You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
Campus<br />
transformation<br />
on the horizon<br />
<strong>Swansea</strong> <strong>University</strong> (the UK’s first campus-based university) was established in 1920 at the request<br />
of local industrialists, and has equipped tens of thousands of students with the skills necessary to<br />
forge successful careers. The Singleton Campus is currently the smallest pre-1992 university campus<br />
in the UK and is not large enough to support the <strong>University</strong>’s future development.<br />
However, the <strong>University</strong> estate is set to undergo<br />
transformation as part of a six-year strategy<br />
approved in 2010. Earlier in the year, former<br />
Deputy First Minister for Wales Ieuan Wyn<br />
Jones formally announced that the Welsh<br />
Government is providing £15 million to develop<br />
the proposed Science and Innovation Campus,<br />
the most significant development opportunity for<br />
<strong>Swansea</strong> <strong>University</strong> for 50 years. The <strong>University</strong><br />
forecasts that the project will contribute more<br />
than £3 billion to the regional economy over the<br />
next 10 years, creating thousands of jobs.<br />
The new campus is expected to include<br />
a research and testing facility operated in<br />
partnership with Rolls-Royce, integrated teaching<br />
and research facilities for Engineering, Business<br />
and Economics, Maths and Computer Science,<br />
residential accommodation for up to 4,000<br />
students, and a multi-use auditorium/theatre<br />
building for large lectures, conferences and<br />
exhibitions.<br />
Professor Iwan Davies, Pro-Vice-Chancellor of<br />
<strong>Swansea</strong> <strong>University</strong> said “We are at an exciting<br />
stage in the development of <strong>Swansea</strong> <strong>University</strong>’s<br />
proposed Science and Innovation Campus.<br />
The <strong>University</strong> also aims to enhance a range of<br />
other facilities at Singleton, including: research<br />
institutes for the College of Arts and Humanities<br />
and the College of Human and Health<br />
Sciences; a Graduate Centre, comprising<br />
of predominantly social and support space;<br />
improvements to the mosque; an improved main<br />
entrance and reception, as well as upgrades<br />
to individual buildings, site circulation and<br />
campus links.<br />
Feedback from the National Student Survey,<br />
and advice from Students’ Union sabbatical<br />
officers, informed priorities on improvements to<br />
Fulton House, IT provision and teaching spaces<br />
(including lecture theatres).<br />
Improvements are also being made to the study<br />
hall in the library. Reference material will be<br />
moved to free up space whilst additional PCs<br />
and loanable netbooks will be provided, together<br />
with an increase in the number of plug points.<br />
There will also be purpose-built study areas and<br />
better facilities for visually impaired students. A<br />
display screen system showing PC availability will<br />
help students find machines more quickly.<br />
The pace of change at <strong>Swansea</strong> <strong>University</strong>,<br />
together with these major developments affecting<br />
the <strong>University</strong> estate, will have a transformative<br />
affect on the student experience. The growth<br />
of major research and development facilities<br />
designed to encourage industry to work side by<br />
side with researchers, academia and students<br />
will place the <strong>University</strong> at the forefront of<br />
collaboration with industry, government, and<br />
Higher and Further Education funding bodies.<br />
In turn, students will benefit from an unrivalled<br />
student experience which also equips them with<br />
the skills they need to succeed long after they<br />
have graduated.<br />
Left: Artist’s impression of Fulton House refectory<br />
Below (top): New plan for the refectory<br />
Below (bottom): New plan of study area in the library<br />
Following a detailed evaluation, potential<br />
partners will be invited to participate in a<br />
competitive dialogue that will result in the<br />
selection of the preferred supplier and the<br />
award of a contract to develop and construct<br />
one of the largest knowledge economy parks in<br />
Europe with a significant impact on the<br />
south west region of Wales.”<br />
Essential space will be freed up on the 46-acre<br />
Singleton site to maximise the outstanding<br />
natural features of the campus environment –<br />
by the beach and within a parkland setting.<br />
The Vice-Chancellor, Professor Richard B. Davies<br />
said: “This is a bold and innovative project. It<br />
promises to be a global exemplar of universities<br />
and industries working together, creating high<br />
technology clusters and hugely enhancing the<br />
career opportunities for students.”<br />
At the same time, the Singleton Campus will<br />
be upgraded to meet the <strong>University</strong>’s agenda<br />
for change and to provide a long-term base<br />
for Arts and Humanities, Human and Health<br />
Sciences, Law, Medicine, Physics, Geography<br />
and Biosciences.<br />
The continued development of an innovation<br />
hub for Life Science will build on the Institute of<br />
Life Science (ILS) delivery model of integrating<br />
commercialisation and business incubation with<br />
inter-disciplinary research activity in Human and<br />
Health Sciences, Engineering and Nanohealth.<br />
Furthermore, the development of ILS2 will<br />
house state-of-the-art clinical research facilities,<br />
an imaging suite, Europe’s first Centre for<br />
NanoHealth, and the Centre for Health<br />
Informatics, Research and Evaluation (CHIRAL).<br />
Former Health Minister Edwina Hart AM<br />
commented that “this significant investment<br />
from the Welsh Government demonstrates the<br />
importance we place on medical research.<br />
The Institute puts Wales at the forefront of<br />
research and development for tackling many life<br />
threatening diseases. The developments that are<br />
devised here could transform the way we care<br />
for patients and help boost the economy.”<br />
<strong>Sail</strong> – 06<br />
<strong>Sail</strong> – 07