In 2010 Swansea University embarked on a programme of change and transformation, investing in improving the student experience, academic and research facilities. There have been significant developments, including the construction of the Bay Campus, which doubled the size of the university overnight and upgrades to buildings on Singleton Campus over the last few years. The ongoing programme is maximising the potential of existing buildings and investing in the growth of the University by expanding our campus portfolio.
Developments on Singleton Campus have included the construction of the Institute of Life Science II (Centre for Nanohealth) building and the Data Science building. The Data Science research facility brought together two Centres for Excellence - The Farr Institute of Health Informatics Research and the Administrative Data Research Centre Wales (ADRC Wales), enabling researchers to unleash the potential of large-scale data to conduct powerful new research.
Fulton House, Wallace Building, Grove Building and the Faraday Building have all seen significant upgrades and refurbishment work over the last few years, providing necessary additional space for studying and working. In 2018 the Student Learning and Creativity Zone, based on the ground floor of the Taliesin, opened. This space offers students a flexible space in which they can study, learn, and meet. The refurbishment maximised space and light with the introduction of moveable furniture and partition screens.
The Bay Campus sits on the former BP Transit site on the eastern approach to the city. Whilst the development work will continue on the site up until the University’ Centenary year in 2020, the majority of the work was completed during the first construction phase, which opened in September 2015.
Constructed in less than 26 months, the Bay Campus is already delivering significant impact for the region with the University seeing a 20% increase in student and staff intake and a 120% increase in new research projects awarded since 2012.
The College of Engineering and the School of Management have been located on the Bay Campus since its opening in 2015. This year they have been joined by the Computational Foundry; a collaboration between the Departments of Computer Science and Mathematics, and The College; the new name for our decade-long partnership with Navitas “The International College Wales Swansea (ICWS)”.
In 2019 the College of Engineering will open another building which will house the IMPACT project; a research institute focused on Advanced Engineering and Materials, adding to the world-leading capabilities within the College of Engineering. The IMPACT (Innovative Materials, Processing and Numerical Technologies) research programme will be a dynamic environment for collaboration of industry and academia.
Partners and Funding
The Campus Development programme is a multi-partner, public/private project funded through a combination of University, Welsh Government, European Regional Development Fund through Welsh Government, The Department for Business, Innovation & Skills, European Investment Bank and M&G Investments with St Modwen. Onsite contractors have been Vinci Construction, Kier, Bouygues UK, Willmott Dixon and Galliford Try.
