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The University of Nottingham has embarked on the next phase of its ambitious development programme, and has commenced with a further £50million worth of improvements to its campuses.
The programme will further transform the campus landscape at the University, enhancing the student learning experience by providing world class facilities and setting new standards for teaching and learning in the 21st century.
The University is committed to continuously improving its teaching environment and as part of its on-going strategy; a £260million investment has already been made into improving its buildings and facilities in the last five years alone.
Professor David Greenaway, Vice-Chancellor of The University of Nottingham, said: “Part of our strategy as a University is to continuously look at ways of improving our students’ learning experience. To do this we feel it is vital to invest in the buildings and facilities where we teach in order to provide an exceptional learning environment. This latest programme is particularly important for our sustainability agenda, and the reduction of our environmental footprint has been a priority during planning.”
New building projects
Construction has now started on the four new building projects at University Park, Sutton Bonington, Jubilee Campus and Grove Farm playing fields, with completion expected by 2015.
There will be a £19million replacement library for the George Green Science and Engineering Library at University Park. The redevelopment will include a new building extension and refurbishment and overhaul of the existing library space including a new facade.
The new Engineering and Science Library will double the size of the existing library, improving the facilities on University Park. The new library will provide a valuable increase in student study spaces and work room, as well as providing a new catering outlet and computer work stations.
Transformation
The latest development at Sutton Bonington is the £9million construction of a new three-storey Amenities Building. This will include a 500 seat dining hall, student common rooms and staff lounge and will also house the Graduate Centre, Faith Room, Student Guild Service and the new Student Services Service.
The dining hall is the most dramatic area within the building. The double-height space creates an open, airy environment with an abundance of natural light and visual connection with the boulevard at one end.
Upon completion, both the Engineering and Science Library and Amenities Building will achieve a Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) ‘excellent’ rating. BREEAM is the world’s leading design and assessment method which sets the standard for best practice in sustainable building design.
Commitment to sustainable chemistry
The latest landmark development on Jubilee Campus is The GlaxoSmithKline Carbon Neutral Laboratory for Sustainable Chemistry. This £20million innovative chemistry laboratory will be a Centre of Excellence for sustainable chemistry and will focus on research that is of particular relevance to the pharmaceutical industry.
The unique carbon neutral building will set new standards for the development of laboratories and will be designed to meet the highest levels of sustainable good practice.
The building itself will incorporate the latest technologies to allow it to be carbon-neutral over its lifetime. The laboratory will be built from natural materials and energy required to run it will be met by renewable sources such as solar power and sustainable biofuel. Excess energy created will provide enough carbon credits over 25 years to pay back the carbon used in its construction and is being used to heat the nearby office development on campus.
The main purpose of the new laboratory will be to house world changing research in sustainable chemistry in line with the ethos of the building. Researchers will aim to ensure their research meets the same goals, with the focus being on sustainable chemical methods. All research will involve safe, efficient and sustainable methods that will deliver ‘less waste, and more product’, and will train a future generation of PhD students who will have a much greater appreciation of sustainability.
Grove Farm
The University Sports playing fields at Grove Farm adjacent to the River Trent will also benefit from a £5m investment in two new pavilions, providing replacement changing room facilities for use in student sporting activities.
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Notes to editors: The University of Nottinghamhas 42,000 students at award-winning campuses in the United Kingdom, China and Malaysia. It was ‘one of the first to embrace a truly international approach to higher education’, according to the Sunday Times University Guide 2013. It is also one of the most popular universities among graduate employers, one of the world’s greenest universities, and winner of the Times Higher Education Award for ‘Outstanding Contribution to Sustainable Development’. It is ranked in the UK's Top 10 and the World's Top 75 universities by the Shanghai Jiao Tong and the QS World Rankings.
More than 90 per cent of research at The University of Nottingham is of international quality, according to the most recent Research Assessment Exercise. The University aims to be recognised around the world for its signature contributions, especially in global food security, energy & sustainability, and health. The University won a Queen’s Anniversary Prize for Higher and Further Education for its research into global food security.
Impact: The Nottingham Campaign, its biggest ever fundraising campaign, will deliver the University’s vision to change lives, tackle global issues and shape the future. More news…