£65m Blackpool skills hub given go-ahead

Aimed at plugging the town’s skills and productivity gap, the 350,000 sq ft Multiversity would offer courses in a range of emerging disciplines including automation, artificial intelligence, and sustainability.

The £65m skills hub was granted planning permission by Blackpool Council last night. It will be built off Cookson Street close to Blackpool North train station as part of the Talbot Gateway masterplan.

At present, there is a skills and productivity gap between Blackpool and the rest of the country – 28.8% of Blackpool residents hold an NVQ4+ qualification, compared to 43.5% in Great Britain – according to the council.

The Multiversity, which has received £50m of government funding, would seek to close this gap by upskilling residents and helping them secure long-term jobs. The rest of the funding is coming from the council.

Outline consent was granted for the two-building project. The first phase would feature up to 221,000 sq ft (GIA) of education development. The second phase would see another 130,000 sq ft (GIA) of education or office space added.

The Multiversity would be leased by the council to Blackpool & Fylde College from April 2026.

The project team features architect Hawkins\Brown, structural engineer Civic Engineers, services engineer and sustainability consultant KJ Tait, project manager and cost consultant CBRE, fire engineer Hydrock, acoustician Hydrock, facade engineer Fortis, planning consultant Avison Young, and environmental consultant Egnio.

Ed Harvey, associate director, at Avison Young said: “[Planning approval] is a big step forward for Blackpool’s future and an important next step in the ongoing regeneration of the town centre.

“The Multiversity campus will be a beacon of opportunity for the town, inspiring lifelong learning and encouraging people to upskill.”

To learn more about the scheme, search for reference number 23/0830 on Blackpool Council’s planning portal.