University Centre Rotherham

We've added to our university track-record by building RNN Group’s University Centre Rotherham (UCR) ready for the start of the academic year in 2018.

Rapid progress

The new centre brings a wealth of additional education and training opportunities to the region by offering a dedicated facility for university students with specialist teaching, study and exhibition spaces, a library, café and social areas.

It's the brainchild of RNN Group, which comprises of Rotherham College, North Notts College and Dearne Valley College, and we have worked closely to achieve completion in just over a year. We also had the opportunity to invite construction students from all three Colleges to gain insight into working on a larger scale projects - attracting the next generation of people to the best industry in the country!

Biodiversity consideration

In the planning stages, lots of thought and consideration went into determining the best way to minimise disruption to the local wildlife during the build. We are big advocates of biodiversity management and work in collaboration with The Wildlife Trusts to systematically manage environmental impact at each stage of the project.

Big ambitions

UCR is part of the Rotherham Plan 2025, a regeneration strategy for Rotherham established by the Rotherham Together Partnership.

Dedicated to offering degrees and professional training qualifications, UCR will provide a state-of-the-art teaching facility in the heart of Rotherham. This includes courses in areas such as business enterprise, graphic design, performance, education, computing, media and photography and much more. For more information about UCR, please visit: https://ucr.rotherham.ac.uk/

Jana Checkley, Director of Higher Education and Skills for RNN Group:

“UCR has been a fantastic journey and as an organisation we are exceptionally proud to have worked with Willmott Dixon on such a beneficial project. The new university centre has been built to an extremely high standard and we look forward to moving in our state-of-the-art facilities, ready for UCR to open its doors this autumn to students of all ages and career aspirations.”

The University Centre Rotherham forms a key part of the Rotherham Plan 2025, a regeneration strategy for Rotherham, led by the Rotherham Together Partnership.

Cllr Chris Read, Leader of Rotherham Council and Chair of the Rotherham Together Partnership:

“Having UCR here in Rotherham is part of the town’s regeneration and forms a key part of our vision and masterplan to enhance where we live.As a Council we are also committed to ensuring all our young people have the best start in life, and what better way can we support this than by ensuring they are able to gain the skills and education they need right here in the borough.

“This university centre will help bridge the skills gap we have which is currently holding the town back. If young people can get better qualifications they would be able to get better jobs, progress their careers and increase their income which can only be a good thing for the town.”

Our director for Yorkshire, Andrew Hurcomb:

“As a local company based in Yorkshire with a strong track record of work in Rotherham, we are proud of our role in creating this brilliant new university . One aspect of construction we're proud about is how we’ve been able to work closely with companies in and around Rotherham to ensure as many as possible were involved with the building work. University Centre Rotherham will provide important skills that will benefit the local economy for years to come and we hope it will also encourage many students to choose a career in construction.”

University workload

The news comes just a few weeks after Willmott Dixon announced it would build the first undergraduate School of Medicine in Essex for Anglia Ruskin at its Chelmsford campus and follows the company’s track record for building new and enhancing existing university campuses across the UK.

The company also recently completed the London Campus for Coventry University in Dagenham, as well as building the new Town House for Kingston University, refurbishing the Dreadnought Building for Greenwich University and adding the Computational Foundry at Swansea University.