Mace Group

There are seismic shifts taking place in higher education, and directors of estates are under greater pressure than ever before. Money is tight, and it's only going to get tighter, but they must also accommodate increasing numbers of students, with much higher aspirations for their education and the facilities it takes place in. And then there's the green agenda - the sector must make dramatic reductions in carbon emissions to a very challenging timetable.

This means that driving greater efficiencies within new and existing buildings is a top priority, on two key areas - the use of space within buildings, and the amount of energy used to heat, cool and operate them. Though universities in the UK enjoy considerably greater freedom from central government control than their counterparts in Europe and the US, they will have to demonstrate improvements on these priorities to ensure
their funding.

Talking points:

• How can universities make better use of the spaces they have?
• What will teaching, and the spaces it takes place in, look like in the future
• How can universities cut their carbon emissions by 34% within ten years?
• Do academics really need their own offices?

Case study: University of West England
Like many institutions, the University of the West of England's estate was spread across several sites. But when the land adjoining the Frenchay campus in Bristol was vacated by Hewlett-Packard, the university seized upon the opportunity to consolidate its operations and to significantly improve its efficiency.

To read the article in full, which includes an opinion piece provided by Ian Caldwell, director of estates at Kings College London, please click on the icon on the right hand side of this page.