highereducationestates 23 OMINOUS reports about the financial state of the university education sector just keep on coming. The latest – from the Office for Students (OfS) – has highlighted ongoing pressures which, unless addressed, suggest that nearly three quarters of universities could be in deficit by 2025-26, and 40% would have fewer than 30 days’ liquidity. A key factor underlying the deteriorating finances of many universities is that international student numbers have decreased significantly, with 16 per cent fewer applications for visas in 2024 than in 2023. By 2025-26, the OfS estimates a net income reduction for the sector of £3,445bn and, without significant mitigating actions, a sector-level deficit of -£1,636bn. And it notes “while these results are spread across all types of providers, the forecasts of larger, especially teaching-intensive, providers appear to be particularly at odds with the optimism in their previous forecasts.” By way of contrast, larger researchintensive and teaching-intensive universities appear to be, in aggregate, in better financial shape than other types of institutions. This is very bad news for a sector that has prided itself on the quality of its educational offer, tarnishing its gold-standard reputation for excellence, both at home and abroad. The bottom line is that the quality of education on offer could decline significantly over the next few years, and when that becomes obvious to potential student applicants, the numbers applying to study at university will spiral downwards. Fully aware of the developing crisis, the Government has announced it will increase the cap on tuition fees for England-domiciled undergraduate students from £9,250 to £9,535 for the 2025-26 academic year. But despite this, the OfS has appointed turnaround specialists to monitor a watchlist of institutions across the UK. PwC and KPMG are said to be among the City firms selected by the OfS to help it manage what are being called “potential market exits” of financially struggling universities. It was reported in the Telegraph that the OfS first contacted restructuring experts several months ago amid industry concerns around universities such as Coventry University and London South Bank. However the situation develops – and mergers look increasingly likely, resulting in fewer universities than at present – the architects and contractors who work in the sector should expect to be bidding for fewer trophy projects than of late, and more prosaic and functional buildings. Their profit margins will have to be adjusted accordingly. Editor Andrew Pring Sales director Julian Walter Media sales manager Barnaby Goodman-Smith Production Nicola Cann Design Sandra Cid Managing director Toby Filby The publishers do not necessarily agree with views expressed by contributors and cannot accept responsibility for claims made by manufacturers and authors, nor do they accept any responsibility for any errors in the subject matter of this publication. Publishers Stable Publishing Limited, SBC House, Restmor Way, Wallington, Surrey SM6 7AH, England. t. 020 8288 1080 f. 020 8288 1099 e. [email protected] leader and content Cost-saving designs set to be the order of the day Andrew Pring Editor [email protected] inside this issue S/Oct 2024 26Rethinking student spaces The University of Strathclyde needed a solution to satisfy the need for high-capacity teaching spaces, and provide a new home for Student Services and the Student Union. 28Holistic approaches to well-being How to improve student health and well-being? Richard Le Sueur, Director, Commercial, International WELL Building Institute, has ideas. 31Special needs education The MailBox, once described by its owner as “the ugliest building in Stockport”, has been transformed to provide apartments and a college for disabled young people. 32Decarbonising higher education Universities and higher education institutions have an important role to play in meeting carbon reduction targets. 26 31
A“game-changing” £1.4 million centre at Preston College that will help to create the next generation of digital experts has been completed and is ready to welcome the creative stars of the future. The college’s music, recording and changing facilities in the Visual, Performing Arts and Digital (VPAD) School on its Fulwood campus in the Lancashire city have been transformed into cuttingedge digital suites, creative and design studios, and a gaming testing room. The centre will now provide a home for T-Level courses in a range of digital and creative subjects, including media production, accounting, games design and digital production, design and development. Built by local contractor Carefoot, the remodelled building got underway in the summer and was completed in time for the start of this academic year. Architecture and masterplanning practice FWP led the project to create the new learning space. The result is an accessible, modern, state-of-the-art facility which has been designed to develop and nurture creativity. Mike Turner, associate at FWP, said: “Our brief was to deliver modern, flexible learning spaces and collaborative workstations and to provide an immersive and interactive learning experience where students are able to thrive.” Kate Simmons, associate at FWP, added: “The interiors have been designed to appeal to students and to enhance the feeling that this is a place where visual creativity can really thrive. It is part of the overall ‘quirky’ design of the new centre, which is aimed at inspiring the next generation of digital talent.” Simon Nixon, Preston College’s principal and chief executive, said: “This represents a significant investment in the future of our students, and will not only support our current programmes but will also pave the way for innovative new courses and opportunities.” Preston College’s £1.4m digital transformation A£12m regeneration scheme underway by modular construction specialists Stelling Properties to restore and revive a historic site in the centre of Southampton, has reached a major construction milestone. The installation phase for all 121 studio apartments, which were manufactured and fully fitted out offsite, has now been completed on site with the cranage of the final modules. 