Northumberland Road building
The Northumberland Road building will be a new home for the Information School in its entirety, along with Student Experience offices and staff accommodation for the Management School.
Overview
This building will be a new home for the Information School in its entirety, along with Student Experience offices and staff accommodation for the Management School. We have demolished the existing building, the old Psychology building, as it was not fit for purpose and a new building will allow us to be more sustainable and reduce carbon emissions through innovative heating and cooling systems.
This new project will complement the adjacent new Faculty of Social Sciences building and existing refurbished buildings to create a hub for the Faculty in the Northumberland Road area.
The building is roughly the same height as the existing Psychology building. It will be five storeys high at the front elevation, and six storeys high on the rear elevation. The total area of the building will be approximately 3,500 square metres.
Project details
- Project Manager: Gaynor Bradshaw-Willson, Estates and Facilities Management
- Email: g.bradshaw-willson@sheffield.ac.uk
- Telephone: +44 114 222 9118
- Contractor: TBC
- Client: Faculty of Social Sciences
- Location: Junction of Western Bank (A57) and Northumberland Road
- Timescale: July 2020 - September 2022
Design
News
10 November 2020: The former Psychology building is now fully demolished.
- Past news
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6 November 2020: The former Psychology building is now demolished and Ron Hull Ltd, the demolition contractor, are making a start on deconstructing the below ground levels.
20 July 2020: Ron Hull Demolition will begin to take down the former Psychology building from 20 July.
17 April 2020: Conditional planning permission granted.
14 January 2020: Residents' consultation meeting, Western Bank Villa (Executive Education).
January 2020: Planning application submitted and resident consultation meetings planned.
Frequently asked questions
If you can't find the answer to your question here, please contact us.
- Why are we demolishing the current building on site and building a new one?
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The old Psychology building is not fit for purpose and too small for the needs of our students and staff. The University needs space for the growing Information School and the Management School plus general teaching spaces.
We have assessed all the available locations on campus and this site was determined to be significant to support the future delivery of the academic strategy for Social Sciences. By creating a hub for Social Sciences in the Northumberland Road area, we believe this will promote disciplinary and interdisciplinary excellence.
This new hub gives the Faculty the opportunity to provide the large scale teaching spaces in one physical location as well as providing the growth space for disciplines in close proximity to one another to improve the student experience.
A new building has a better chance of achieving maximum efficiency and sustainability as greener options and newer technology can be woven into the building’s fabric from conception.
- Will the new building be environmentally friendly?
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Very much so! The building will make use of ground source heat pumps as a source to heat the building. We have used modelling to anticipate the performance of the building which shows a significant reduction on current building regulations requirements for carbon emissions and energy demand.
This has been achieved through passive features, such as a high performance thermal envelope and through the specification and integration of efficient mechanical and electrical systems.
In addition, the University are exploring options for a wider energy network to serve this area. Options are being considered for low carbon technologies from which the University will be able to draw its heat and power.
- Are you felling any trees on site?
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We do need to fell some trees to make way for construction but we have worked hard with our design team to limit the amount of tree removal to the bare minimum and taking precautions to conserve as much as possible.
We will be replacing any trees removed on a 2 for 1 basis and we are committed to improving the green spaces around this part of campus.
The layout of the project has been designed to maximise pedestrian use and activity. There will be no parking for vehicles but added cycle parking provision at the front of the building along the main access routes off Whitham and Northumberland Roads.
The landscape is simple and creates opportunities for socialising, seating and enhanced ornamental planting whilst forming an attractive approach into the development. The selection of materials will be in line with the University's Campus Masterplan, creating a cohesive scheme.
Wildlife
We have undertaken a number of surveys, including arboricultural and environmental surveys, to ensure that we keep any disturbance to a minimum.
The scheme’s landscape design aims to positively contribute to the biodiversity in the area. Introduction of a range of new habitats and improving the quality of existing soft landscape are two of the many ways in which the landscape proposals aim to build on and improve local biodiversity and distinctness of the area.
We will retain as much existing soft landscape as possible along with as many existing quality trees as possible. The building will also include bat and swift boxes on the facades.
- There is already one large building site close to this new development. How are you going to build another building so close to the other site?
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By using the same access routes for both building sites, we believe there will be no significant extra disruption, as the construction cabins for this building will be contained within the site.
We will hold regular meetings with BAM, the contractor on the Faculty of Social Sciences building, to ensure a streamlined construction process and to avoid clashes.
Traffic management will be constantly monitored to ensure everything runs smoothly while works are taking place and that any problems are dealt with swiftly and efficiently.
Project benefits
Students will benefit from increasing areas of dedicated study and teaching spaces. They will be supported by the Student Experience Office which will be moved to this building.
The new building will be located adjacent to other new and refurbished buildings with world-class learning and teaching facilities which will enhance the student experience and minimise student movement between lectures.
More significantly, this building will improve the student experience of the Undergraduate Management School students, by providing large scale teaching spaces in close proximity to this building. This has been a concern of previous and current students so we want to minimise travel between other sites and ensure Management students feel closer and more included with the rest of the Faculty.
To promote sustainable travel, the site will have cycle parking for approximately 30 cycles. As part of the development, there will be internal, secure storage and changing facilities for staff and students.
The site’s location will see a significant shift in student numbers to this area of the campus.
Along with the new Faculty of Social Sciences hub opposite, this will reduce foot traffic down Whitham Road/Western Bank and create safer walking/cycling routes into the city centre.
Contact us
For project enquiresk contact the project manager. For general enquiries, contact the EFM Help Desk.
If you're a member of staff or a student in the Faculty of Social Sciences, Laura Armitage, Faculty Estates Development Manager, is a useful point of contact: l.armitage@sheffield.ac.uk