinking. We have recently met with Historic England as well to ensure they are aligned with our plans. Listing will influence administration of any proposed changes – it’s likely to add some time and additional information to be provided.

The university recognises the importance of the design of the Castle Meadow Campus and we want to do it justice by enhancing the features in the Hopkins and Arup design. A detailed design guide has been collated by the original architect and engineering team, to ascertain what works we can do and cannot do. We are also progressing a Heritage Impact Assessment to detail the significant areas of interest.

The university published, printed, and posted an information guide with invitation to the open day to the 1,100 homes and business most closely located tto the South of the campus in the meadows area. This is in addition to 9,000+ residents in other parts of the city. We're also opening up a community forum in the Autumn.

Through our existing Public Engagement and Community Engagement Teams there will be an ongoing effort to connect with local people, communities, and businesses to ensure the Campus has a positive impact in the local area.

The University Strategy places a special emphasis on environmental sustainability and supporting the city’s ambitions to be net zero carbon by 2028. Making use of existing buildings rather than creating new buildings is a significantly more sustainable solution to support the university’s expansion plans.

The Castle Meadow development was ahead of its time when it was constructed in the early 1990s as it integrated a wide range of sustainable measures that were innovative for the period. Reusing these buildings, even after adaptation, means that the CO2 expended will be a fraction of that from a new build and significantly below the targets now set by the Royal Institute of British Architects.

The Castle Meadow site itself is an attractive green space, with easy access to the train station and the cycle paths of the Nottingham Canal, offering sustainable, accessible and safe transport routes for staff, students and visitors

Our campus location will dramatically increase the number of Nottingham-based businesses in close, physical proximity to the Business School (and it’s 300+ staff and 1,500+ postgraduate students). This will make it far easier for a variety of collaborative activities to take place between city centre businesses and our staff and students – to the potential benefit of all concerned.

While other agencies have statutory responsibilities for housing, crime and health and social care, we work in partnership with Nottingham City Council and Nottinghamshire Police and offer support where appropriate and practical. We also partner with Emmanuel House, a local homelessness charity, to provide a winter shelter on University Park campus.

Additionally, the draft Student Living Strategy sets out how we will work closely with Nottingham City Council and Nottingham Trent University on shared challenges that impact residents in the city, in particular student residents.