New Campus Glasgow: Strategic Benefits Analysis
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3.11 The result is that the colleges facilities do not meet the expectations of some
learners, many of whom may have come from recently rebuilt or refurbished schools and can
be de-motivated by what they consider to be 'dull' and 'uninspiring' facilities.
The potential of a new campus
3.12 In contrast, the new campus will offer the opportunity to provide:
3.13 Modern learning facilities within teaching areas: including, for example networked
interactive whiteboards and data projection facilities in all lecture rooms and modern learning
facilities to support all vocational curriculum areas, (including for example, PC technology
within teaching kitchens which learners can use to zoom-in on the activity of teaching staff,
without need to 'crowd around' a food preparation area).
3.14 More accessible and professional learning service areas: within the new campus,
there is real scope to be able to position 'service areas' (where learners gain practical skills in
areas such as hairdressing and beauty within real-life environments) in accessible parts of the
campus. As well as the advantage of attracting more members of the 'general public' into the
college, these service areas will provide learners with a far greater range of opportunities to
undertake practical learning in real-life environments. A large number of stakeholders, both
internal and external to the three colleges, are excited about the potential that the new
campus will offer to develop a 'shopping mall' type service area within the college. This could
include service areas that are run on a semi-commercial basis (covering beauty, hairdressing,
health, etc. services), and also include exhibition areas for art and design work, and a range
of professional services.
3.15 Improved library and learning resource centres: Currently, each college has one
relatively small library/ learning resource centre. Typically, these do not offer learners the
range of learning materials and study areas that modern learning requirements demand. The
new campus will enable the colleges to develop multi-use shared library/ learning resource
centres, incorporating quiet learning areas, group study areas, and greater numbers of IT
workstations. By sharing library/ learning resource facilities across the three colleges, there is
scope for these facilities to be available not just during weekdays, but also in evenings and at
weekends, increasing the accessibility for learners.
3.16 An improved facility can have profound effects on learners: since refurbishing its
library to incorporate more social learning and IT facilities, the University of Dundee has seen
a 15% increase in use of its library (equivalent to 27,000 additional users) in just one year.
3.17 Holistic learner support: Each of the colleges already delivers significant learner
support, through advice and guidance. Sometimes however, specialist support is out-sourced
or delivered off-site. The new campus will enable the colleges to provide a greater range of
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Appendix 13: Economic Impact Report