University of Brighton Campus Transformation
Client
University of Brighton
Services
Multi-disciplinary consultancy / programme delivery support
Value
£210m programme
Programme
Big Build 2017–2024
£210m
Overall programme value
2017–2024
Big Build Masterplan delivery
804
Additional student residences, plus 100+ cluster kitchens
200+ staff
Moved in the phased Eastbourne to Falmer relocation
Project overview
A long-term partnership delivering major campus transformation, specialist university facilities and complex estate change across Brighton.
Fulkers has supported the University of Brighton over many years across a diverse portfolio of projects and in a multi-disciplinary capacity. At the heart of the relationship was the University’s £210m programme, including delivery of its ambitious “Big Build” Masterplan between 2017 and 2024.
The programme transformed part of the Moulsecoomb campus from a former car park into a new centre for living and learning. Its component projects ranged from specialist engineering and teaching facilities to student accommodation, a new business school and campus infrastructure. Fulkers’ involvement has subsequently extended to the University’s Estates Strategy, including projects at the Falmer campus and management of a significant relocation programme.
The programme included
£14m Advanced Engineering Centre
£125m Mithras Halls of Residence
£32m Elm House Business School
£11m parking facility
£3.8m pedestrian bridge
Eastbourne to Falmer relocation
The project in detail
From challenge to outcome
01
The challenge
A varied estate in transformation
The University of Brighton was undertaking transformation across different parts of its estate, requiring the delivery of projects with very different functions, values and technical requirements.
At Moulsecoomb, the “Big Build” encompassed the £14m Advanced Engineering Centre, £11m parking facility, £125m Mithras Halls of Residence, £32m Elm House Business School and a £3.8m pedestrian bridge, alongside specialist and refurbishment projects.
The estate programme then extended to Falmer. This included refurbishment and relocation projects associated with the University’s Estates Strategy and the major task of moving functions from Eastbourne into new spaces at Falmer. The relocation operation itself encompassed multiple sites, specialist equipment and more than 200 members of staff, requiring a phased transition.
This breadth meant that successful delivery depended on coordination across a varied portfolio rather than treating each building as an isolated commission.
02
Our approach
Support across the whole portfolio
Fulkers provided multi-disciplinary support across the university portfolio, contributing to the Moulsecoomb Big Build and subsequently supporting delivery of the University’s Estates Strategy.
The work spanned very different assets. The £14m Advanced Engineering Centre created a specialist engineering research building and was subsequently followed by multiple test-cell laboratories. The £125m Mithras Halls development delivered five residential towers providing 804 additional student residences and more than 100 cluster kitchens, together with supporting amenities.
At Falmer, Fulkers’ work extended beyond the buildings themselves. The team was retained to scope, procure and manage what the company’s case study describes as the University’s largest relocation operation, bringing together multiple sites, specialist equipment and more than 200 staff through a phased programme from Eastbourne to Falmer.
This breadth of involvement provides FulWard with a strong example of supporting both physical development and the wider operational transition associated with significant estate change.
03
The impact
A new centre for living and learning
The Big Build transformed a former car park at Moulsecoomb into a new centre for university living and learning, bringing together academic, research, residential and supporting infrastructure.
Individual projects delivered substantial new capability. The Advanced Engineering Centre opened in September 2017 and extended the University’s established Advanced Engineering Centre, which undertakes research and industrial knowledge exchange with engineering businesses and the automotive industry.
Mithras Halls added 804 student residences, while Elm House created a new home for the Business School and a new “front door” for the campus. A new pedestrian bridge connected the east and west sides of Moulsecoomb.
Fulkers’ continuing involvement in the University’s subsequent Estates Strategy demonstrates that the relationship extended beyond completion of the Big Build into further estate transformation and relocation work.
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