Reading finalises £250 million development plan

Following a six week consultation last autumn, the University of Reading has now finalised its £250 million Whiteknights Development Plan 2008-2018. The infrastructure developments carried out with Stride Treglown are designed to enhance the university's academic activity and ensure the University of Reading continues to be regarded as one of the leading universities in the UK and internationally. 


The Plan will become the reference and context of the university's vision to develop the campus. It has been submitted to Wokingham Borough and Reading Borough Councils as a supplementary document for forthcoming planning applications emanating from the Plan.

For many years, the University has been concerned about the fragmentation of the campus that has resulted in an inability to access many areas without using the peripheral public road network. This has affected security, deliveries and logistics. A cornerstone of the university's plans for the campus over the next ten years, therefore, will involve new and improved internal connections between the academic buildings, halls of residence, welfare and support buildings. 




Tony Downes, Deputy Vice Chancellor of the University of Reading, said: "I'd like to thank the many local people, staff, students and various authorities who have contributed to the consultation and exhibitions... 

As we move forward over the next decade, we will use the Whiteknights Development Plan as the guiding reference to help us develop this wonderful campus in a way that provides the very best facilities and environment, and supports and inspires our staff and ensures we continue to attract the best students."
David Hunter, Director mof Stride Treglown said: "Working with the University of Reading on a series of projects across three campuses has allowed us to set up a framework team that provides a broad range of design and technical expertise targeted at the University’s particular requirements. The continuity of workflow has also enabled us to establish a good understanding of the University’s estates strategies and an overview of the complex interrelationships of individual projects. This in turn allows us to identify programme priorities and efficiencies that help the University in delivering its plans for development in a coordinated way."
He continued: "As an example, from our commission to create a 10-year development plan of the main Whiteknights Campus – a process involving extensive consultation, information gathering and analysis – we have been able to develop design proposals for the complete restructuring of the catering strategy and major redevelopment of student halls that both coordinate closely with planning and environmental constraints. By being able to help build the bigger picture, and with it develop working relationships with key stakeholders at the University, we have been able to explore ideas quickly and collaboratively. The resulting efficiencies in targeted effort and time saved mean that the University’s ambitious development programme remains on course for completion within timescale and budget."