£80M Bristol University Library set to open in 2026 paused indefinitely

The University of Bristol’s new ‘Cultural Destinations’ library, set to open in 2026, has been postponed for at least three years.

The library was intended to replace the current Hawthorns building, which dates back to the 19th century.

The 14,320m² building would’ve supplied 420,000 books, 70,000 journals across nine stories of learning space. It was set to house 2,000 study seats and exhibition rooms that would be available to the public.

The £80 million cubic masterpiece designed by Hawkins\Brown and Schmidt Hammer Lassen, was initially approved by the Bristol City Council in 2021. The space was set to open its doors to Bristol students in 2026 however such plans have since been shelved and this decision won’t be reviewed for at least three to five years.

Despite the hope for the future, the hold-up is symptomatic of the wider financial pressure faced by Universities right now. In July alone, 45 members of staff from the University of Bristol’s Centre for Academic Language and Development were under risk of mandatory redundancy, a mere fraction of the 12,000 job cuts calculated by the University and College Union (UCU) for UK Universities this year.

A spokesperson from the University said, “Currently, the library project has been paused and we do not anticipate reviewing that decision for the next three to five years.” Adding however, that would still form part of the University’s long-term vision for students, “We are not cancelling it, because we recognise that opportunities may emerge in the future to change this.”