Putting Carlisle on the academic map

Last updated 11:34, Wednesday, 20 August 2008

The £160 million plans for the University of Cumbria are gathering pace.

View more pictures...

Staying put: The University of Cumbria’s Learning Gateway will remain on the Fusehill Street campus in Carlisle when the new headquarters is built on the Viaduct estate

The proposals include a new £70m campus in Carlisle; creating a sporting centre of excellence at Newton Rigg, near Penrith; having a presence in the Energus building that is to be completed on the Lillyhall industrial estate in west Cumbria next March; and setting up a base within Furness College in Barrow.

Since the project was first announced in March, architects Bond Bryan have been appointed, and the plans are currently being reviewed by the Capital Projects Review Group (CPRG).

A decision will be made by CPRG this month and, if positive, will unlock the required funding. The majority of public funding will come from the Northwest Regional Development Agency.

If the project goes ahead, the showpiece headquarters will be the Caldew campus in Carlisle, built on the Viaduct estate – a site which had been earmarked for development in the city council’s Renaissance proposals.

Peter Armer, the university’s director of resources, finances and estates, said: “The university is incredibly appreciative of the relationship with the city council and Carlisle Renaissance, and we are keen to create a learning city that attracts people to Carlisle.”

The Caldew campus will include a students’ union and halls of residence, and riverside paths to playing fields, Bitts Park and Devonshire Walk car park.

The library and resources building in Milbourne Street will remain, and a footbridge could be built for access between the two sites.

The proposed campus will have two sites at either end of the estate. In the middle will be a new 40,000sq ft Tesco supermarket.

Building work was due to start on the supermarket in August.

“We are not perturbed by the presence of Tesco,” said Mr Armer. “Commercial activities can integrate successfully with a higher education facility.”

Indeed, an important factor in the plans is the proposed involvement of the business community.

He added: “Carlisle Renaissance will work with us to encourage economic growth in the business community. The population will be up in the city centre, but we want to avoid creating student ghettos. Instead, the new campus can bring huge benefits for the city as a whole.”

The developments will see Fusehill Street remaining open, but the university will leave Paternoster Row, and the Brampton Road campus will be closed and sold off.

Mr Armer explained: “Because the Roman Vallum crosses Brampton Road, only three of the site’s five acres can be developed. And even though arts course students are understandably fond of the surroundings, and the environmental aesthetics are important, in fact the feedback has been hugely positive.

“People are keen on a brand new, purpose-built campus at the historical core of a beautiful city.

“Paternoster Row is a beautiful site, but it is on lease from the city council, so there’s no real emotional attachment there.”

The university only decided on the location of the Caldew campus in March, but as soon as they investigated the site, knew it was right.

Mr Armer said: “The city centre location is fantastic, and there is the fantastic visibility from the train to Glasgow or Edinburgh, plus enormous potential for landscaping the riverfront.”

The university currently has 15,500 students and its 10-year plan is to increase to 20,000.

Mr Armer added: “Another challenge for us is to reach out to the whole of Cumbria, because we don’t want to build an ivory tower here in Carlisle. We are taking education to west Cumbria, the Eden Valley, and Lancaster, and spreading the funds.

“We want to widen participation and target areas of Cumbria with a low number of students. Cumbria has suffered a brain drain in the past, and the university will act as a magnet for intellectual capital and for companies who want to tap into that capital.”