Wates Construction has been appointed to build the City Hub building for Nottingham College.

Nottingham College was formed following a merger between the city’s New College and Central College in June 2017. Nottingham College will strive to ensure the qualifications it provides and the students that graduate are fit for industry, and able to play a meaningful role in the growth of Nottingham’s economy.

The City Hub, which was procured via Major Works - UK, part of the Scape National Construction framework, will offer superior facilities and resources for college students, as well as providing community amenities including a restaurant, cafe, and a new performing arts centre.

The City Hub will be built on disused brownfield land next to the Broadmarsh Centre and tram overpass at the foot of Lace Market Cliff. It will form an important part of a Council run scheme to regenerate this part of Nottingham in order to provide a more welcoming entrance to the southern part of the city centre.

Wates has committed to engaging with a local supply chain and providing training and employment opportunities for local people, to ensure the project creates a social, skills and economic boost for the city. Throughout its time on site, Wates is to work closely with the college’s construction team as part of a significant student engagement programme that will demonstrate the wide variety of career opportunities within the built environment.

The realisation of this commitment has already commenced with Wates hosting a Meet the Buyer event at Nottingham College on Wednesday 21st March. Attendees were given the chance to meet the teams at Wates and delegates from the College, the design team, training providers and the Council, in order to put themselves forward to work on the groundbreaking scheme.

Major Works - UK is part of the Scape National Construction framework. The framework provides public sector organisations with the highest standards of customer satisfaction, local labour and local spend for projects as well as operating with strict minimum standards of fair payment, waste diversion, community engagement, training and apprenticeships.

John Carlin, Business Unit Director, Wates Construction Midlands, said:

“We are very proud to have secured the contract to build what will be an exceptional centre for education in the East Midlands. As well as being a superior facility for students, the Hub will also be of excellent use for community groups and the business sector and will play a key role in creating a new destination within the city centre.

“Throughout the project we look forward to working with our neighbours and wider community to ensure they have the opportunity to collaboratively engage with our team, and to ensure we support initiatives around the city that will tangibly benefit from our involvement. We were very happy to see so many attendees at our Meet the Buyer event, and look forward to working with companies across the region in the coming months to help create a striking addition to Nottingham city centre.”

Victoria Brambini, Managing Director at Scape Procure said:

“We are delighted to be part of this important Nottingham City Council run scheme, which is set to regenerate the southern part of the city centre. The innovative City Hub will be a welcome addition to the newly formed Nottingham College as well as boosting the local community by providing significant employment and training opportunities.”

Matthew Varley, Director of Estates at Nottingham College said:

“Wates are one of the largest privately-owned construction companies in the country and their approach to working in partnership and using their experience on other similar schemes makes them an ideal partner for Nottingham College in driving the City Hub project forward.”