Since the purchase of the Castle Meadow site in November 2021, colleagues across the university have been working to develop the structures, programmes and engagement needed to develop ideas for the new campus.

Different workstreams have been set up to review the ways we could use the new site to deliver exceptional teaching and research, accelerate our strategic ambitions, create meaningful connections with our local communities and deliver an outstanding campus experience. These are just some of the themes that will be explored over the coming months.

A number of engagement events with senior leaders and staff across the institution are being developed to bring forward ideas for the campus from across our community.

Helping us shape the future

Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Andy Long hosted a workshop in February with 50 colleagues who provided ideas and opinions on what they would most like to see at Castle Meadow, examining the following questions.

1. What would good student and staff experience look like?
2. What do you love about our existing sites that you don’t want to lose at Castle Meadow?
3. How do you ensure that the campus feels joined up to the other campuses?
4. How can we maximise the site’s sustainability and green potential?
5. How can we ensure the site maximises inclusion?

A wealth of initial ideas resulted from the workshop including thoughts on providing flexible and more agile spaces for research, work and teaching, supported by digital collaboration tools and technology-enabled meeting rooms. A dedicated space for inter-disciplinary research could provide opportunities for colleagues who may not ordinarily be based at Castle Meadow to work on the campus and encourage even greater levels of inter-disciplinary research.

Engaging the communities in and around Nottingham with our research also featured strongly in the discussion, with ideas on using lecture theatres out of teaching hours to host public lectures and speaking events, as well as providing demonstration hubs where academic colleagues can showcase or trial initiatives and give members of the public the opportunity to visit and observe their work.

In line with one of the intended uses for the campus, numerous ideas were submitted on how to engage more with local business, ranging from start-ups to small and medium-sized businesses, and providing support for students and alumni to grow their own businesses.

The ideas and questions raised in this session are now being considered by the Castle Meadow programme team for further consideration and development – we keep you updated with how these ideas develop over the coming months.

Have your say

Please do look out and sign up for more staff workshops – you can sign up to receive alerts and we will notify you when future opportunities become available.

Additionally, if you have an idea you would like considered for the Castle Meadow campus, or have some thoughts on the questions above, please submit them here.