Jul 6 2015
The first stage of construction on UWE Bristol’s landmark £50m Faculty of Business and Law will be marked by a ‘time capsule’ being buried on site on Tuesday 7 July.
FBL building
The ‘time capsule’ containing significant items suggested by students, staff and alumni will be buried on 7 July at 17:30 by University Chancellor Sir Ian Carruthers.
The capsule will contain contemporary items from the University such as a current undergraduate prospectus, a Shaun the Sheep Trail map, A Green Capital leaflet, a newspaper of the day and the student newspaper Western Eye, amongst other things. It will also contain memorabilia from the University’s history such as previous newsletters, old photos of the Campus and images from Bristol Polytechnic days.
The capsule will be retrieved in the future bringing a flavour of the University as it currently is, to the students and staff of the future.
The landmark academic building will be located at the heart of the new developments on the UWE Bristol, Frenchay Campus, on the northern side of a newly formed plaza. The building is in response to the high level skill needs of the region’s largest sector, professional and financial services and the requirements for future management training.
Bristol Business School and Bristol Law School educate future professionals in all aspects of business and law – from entrepreneurship, management, leadership, strategy through to economists, accountants, marketing and human resources. As well as offering academic law courses they also train barristers and solicitors. They provide alongside this, relevant research into important business and law issues that confront both businesses and society.
Innovative new courses, such as the successful Business Team Entrepreneurship degree, are already creating an exciting buzz on campus, with students responding to the challenges of creating their own businesses during their time at university.
UWE Bristol Deputy Vice Chancellor Professor Jane Harrington, said, “It will provide a first-class teaching and learning environment comprising lecture facilities, teaching and seminar rooms, specialist learning facilities such as a trading room and law courts, and staff offices.
“It will include specialist executive development facilities as well as space for collaboration, business development and informal learning– this wonderful new building will fulfil the aspirations of students, staff and the business community.
“This building will enable the business community to share in the vibrant atmosphere at UWE Bristol and benefit from closer contact with students and academics.
“Our role is to be part of the world of business, to reach out to business and enable them to reach in to us. There are huge benefits for businesses of working closely with a modern practice-based University like UWE Bristol, and this new building will create the opportunity to enable this to happen by fostering informal and formal interaction.
“Key professional organisations will have a base in the new building; and barristers, accountants, small business owners and start-ups (to name but some of our visitors) will be able to mix with staff and students in the social learning areas. Throughout the building will be flexible workspaces available for staff, students and visitors to utilise. Our state of the art law courts will offer excellent facilities for our law students.”
Rob Martin, Western regional managing director for the project’s main contractor ISG, added: “This ceremonial event kick-starts the university’s landmark project at Frenchay Campus, creating state-of-the-art facilities, purpose-built to foster close collaboration between academia and the wider business community. Throughout the construction process, we are working closely with UWE Bristol’s excellent Built Environment Faculty to maximise on-site learning opportunities for students, to generate a real skills and training legacy for this ambitious project.”