Blackpool College principal sets out vision for £65m Multiversity

Sunday, 18 August 2024 13:14

By Shelagh Parkinson - LDRS

Rooftop gardens and a flexible events space are part of the vision for Blackpool’s £65m Multiversity, a meeting of the Blackpool Town Deal Board has been told.

Alun Francis, principal of Blackpool and the Fylde College which will oversee the Multiversity, set out the ambitions of the new campus which is due to be built on a town centre site between Cookson Street and Grosvenor Street.

These include –

Floors themed to reflect local and student aspirations

A welcoming open-plan floor with partitioned workspaces

A cafeteria plus a presentation area and a flexible events space that will be available for external organisations to use

In addition to teaching rooms, the second floor will provide a roof garden with views of both the sea and the rural Fylde Coast

Minutes from the meeting say: “The Multiversity will provide a more flexible offer than the three-year higher education solutions of typical educational establishments – students will be able to study shorter courses to suit industry needs and undertake longer courses in convenient ‘blocks’ over multiple years.”

Mr Francis told the meeting the increased cost of studying for a traditional three-year degree which does not always guarantee a job was prompting students to consider alternative ways of studying.

The minutes add: “Three-year degrees peaked some time ago, increased costs were militated by charging international students more but that effect has now plateaued.

“People with degrees are now struggling to get jobs that can service a mortgage prompting the question, ‘Are degrees worth having?’. Alternative offers are now in the spotlight.”

The Multiversity aims to run courses which will meet the skills requirements of local employers to boost students’ chances of getting jobs.

It has received £9m of Town Deal funding, and £40m from the former government’s Levelling Up fund. A public inquiry is due to be held later this year into a compulsory purchase order for properties within the site.

The Multiversity will:

Address the appetite for a business school to be developed

Present an opportunity for the college to become more community-focussed (e.g. utilising the ground floor for social care events) owing to its ideal location

Be dynamic and will also align with existing Lancashire employability requirements

In response to questions from the board, Mr Francis said the Multiversity model “is unique” and is likely to be one others will follow.