Liverpool Uni unveils £600m campus upgrade plan
THE University of Liverpool has unveiled plans to invest around £600m in its estate – including a £250m upgrade of its own student accommodation at its city centre campus.
The university is already on site with a £44m scheme to build a new 710-bedroom facility and a 250-seat restaurant, but it said that it is also planning a £350m investment in its academic estate both at its city centre campus and its Leahurst campus on the Wirral.
Existing accommodation will be refurbished and new student properties are being built at Mulberry Court and Alsop at Brownlow Hill. It will also spend £5m developing its Greenbank site at Mossley Hill, adding more accommodation including a self-contained student village with on-site catering and sports facilities.
A new £25m set of centralised laboratories will be built for teaching science subjects and £32m is to be spent on teaching facilities at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences. The university’s management school will also receive a £7.5m upgrade.
Leader of Liverpool City Council, Cllr Joe Anderson, said: “This isn’t small scale stuff. The University of Liverpool wants to punch its weight as one of the country’s leading universities and one of the finest research centres in the world. This investment will go a long way to helping it do just that.
“We have a lot to offer in Liverpool, and our city is perfectly placed to attract students from all over the world. We have a world-famous waterfront, one of Europe’s best shopping districts in Liverpool ONE, and a culture and nightlife to rival any city in the world.
“These proposals will also provide jobs and employment opportunities for local people, not to mention the promise of apprenticeships to help people gain vital experience in their trade.
“They will leave a lasting legacy of training and up-skilling the people of the city. I want to welcome this project, and look forward to watching it develop.”
Steve Dickson, director of facilities management at the university, said: “We’re making these investments to support our Strategic Plan with particular emphasis on enhancing the student experience and research excellence.
“We know from market research that in order to attract the best students, the University needs to offer more accommodation at its city centre campus, particularly self-catered and en-suite rooms.
“Applications for our accommodation have doubled this year and it’s important that we make this significant investment in order to meet student demand in the future.”
“The student population is very important to the city – students contribute around £300 million to Liverpool’s economy every year.
“Liverpool is an extremely popular choice for students and remains heavily over-subscribed but it’s important that all aspects of our student experience – including accommodation – are world class, in order to attract the most talented students to the university.”
