We have now taken handover of Charles Street. This is fantastic news for the University and the fact that we now have a hugely impressive new building that we will soon be able to showcase to staff, students and visitors is well worth celebrating.
Although we have taken practical completion of the whole building, we won’t be opening up the whole site to staff immediately. This is because there is still some ongoing work to complete – including the external works to Furnival Gate, Charles St and Clay Lane and minor snagging and fit-out alterations – which necessitates both the contractors and our own teams remaining on site.
This does not cause any delays in our operational planning, as staff moves are not scheduled until March at the earliest and teaching from 4 April. It does mean that we can begin using the lecture theatre from Monday (8 February) as intended. Staff and students will access the space from the rear of Charles Street, in Eyre Lane, and the rest of the building will be locked down by means of temporary barriers and signage.
During the work on Charles Street we have been using the open access IT suite in Arundel Building (which also houses the catering unit) for teaching. Given the small amount of teaching taking place in this space the commercial services team, working with the timetabling and space management team, have been able to bring forward the intended opening date of the catering unit, Il Barista, from 4 April to 22 February. As some teaching is still planned from this date opening times will be adjusted to accommodate this, but the intention is that the unit will be open Monday to Thursday inclusive before extending to Monday – Friday opening from 21 March when staff begin to move in. A full list of opening times is available here.
A Building Information Guide (BIG) is being developed to assist staff moving into Charles Street (and Arundel Building) .This will include floor and building plans, and information on IT and health and safety, and will be available online later this month. Tours are also being organised for staff to familiarise themselves with the new building before any moves begin, and these will be scheduled for early to mid-March.
Finally, a word on the name of the building. The official name will be ‘Charles Street’ and this is how we will be referring to it in all our communications, marketing and signage.