New university developments in Huddersfield and Durham have been secured by BAM and Unite Students respectively
University developments abound as Unite Students secures planning approval to enhance Rushford Court in Durham, whilst BAM has already broken ground on the University of Huddersfield’s Daphne Steele Building.
Unite Students’s Rushford Court will be updated with a view to becoming a college of Durham University
Rushford Court will initially become the temporary home of the university’s College of St Hild and St Bede, after renovations and extending the building.
In the long term, Unite hopes that the building will become Durham’s 18th college.
Upgrades to the historic building include a new amenity hub and updated facilites
Durham County Council’s planning committee approved plans to develop the restored Victorian former hospital, in North Road, which has 348 bedrooms and currently boasts an on-site gym, cinema room, and games area.
The historic building will be upgraded to provide student and staff facilities including
college staff offices, welfare, study spaces, and a new building will house common rooms,
study areas and a bar, in addition to the facilities already on offer at the property.
A new two-storey amenity hub will be built in front of the current building and external
alterations – including reinstating the historic entrance and new landscaping – will be
carried out in 2024 before being handed over for university use.
The plans were praised for a high level of biodiversity and carbon reduction
In unanimously approving the plans, the council’s committee said biodiversity and carbon
reduction were both above and beyond the required levels, and the proposal reduced the
pressure on permanent residents as well as the risk of loss of houses to HMOs (houses in
multiple occupation).
The chair of the committee added the plans were a “positive step forward” for the university and the city of Durham.
Work to upgrade the property will begin this summer. Unite Students will continue to operate the building while work is carried out, with residents staying at the property.
Tom Brewerton, group development director at Unite Students, said: “It’s great that Durham County Council has recognised the benefits of this plan to upgrade Rushford Court. We’re proud to be working in partnership with Durham University on this project, which we hope will lead to the creation of a university college.
“We’re pleased to be able to support Durham University in this way and look forward to continuing to work closely together going forward and strengthening our partnership.”
BAM breaks ground on new project at the University of Huddersfield’s Daphne Steele Building
BAM recently celebrated construction of the new Daphne Steele Building at the University of Huddersfield with a ground breaking ceremony marking the start of the project, which will create the first building at the University’s new National Health Innovation Campus.
The building will be named after Daphne Steele, who emigrated to the UK from Guyana in the 1940s and was the first black matron in the UK.
Specialist clinical teaching facilities will provide support for workforce development.
The new university development will bring together public-facing facilities, including award-winning student-led clinics. There will be a focus on entrepreneurial academic activity, serving the regional and wider health economy.
Speaking at the ceremony, University of Huddersfield Vice-Chancellor, Professor Bob Cryan CBE, said, “We are excited to break new ground on a project that promises to make a hugely significant and long-lasting contribution to the health and wellbeing of people in the Yorkshire and Humber region.
“We are honoured that such an important facility is to be named after Daphne Steele, and we thank the Steele family for graciously allowing us to be associated with her.”
Other developments delivered at the University by BAM include the Joseph Priestley East Building and the Huddersfield Leisure Centre
John Phillips, regional director at BAM, said: “Our longstanding partnership with the University has seen us deliver so much of its developing estate. It means a great deal to us to be able to work with the University again, and it is the strength of that collaborative partnership that solves problems and makes for high standards in quality and sustainability.
“Our track record here in Huddersfield means we care about its people and its communities, so providing opportunities for them and local businesses is important to us. We have already teamed up with HD1 Fitness, across from the site, to provide health and wellness support to our local workforce, and we’re donating new showers and changing rooms for their gym.”
With spades now in the ground, construction is expected to be completed in 2024.