31 High Street is a landmark project which is bringing a fire damaged building back to life after it remained derelict for more than a decade. The Portland stone façade of the former Bank of England building has been restored and other parts of the original building have been retained including the historic bank vaults in the basement. The development represents a £12m investment by Stelling to regenerate this prominent site on Southampton High Street whilst helping to meet the critical undersupply of student accommodation in the city. The five-storey scheme will provide 121 high-specification, self-contained studio apartments which will be operated by Unilife and are due for completion later this year. Dan Smith, COO of Stelling Properties, said: “This high-profile project follows another modular student scheme that we have already delivered on Southampton High Street, and we are about to start a third. These developments are an important part of the regeneration of the city centre “Speed of construction was absolutely critical to reduce disruption in the city centre. By manufacturing and fully fitting out the apartments offsite, we reduced time on site by around 50 per cent. The tremendous progress so far is a real credit to our design, production and site teams.” Richard Powell, COO, of Unilife, said, “Stelling has done an incredible job to deliver a project of this scale in just a few months and to such high quality, sustainability, energy efficiency and architectural standards.” Student accommodation boost as Southampton redevelopment progresses 24 highereducationestates news
NEWLY appointed contractor Morgan Sindall Construction has commenced demolition of a derelict mill to make way for Bradford College’s purpose-built Future Technologies Centre. The demolition of Junction Mills on Thornton Road marks the start of construction on a state-of-the-art fourstorey building, which will house modern automotive and digital engineering training at Bradford College from the start of the 2025-26 academic year. The facility will offer students skills in new technologies, such as electric/hybrid vehicles and advanced manufacturing. The Centre will be vital in supporting the growth of technology and low-carbon skills capability within West Yorkshire. Christopher Malish, Bradford College’s Vice Principal of Finance & Corporate Services, said:“This multi-million-pound investment will create a cutting-edge learning environment for the local community, allowing the College to deliver on its mission of transforming lives. These new facilities are designed to address big societal challenges, enrich our local workforce, and showcase a range of inspiring careers.” Bradford Mill demolition paves way for £17m Future Technologies Centre AN update to financial modelling from the Office for Students (OfS) has found continued pressures on the higher education sector in England. The analysis finds reductions in the numbers of students entering higher education. Without taking steps to address financial risks, OfS modelling suggests that 72% of higher education providers could be in deficit by 2025-26, and 40%. Commenting on the report, the National Centre for Universities and Business said that the financial precariousness of the sector poses a serious threat not only to higher education but also to the wider economy and UK business. Rosalind Gill, Head of Policy and Engagement at the National Centre for Universities and Business said: “Universities are one of the UK’s greatest strengths and a key driver of innovation, skills, and economic growth. Today’s report from the Office for Students hammers home the scale of the crisis faced by our nation’s world leading institutions. Increasing employer National Insurance contributions has also made the situation more challenging, significantly raising staffing costs for universities by £372 million a year.” Gill continued: “Although vital, this issue isn’t just about universities – it’s about the prosperity of the UK as a whole. The consequences of closures or scaled-back activities would ripple across industry, impacting businesses that rely on graduate talent and cutting-edge research. The university sector is a major reason why multinational businesses invest in the UK, providing the workforce and research collaborations that fuel innovation. We need solutions that protect the unique role universities play in driving growth and global competitiveness.” Some help for the sector came in the recent Budget statement, when the Government said it plans to increase the cap on tuition fees for England-domiciled undergraduate students from £9,250 to £9,535 for the 2025-26 academic year. This is in line with the Office for Budget Responsibility’s latest forecast for inflation as measured by RPIX (3.1%). This ends a long-running cash freeze in the fee cap, which had been increased only once since 2012 (from £9,000 to £9,250 in 2017). Compared to a continued freeze, the increase in fees will spare the higher education sector a further realterms cut to teaching resources of around £390 million next academic year. University financial crisis will undermine UK innovation and business, warns NCUB Bradford College and Morgan Sindall Construction staff celebrate work on site ready for construction of the new £17m Future Technologies Centre highereducationestates 25 news
