Sussex University to spend £220m improving campus
Sussex University plans to spend £220 million on a five-year programme of work intended to improve its Falmer campus.
The investment programme includes plans to enhance the science estate, extend the library, create new teaching space and invest in sport.
It will involve getting rid of the large surface car parks and building stacked car parks on the edge of the campus.
The freed up land will be used for new building and green space.
The work is expected to cost £185 million while a further £35 million has been budgeted between now and 2018 for the refurbishment and maintenance of existing buildings.
The university is also planning to build more student flats and bedsits funded by private investors. It said that this would “ensure that our capital investment can be focused on our teaching, research and social needs”.
Michael Farthing
The major works are part of the university’s 2013-18 strategic plan which is being finalised at the moment and looks likely to be adopted in the autumn.
Michael Farthing, the university’s vice-chancellor, said: “To support the creation of the new plan, over the last year I have met with academics in all schools and with professional services staff, and I have had very helpful discussions with groups of students from across the university.
“Those discussions themselves also built on ideas emerging from the cross-campus feedback in 2011-12 on the future development of the university, and from within all the committees across the university.”
Professor Farthing said that most of the aims of the current strategic plan, which was intended to run from 2009-15, had already been achieved.
And he praised the hard work of everyone at the university for helping to make the university successful.
He said: “What has enabled this success has been growth. We have grown over the last three years by around 1,000 students a year as what we offer to students proves increasingly attractive.
“This student growth has allowed us to expand and develop the academy and the university and is key to the successful future development of Sussex.
“There are perhaps three main reasons for seeking to continue to grow
- to support the development of future research because, in the current funding approach, size really does matter for successful research activity
- to offer more opportunity to more students to take advantage of the distinct experience we provide and
- to create financial resilience, enabling Sussex better to cope with a challenging funding environment
“In the new plan, we will be setting out the investments we will be making.
“They will build on the kind of investments we are already making – in staff, students, the campus estate, services and technology.”
He added that the university’s ambitious plans had to be followed up with an equally strong approach to implementation.
