New £28 million teaching building and interactive science centre approved at Peterborough University

Plans for a second teaching building at Anglia Ruskin University Peterborough, which will incorporate a ‘Living Lab’ public science centre, have been approved.

On Tuesday (December 13), Peterborough City Council’s Planning Committee approved the third phase of the ARU Peterborough university campus on the north of the Embankment site, off Bishop’s Road.

The building is currently planned to cater to students studying mainly in STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) fields and construction is planned to begin next year and is scheduled to open in autumn 2024.

The new development will be on the site of the current Regional Pool car park, next to first teaching building, University House, which opened to students in September. The second campus building, the Innovation and Research Centre, is currently planned to open in Summer 2023.

The Living Lab will be an interactive science centre and education space aimed at engaging and inspiring residents and visitors to the city in science and technology. It will be open to the community, as part of a pedestrian-friendly campus, and will have the flexibility to host a variety of events, exhibitions, immersive displays, talks, forums and evening classes.

he second teaching building and Living Lab will be lower in height and smaller in size than the newly opened University House building. It is planned to meet the requirements of an ‘excellent’ BREEAM rating, which is an industry-standard benchmark of a building’s sustainability, including aspects like energy efficiency.

Like the existing campus, the new phase will encourage walking and cycling, with cycle parking for 80 bicycles, and providing areas to socialise.

The Living Lab and second teaching building represents £28 million of investment into Peterborough; which includes £20 million from the Government’s Levelling Up Fund. Peterborough City Council has contributed land for the project to an investment value of £2 million, Anglia Ruskin University has invested £4 million and the Combined Authority’s Business Board has contributed £2 million.

Deputy Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, and chair of the Skills Committee, Cllr Lucy Nethsingha, said: “This is another welcome step forward in the development of a university campus which is freely accessible and embedded within the local community

"In order to help drive levels of skills and higher education upwards, we need to inspire and engage people of all ages in learning, and that’s exactly what the Living Lab has the potential to do and in a city which is behind the national average for people entering higher education, the second teaching building will help give the capacity needed.

Professor Ross Renton, Principal of ARU Peterborough, said: “Receiving this planning approval is fantastic news for the city and the wider region. We’ve been clear from the very beginning that ARU Peterborough is here to serve the whole community, not just those studying with us."

Alex Plant, Chair of the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Business Board, said: “This is another milestone in the development of this fantastic ARU Peterborough campus and it is great to see the momentum continue.

“The Business Board is a major investor in the university, which will help further embed the campus in the local community and further expand its potential to provide a major uplift in skills levels in the city and region.”