Tuesday, 04 July 2023
The University of Nottingham is seeking expertise from the local community to help shape the future of its newest campus, ahead of plans to open up the doors to the public for the first time this month.
The university is establishing a volunteer advisory group for its Castle Meadow Campus, its new city centre campus on the site of the former HMRC headquarters, at the foot of the historic Nottingham castle.
Jason Phoenix, Castle Meadow Programme Director for the University of Nottingham, said: “This is a hugely exciting development for the university and will enable us to realise some of our ambitions to expand research, teaching and collaboration activity, offer increased opportunities for civic engagement, and develop the university experience for many of our postgraduate students.
“We want the local community to feel a part of what’s happening at Castle Meadow at every stage of its development and are seeking ‘critical friends’ to provide advice and support and bring best practice and knowledge to the project helping us to review plans as they develop.”
Credit: And Ares
Encompassing seven buildings – recently awarded grade II listed status for their iconic appearance - and 32,500 square metres of space, 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.
Officially opening by 2025, 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.
A phased refurbishment plan is underway and in purchasing Castle Meadow Campus, the university also became landlords for law firm Browne Jacobson which is currently based at the site. It is soon to be joined by professional services firm KPMG, which has announced it will relocate its East Midlands office to the campus later this year.
We want the local community to feel a part of what’s happening at Castle Meadow at every stage of its development.
For the advisory board, the university is looking for:
- People with experience in design/building multi use spaces
- People with experience in sustainability
- People with experience in digital partnership and learning
- People who have experience in space utilization and agile occupancy
- People who work with local councils, Whitehall and public service
- Representatives from the post graduate student community
- Local civic representatives who are active in the Nottingham community
The university is also throwing open the doors to Castle Meadows Campus on Thursday 27 July between 9.30am and 2.30pm for a Community Open Day.
The event will offer a unique opportunity for local people to visit the new campus and find out more about the vision for the site. The day will also offer the chance to ask any questions about the campus and its impact on the local community.
Highlights on the day will include:
Exhibitions: The open day will feature a variety of exhibitions showcasing illustrations and plans of the modern facilities and resources that will be available on campus.
Networking Opportunities: Attendees will have the chance to not only meet with key members of the Castle Meadow team but also with representatives from local businesses and organisations, providing opportunities to connect with like-minded individuals and foster new professional relationships.
Q&A Session: A Q&A session will be held with members of the CMC team. This will provide attendees with the opportunity to ask any questions they may have about the campus and its development.
Tour: Guided tours of the campus will allow attendees to explore the site. The Castle Meadow team will provide an overview of the campus and showcase the amazing resources that will be available to students and the local community once fully operational.
Activities: family fun including an ice cream van, VR ride experience and face painting.
For more information about the Castle Meadow Campus advisory group or to register an interest in attending the open day (booking is required by 20 July) please email castlemeadowcampus@nottingham.ac.uk
Story credits
More information is available from Emma Thorne, Head of News, in the Press Office at The University of Nottingham, on +44 (0)115 846 8092 or by email at emma.thorne@nottingham.ac.uk Alternatively, please contact the Press Office on 0115 951 5798 or by email at pressoffice@nottingham.ac.uk
Notes to editors:
About the University of Nottingham
Ranked 32 in Europe and 16th in the UK by the QS World University Rankings: Europe 2024, the University of Nottingham is a founding member of the Russell Group of research-intensive universities. Studying at the University of Nottingham is a life-changing experience, and we pride ourselves on unlocking the potential of our students. We have a pioneering spirit, expressed in the vision of our founder Sir Jesse Boot, which has seen us lead the way in establishing campuses in China and Malaysia - part of a globally connected network of education, research and industrial engagement.
Nottingham was crowned Sports University of the Year by The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024 – the third time it has been given the honour since 2018 – and by the Daily Mail University Guide 2024.
The university is among the best universities in the UK for the strength of our research, positioned seventh for research power in the UK according to REF 2021. The birthplace of discoveries such as MRI and ibuprofen, our innovations transform lives and tackle global problems such as sustainable food supplies, ending modern slavery, developing greener transport, and reducing reliance on fossil fuels.
The university is a major employer and industry partner - locally and globally - and our graduates are the second most targeted by the UK's top employers, according to The Graduate Market in 2022 report by High Fliers Research.
We lead the Universities for Nottingham initiative, in partnership with Nottingham Trent University, a pioneering collaboration between the city’s two world-class institutions to improve levels of prosperity, opportunity, sustainability, health and wellbeing for residents in the city and region we are proud to call home.
More news…