A new press release from Birmingham City University,

UNIVERSITY UNVEILS CITY CENTRE CAMPUS PLANS

•    £150m development proposals go on display to public
•    Vice-Chancellor hails ambitious plans
•    Dedicated website launched

Birmingham City University is displaying its plans for a City Centre Campus development in public for the first time.
The exhibition opened at Millennium Point this afternoon (Friday May 30) and continues on Saturday May 31 from 9.30am-12.30pm.
Vice-Chancellor David Tidmarsh said: “I believe that this development at the heart of the city’s Eastside represents possibly the most exciting this University has ever undertaken. From the outset, we have been determined to create a vision which will set the University at the very forefront of educational provision in the UK.

“It is with an enormous sense of pride and excitement that Birmingham City University is able to display these plans for our proposed new campus.

“Since agreeing terms to develop this important site at the heart of the city’s Eastside development, we have been determined to create a vision which will set the University at the very forefront of educational provision in the UK.

“It is our ambition to use this development to inspire teaching, learning, research and knowledge transfer, in a space which is connected both to the surrounding developments and the city of Birmingham.

“This will be a very special location, focused on arts and technology which garner international respect and building further on our well-established reputation for cutting-edge technology and design.

“Students and staff will be able to enjoy a state-of-the-art building with some of the UK’s best facilities. Through a process of full consultation and involvement, those who will use the buildings will be able to help shape them.

”We are extremely grateful to all those who choose to use this exhibition to examine our proposals and make their views known. I very much hope that many of those will reflect my own personal enthusiasm for this project.”

The University will be embarking on a full programme of communication and consultation with staff and students. A series of faculty champions has been appointed to communicate with colleagues and give feedback to the project team. A dedicated microsite has been launched on the University intranet and there will be regular e-newsletters as well as a touring display of the proposals, so that everyone will be given the chance to see the proposals and make their opinion known.
The development, in partnership with Birmingham City Council and Advantage West Midlands, will create at least 37,000 square metres of space, with new facilities to meet the requirements of the following faculties:

•    Faculty of Media and Performance Arts.
•    Faculty of Technology, Innovation & Development.
•    Birmingham Institute of Art and Design (BIAD).
Additionally, it is intended to create a concert hall, space for working with business, a Student Centre (to include library, learning resources and exhibition space), a food court and a retail centre. The first phase of the building is expected to open to students in September 2012.

Once completed, the University’s City Centre Campus will also encompass existing buildings including Millennium Point, an existing building providing approximately 14,500 square metres of accommodation currently occupied by the Technology Innovation Centre (tic) and the Birmingham School of Acting.