Leeds Trinity’s City Campus is most significant development in university’s history

Professor Catherine O’Connor is the Pro Vice-Chancellor for Education and Experience at Leeds Trinity University

Leeds Trinity University has officially opened its new City Campus, marking a key milestone in a journey which started in 2022. That was when the University instigated its search to find a location for a city campus, and we spent hours upon hours viewing premises and reflecting on their suitability to provide the transformational and career-led educational experience we aim to deliver for our students.

Fast forward to October 2024, we welcomed our first cohorts of students to 1 Trevelyan Square to kickstart teaching at the new campus and it has been fantastic to watch them bringing the building to life.

City Campus

From the moment our team set foot in Trevelyan Square, there was a buzz. It is right in heart of the city and it ‘felt’ like a university, even before we had envisaged exactly what the space would look like.

So why create a City Campus to complement our Main Campus in Horsforth?

Leeds Trinity has been delivering education at its Brownberrie Lane site for almost 60 years and the move to the city centre builds on the foundations of this heritage rather than breaking free from it.

The University grew from origins as two Catholic teacher training colleges. When the colleges merged and a wider range of courses began to be offered, the institution took a key principle from teacher training and embedded it in every course – the principle of work-based learning as a cornerstone of academic, professional and personal development. Supporting the development of our students and their employability is not an add-on. It is in Leeds Trinity’s DNA.

We are proud to be a career-led University, committed to ensuring students have a chance to apply their learning throughout their studies through work-based learning opportunities and placements.

The Bishop of Leeds at the campus opening

This means we engage with hundreds of businesses every year to create opportunities for our students but also to support employers with their talent pipeline. We know from rich experience that going out into the workplace is a pivotal moment for our students, bringing to life what they have studied in the classroom, providing them with further understanding and developing their confidence.

This connectivity goes beyond our educational approach and speaks to our role as a Leeds anchor institution committed to its impact in the city and broader region. We listen carefully to the businesses we work with, actively seeking feedback to inform our detailed understanding of sector trends, labour market issues, the skills agenda and recruitment requirements. This intelligence is filtered back to Leeds Trinity teams and informs curriculum development and the way we work with students to prepare them for their careers.

With the opening of our City Campus, we immerse ourselves further in the Leeds business community. We know the courses we are delivering from the city centre – in the Schools of Business, Computer Science, Law, Criminology and Policing, and Construction and the Built Environment – will benefit hugely from being right at the heart of the vibrant business eco-system in Leeds, with key networks on the doorstep of our City Campus.

Mayor of West Yorkshire Tracy Brabin, centre, visiting the campus

The opening of our City Campus represents the most significant development in the University’s history – and the most exciting opportunity for Leeds Trinity, its students and its partners – and we formally celebrated this landmark moment with a special ceremony in January 2025. We officially opened the campus with a Blessing and ribbon cutting ceremony led by the Bishop of Leeds, the Rt Rev Marcus Stock, and coordinated by Fr Marc Homsey, the University’s Priest Chaplain. The ceremony was attended by Leeds Trinity University’s Vice-Chancellor Professor Charles Egbu, Chancellor John Studzinski CBE, the Chair of the University’s Board of Governors, Jamie Hanley, and invited guests.

As part of this event, we were delighted to showcase what our City Campus offers as a new space for stakeholders to come together to deliver applied learning and development opportunities; as a place which supports the Leeds Inclusive Growth Strategy to provide education for the benefits all communities; and as a place which encourages collaboration and problem solving, to address societal issues and create impact. That vision is already coming to life, with our academic teams welcoming a range of visitors to enhance our educational offer and we look forward to building on this on this in the coming weeks and months for the benefit of all.

Find out more about our campuses and courses by visiting the Leeds Trinity University website.