AS designers, it is our responsibility to create sustainable learning environments. BDP advocates best practice with universities and highereducation organisations to create stimulating learning buildings, whilst simultaneously helping them on their journey to wider net-zero ambitions. Through imaginative and adaptive reuse of existing buildings, we create spaces that are cognisant of the climate emergency we face. When the University of Strathclyde invited BDP to develop a solution to satisfy the need for high-capacity teaching spaces, and provide a new home for Student Services and the Student Union, we were keen to put our principles into action. As part of the brief, there was also a need for us to build a social hub that would encourage students to remain after lectures, strengthen campus culture and build a vibrant student community. This was about more than just formal teaching, it was about creating spaces where students would feel comfortable relaxing between sessions, and that would facilitate casual, collaborative knowledge sharing that is a vital part of the complete student learning experience. From the outset a range of options were considered - including new build. The preferred solution was to use two disused buildings that stood at the very heart of the campus – the 1960s Colville Building, previously home to the engineering department; and its neighbour, the category B-Listed Architecture Building that overlooked Rottenrow Gardens. Both buildings were functionally redundant and required significant maintenance to restore them, but their location was ideal and their potential exciting! Here was an opportunity on this steeply-sloping site to create both the learning spaces that the university required and a central social hub where staff, students and visitors could linger. This was also the most sustainable option and we were able to demonstrate that reusing these existing structures would dramatically reduce embodied carbon. Using lifecycle assessment software, our team was able to demonstrate that, compared to a notional new-build equivalent, reuse would save 67% CO2e, proving the adage that ‘the greenest building is one that already exists.’ To put this in perspective, the embodied carbon saving is equivalent to the carbon dioxide emitted by 3350 Scottish homes, annually. In addition, 97% of construction waste was recycled, resulting in 6810 tonnes being diverted from landfill. So, whilst the environmental argument for repurposing the original structures made sense, that left the challenge of unifying two quite different structures to form a cohesive 20,000m2 building for multiple stakeholders and uses. Our solution was to unite the buildings whilst amplifying their different qualities. It was never our intention to make the finished result look like a new build. We wanted to be faithful to the built heritage of the complex and that meant revealing, not concealing, their differences. As a result, the Colville Building, which had been a warren of internal corridors with no links between the interior and its surroundings, was stripped back to its structural frame. Large-volume spaces were created; the raw structure exposed and celebrated and a bold, yellow truss inserted to create a double-height space for the Student Union in what had previously been an undercroft car park. With only the structural frame remaining, the building was re-clad to exceed statutory thermal and airtightness standards, and natural ventilation was introduced where appropriate. Meanwhile, the Category B-Listed Architecture Building underwent a sympathetic upgrade, retaining its original character. The windows were upgraded and thermal insulation introduced during the replacement of aged-copper cladding. A new-build hub was created to fill the void between them, providing views over the Rottenrow Gardens. Covered by a green roof, the transparency of this link reinforces its welcoming character and provides a ‘window into the university’. Since the retrofit and refurbishment, energy consumption of the buildings has reduced by almost two-thirds. Such a significant reduction in emissions has made a substantial contribution to the university’s target of reaching net zero by 2040. Staff and students have enthusiastically embraced the Learning & Teaching Old buildings, new beginnings The University of Strathclyde invited BDP to develop a solution to satisfy the need for high-capacity teaching spaces, and provide a new home for Student Services and the Student Union. Martin Jarvie, Architect Director, BDP, explains how his practice fulfilled the brief 26 highereducationestates design solutions
