The Faculty of Management and Law – University of Bradford

Bowman Riley supported the extensive remodelling of the Bright, Pemberton and Ashfield buildings to become the Faculty of Management and Law, a brand new cutting-edge facility on the University of Bradford’s city campus.

The Faculty of Management and Law 120 staff teach and administer its portfolio of undergraduate, master’s, MBA, and doctoral programmes. The Faculty is highly regarded with accreditations that place the University in an elite group of Business Schools. 

The University of Bradford decided to consolidate and relocate the Faculty of Management & Law from their Emm Lane Campus back to the City Centre Campus split between the existing Bright Building, Ashfield and Pemberton buildings. We provided a feasibility study into the project, specifically looking at the opportunities for energy efficiency, the long-term flexibility of the building with space identified for future expansion of each department, the phasing approach to ensure minimal disruption to the University, the sequencing of relocating existing building occupants, and identifying project risks.

The Pemberton and Ashfield buildings had not been refurbished since the 1980s, and the Bright building, completed in 2009, was to become the University’s focal point for the new Management and Law School.

We provided the roles of architect, project manager, contract administrator, building surveyor and principal designer on a new Faculty, which offers research, learning, exhibition and business incubation space.

The two 1980s buildings were dark and heavily partitioned. Our refurbishment works increased ceiling heights and opened areas with new LED lighting to create a brighter, healthier, more sustainable environment. The result is an interior that offers a contemporary and dynamic place for students enabling various space configurations to support modern learning methods with acoustic ceiling discs to absorb sound. The tech sector inspired the design with exposed services and building fabric, creating an industrial feel offset by a colourful furniture package.

A key design challenge involved creating space for the various practical scenario areas, including a mock courtroom, an innovation hub, the Barclay’s Eagle Lab and the Bloomberg Trading Room.

The mock law courtroom was officially opened by Lady Brenda Hale, president of the highest court in the land, and unveiled in her name.  Lady Hale applauded the new mock courtroom facility aimed at bringing the gravity and drama of the UK’s justice system to life for students and the wider community as a space for potential witnesses to understand the daunting court process.

Now complete, the project has brought The Faculty of Management and Law into the city centre campus by remodelling and refurbishing existing university buildings and making them modern and bright, befitting the prestige of the Schools.