MMU targets 2019 start date for digital school

Manchester Metropolitan University has started the search for a contractor to build its Feilden Clegg Bradley-designed digital school at the All Saints campus, with an opening date for the building targeted for June 2021.

The £18m construction contract for the School of Digital Arts is expected to last for two years, and MMU said it hoped to have the project on site by “no later than November 2019”.

Located on the site of the Students’ Union car park on Higher Chatham Street, the building is set to house teaching space for subjects including film, animation, UX design, photography, games design, and artificial intelligence.

There are proposals for a pedestrianised street between the Benzie Building and the new facility, while the pedestrianisation of Higher Chatham Street is aimed to integrate the site with the wider MMU campus.

Supported by a grant from the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, SODA has a total expected cost of around £35m.

The appointed contractor will work alongside a team of Turner & Townsend, Buro Happold, and planner Barton Willmore on the project. A consultation was held on the project last week.