Building. Providing more than just lecture space, it has become the social heart of the university, dramatically increasing footfall through the Student Union and fulfilling its purpose in fostering a ‘sticky campus’, where students now choose to remain within the university throughout the day and into the evening. This helps to foster the sense of community that the University of Strathclyde had been aiming for when it undertook this project. The interior design, and variety of learning and social settings, play an integral role in enhancing this ‘sticky campus’, affording the students the choice of their preferred environment for the task at hand. The opportunities include tiered-stair seating, group work areas in the form of large bench tables with integrated power, high-perch tables and seating, alongside less formal sofa areas and individual work areas, such as high-backed acoustic chairs. The most popular work setting with the students is the integrated acoustic pods, which are located around the building. The booths provide a noise-cancelling work area for two, four or six people, providing a quieter space, within the overall whole, for students with sensory issues or students requiring concentrated study. Furthermore, an extensive and interconnected IT and AV system has facilitated post-covid hybrid working and online learning. Since its completion, the building has won numerous prestigious awards, including Higher Education and Campus Category winner at the AJ Retrofit Awards and Best Modern (post 1960) Building Refurbishment Project at the Scottish Structural Awards. The Learning and Teaching Building is an excellent example of the adaptive reuse of existing post war Education buildings, and institutions across the UK have a multitude of similar buildings across their Estates. This is a typology which arguably has been undervalued and this project demonstrates a viable, academically exciting, and sustainable future for similar education facilities. www.bdp.com highereducationestates 27 design solutions
Higher education in the UK today is faced with mounting challenges to student health and well-being. Richard Le Sueur, Director, Commercial, International WELL Building Institute, sets out an approach to tackling the problem which is finding favour internationally and within the UK Healthier campuses, more productive students - a new holistic approach IN a 2022 survey by British mental health charity Student Minds, 57% of respondents self-reported a mental health issue and 27% said they had a diagnosed mental health condition. This statistic is consistent with the 2023 data released by National Health Services England that more than 1 in 5 young people aged 17 to 25 years had a probable mental disorder. According to the same NHS survey, young people with a probable mental disorder are more likely not to participate in a range of activities including exercising, spending time in green space or participating in groups or clubs. Coupled with issues such as poor sleep and eating problems as well as other social and financial pressures, the list of student health and well-being challenges across the higher education sector tend to be pretty long. These factors can contribute to a decline in mental and physical health if not addressed proactively. It is fair to say that tackling student health challenges in the UK requires a comprehensive roadmap due to the wide scope of issues, a comprehensive roadmap that emphasizes early intervention, holistic support services and creating a culture of well-being within educational institutions to promote positive health outcomes among students. University of Huddersfield recently made history for achieving the first WELL Certification across British higher education for its Jo Cox More in Common Centre, a student service facility serving all students on a daily basis. With this achievement, Huddersfield sheds a bright light on what other universities in the UK can emulate in terms of deploying such a comprehensive approach to student and employee well-being. The WELL Certification achievement under the WELL Building Standard (WELL) by the International WELL Building Institute, the global authority for transforming health and well-being through its people-first approach to buildings, organisations and communities, recognises excellence in building design, operations and organisational policies in place to prioritise people’s physical and mental health as well as productivity. As illustrated in the case of University of Huddersfield, WELL offers a comprehensive framework that can significantly contribute to addressing student well-being issues in the UK educational settings. This evidencebased, performance-verified rating system includes strategies for buildings and spaces designed to enhance the health and well-being of occupants such as advanced indoor air and drinking water quality, lighting that promotes productivity during the day and better sleep at night and more. What’s important to know is that universities can start off their WELL journey by updating operational protocols to achieve the policy-based WELL Health-Safety Rating while rounding up capital expenditure to expand to more comprehensive WELL certifications over time. Here are a few examples that can help illustrate how a WELL Certified building supports our health. Designs and educational programmes promoting healthy eating, support programmes on substance abuse, comprehensive health benefits, ergonomic furniture and prompts to boost physical activities and engaging, community-building facilities with meaningful programming, all are within the parameter of the comprehensive 10 WELL Concept areas: Air, Water, Nourishment, Light, Sound, Movement, Thermal Comfort, Materials, Mind and Community. By incorporating principles from WELL, universities and 28 highereducationestates well buildings
