Liverpool John Moores University finishes £24m development

After three years, the university’s expansion and refurbishment of the Tithebarn Building is complete. The building remained operational throughout the construction period.

Willmott Dixon wrapped up its final phase of the project in August, improving the green spaces around the building, creating a courtyard and car parking facilities.

The Tithebarn Building project has been completed in phases. The first to complete was the refurbishment of the 56,870 sq ft, four-storey Avril Robarts Library. New study spaces were created and the overall design was modernised. The library was open for students in October 2020.

“The fantastic enhancements to Avril Robarts Library have already proven to be incredibly popular with students and staff,” said Heather Thrift, director of library services at LJMU.

“The library offers a great environment for our online and digital resources, book stock and dedicated study spaces for groups and individuals. It also enables our students to easily access key services, such as careers and advice and wellbeing.”

The second phase of the Tithebarn project to complete was the 24,240 sq ft extension of the Faculty of Health, which was handed over in December 2020. More than just an extension, this project included refurbishing 62,860 sq ft of the existing six-floor building. The refurbishment side of the scheme was finished in June this year and resulted in the creation of two lecture theatres, three IT suites and nine technology-enhanced specialist simulation suites.

“We are proud to be using our skills for creating state-of-the-art healthcare and education facilities to deliver this exciting and important teaching and learning environment for students starting their careers,” said Mike Lane, operations director for Willmott Dixon in the North.

“We have delivered more than £100 million of work in Liverpool in recent years and, in partnership with Liverpool John Moores University, we’re determined to create a positive legacy beyond bricks and mortar,” he continued. “This really is a project built by and for the people of Merseyside and we’re proud to say we have invested more than £18.5m of the project spend with businesses in the local area.”

The Tithebarn Building at Liverpool John Moores University is located at 79 Tithebarn Street in Liverpool. The development team on the scheme included Faithful + Gould on project management, Sheppard Robson as the architect for the library and Day Architectural as the architect for the Faculty of Health facilities. Cundall was the structural engineer.