colleges can create environments that support physical, mental, and social well-being among students. Within each of the WELL Concept areas are a number of evidence-based strategies encompassing design, operations and policy so that initiatives are integrated and health outcomes are holistic. Let’s deep dive into a couple of strategy areas to fully understand WELL and its potential health impacts. As we all know, indoor air quality plays a critical role in respiratory health and overall well-being. Implementing strategies such as effective ventilation systems, air filtration, and minimising sources of indoor air pollution can improve air quality within educational buildings, mitigate risks of infectious diseases in densely populated areas like lecture halls, libraries, and student accommodation, and improve student productivity. Another example is lighting design and optimisation. Access to natural light and appropriate artificial lighting not only enhances visibility and productivity but also regulates circadian rhythms, which are crucial for maintaining healthier sleep patterns and overall mental health. The WELL strategies are designed to work together to advance occupants’ overall health and well-being. Many universities around the world have applied WELL strategies, serving as a comprehensive roadmap to guide their holistic approach to student and staff health and well-being so that the building design, facility operations and human resource policies and programmes all work in tandem, driving toward the same health outcomes under a shared, coordinated vision. The University of Florida used WELL to guide its modernisation of a student healthcare centre from a century-old uninviting infirmary. The university’s intention is to make sure that all aspects from design, operations and policies come together to nurture student health. The National University of Singapore achieved WELL Certification in 2019. The School of Design and Environment leveraged the WELL Standard to make itself an example of best practice among higher education to advance student health and building resilience. State University of New York’s College of Environment Science and Forestry, is committed to applying the WELL roadmap to advance student health and building resilience. In SUNY ESF’s case, it’s no easy feat to advance initiatives across its entire portfolio of 85 buildings. But a universally applicable standard with actionable strategies by WELL can make the ambition a lot easier than otherwise. WELL makes endeavours such as those by NUS and SUNY scalable by providing a streamlined, cost-effective pathway - WELL at scale. It’s a subscription-based pathway for organisations that want to prioritise health and well-being across their entire enterprise or a portfolio of real estate. By participating in WELL at scale, organisations can scale and benchmark health and well-being impacts on all stakeholders. Global organisations including nearly 150 Fortune 500 and Global 500 companies are leveraging the more than 500 health focused WELL strategies to address a myriad ways in which physical and social environments and organisational protocols can shape productivity, performance and well-being for their people. WELL at scale allows organisations to adopt and apply as many WELL strategies as possible and implement them at their own pace. Some organisations may want to achieve WELL Certification for all buildings, others may want to focus on indoor air quality features across the board to kick it off, and others yet may pick and choose their own priorities to work on, for example, a university-wide practice on drinking water solutions up to the WELL threshold. The WELL at scale pathway makes good sense for large entities with complex organisational structures like universities in that health strategies are universally applicable, implementations are scalable and benefits are equitable. Universities can also use their WELL achievement to benchmark and report on their progress in advancing social sustainability. www.wellcertified.com Images:International WELL Building Institute highereducationestates 29 well buildings
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THE MailBox, which was once described by its owner as “the ugliest building in Stockport”, has been fully transformed with apartments and an expansive, stylish multi-functional co-working space. The final piece of the puzzle that has just been completed is a college for disabled young people embarking on their journey into adulthood; developing the skills and knowledge needed to fulfil ambitions in life and employment. Manchester-based Select Interiors (Cheshire) worked on the £750k, six-phase non-residential element of the redevelopment. This started with transforming part of the old sorting office turn into innovative co-working space and has just been completed with the huge task of repurposing a former furniture showroom into a specially designed Pure College facility. The Pure College attendees all have neurodiverse needs and a neurodiverse design team at Select Interiors (Cheshire) worked on the project, so they had deep understanding of what was needed for the design. Pale blue and green were chosen for the colour scheme as they are known to be calming and restful. The colour blocking effect adds interest and makes the space feel bigger by taking the walls back. The design team at Select chose all task lighting to mimic daylight without too much blue light as neurodiversity can result in sensitivity to certain types of light. Soft and calming lighting was used in the communal areas to offer a chance to wind down from the stimulation in the classrooms themselves. Kaylie Crompton, head of college, said: “Pure College was launched in 2022, and we very quickly outgrew our previous space. Our new building can better accommodate the needs of our growing cohort. We have moved into a beautiful space that has been perfectly designed to consider the day to day working needs of both staff and students. Students have really engaged well with the new College; particularly the shared spaces, which have promoted social interaction and communication between all the classes.” Sustainable Losnay heat recovery units were incorporated which have +95% energy efficiency. They also offer fresh air circulation and this type of ventilation works well for neurodiverse needs as it circulates fresh air so no smells linger in the environment. The college features three large classrooms, office space, staff room, an expansive and sociable kitchen area as well as other informal seating and communal areas, plus toilets. The two-storey office features 17 separate office units with a shared boardroom, kitchen and lockers. The imaginative design was inspired by a ziggurat, an ancient, terraced structure with receding storeys or levels. Additional office space was incorporated by taking advantage of the ceiling height and adding in a mezzanine level, which joined the existing level via a bridge with standout zebra crossing style graphics. The striking scheme features Crittall glazing, black timber screens and a monochrome colour scheme with pops of accent colour in wall graphics and soft furnishings. The look is softened with plenty of greenery, which aims to mimic the enormous plant wall on the exterior of the building. www.select-interiors.com Stockport retail unit transformed into special needs college highereducationestates 31 interiors
Universities and higher education institutions have an important role to play in meeting carbon reduction targets. Carolyn Newsham, Financing Partner to Siemens GB&I, Siemens Financial Services, UK, sets out a route to net zero IN 2021, over one thousand universities and HE colleges worldwide pledged to become completely carbon neutral by 2050, with some institutions aiming to decarbonise as quickly as 2030. This list includes 168 UK institutions. While this ambition is laudable, it nonetheless represents a series of logistical and financial hurdles in a sector that continues to struggle for financial solvency. The HE sector is a substantial contributor to global emissions. Data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency demonstrates that 133 UK universities accounted for 1.4 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions between 2021 and 2022. While two-thirds of those have managed to decrease their emissions over the past year, experts warn of “patchy” progress within the HE sector that is failing to keep pace with current targets and the greater climate emergency. According to the International Energy Agency, in order to meet net zero targets, not only must all new buildings be zerocarbon ready, but 20% of existing stock must be retrofitted for carbon neutrality by 2030. While this represents a challenge for all sectors, it is particularly demanding for the HE sector. The UK is home to some of the oldest and most prestigious university campuses in the world. Unfortunately, while the halls of Oxford or St. Andrews may be steeped in history and architectural wonder, these very assets can curtail today’s ambitious ecological targets. Retrofitting the medieval architecture of Britain’s oldest universities is an elaborate undertaking that requires a great deal of capital investment. It is ultimately, however, an investment that can unlock great monetary and carbon savings for generations to come. Data from Grosvenor suggests that retrofitting 50% of all the UK’s pre-1919 residential buildings over a period of 10 years could lead to carbon savings exceeding 39 million equivalent tonnes of CO2. This would result in an estimated monetary saving of £3.4 billion by 2050. Smart building initiatives and their impact on emissions can be the way forward for the sector, and there are already some very impressive examples of HE institutions that have embraced new technologies. The University of Birmingham, for instance, partnered with Siemens in 2021 to become the first university to implement a large-scale Internet of Things (IoT) rollout, installing 23,000 IoT sensors across its Edgbaston campus. This measure will provide invaluable insights into building occupancy, so that the university can manage power and heating more effectively. This is projected to reduce emissions across all campuses by nearly 3,000 tonnes of CO2 per annum. Likewise, the University of East London has also partnered with Siemens to create a “living laboratory” that will capture granular energy usage data to drive future change. This data capture can be used in conjunction with other technologies such as ground and air source heat pumps, sensor-driven LED lighting, automated door controls, energy-efficient insulation, and smart heating and ventilation solutions to reduce energy wastage. In an era defined by inflated fuel prices, investment in green infrastructure can not only drive down carbon emissions but also drastically reduce operational spending, reducing energy use by up to 40%. The University of Birmingham (UoB) had big ambitions to transform its Edgbaston and Dubai campuses by combining connected digital technologies, artificial intelligence, decentralised energy generation and storage, and renewable energy. However, without the capital budget to invest outright, the project wasn’t financially viable. Siemens Financial Services (SFS) supported UoB as part of a strategic partnership with multiple Siemens business units. SFS worked within the university‘s financial requirements to create a ‘Building Efficiency as a Service’ (BEaaS) solution wherein UoB can spread the cost of the investment over a 10-year period, covering both equipment and services. This agreement seamlessly aligned its commercial and environmental goals and removed the need for any upfront payment. www.siemens.com/uk/en/company/transfor m.html Decarbonising higher education – the investment challenge 32 highereducationestates de-carbon
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