£37m makeover for Brum library

The uni is pushing ahead with plans to build a new £37million library.


Floral Fifties fashion may be in right now, but we’re not sure concrete Fifties buildings ever were.

Good news, then, that the shabby Edgbaston campus library is being replaced by a £37million new building.

Six levels of learning

Architects released images of what the new library will look like in August, but now the uni has released pre-qualification documents and is pushing forward building plans.

The 130,000 sq ft library, which was designed by Associated Architects, will be six storeys tall, and will include a brand new cafe and exhibition space.

It will also be energy efficient, cutting current consumption in half. This comes as part of the UoB’s aim to reduce carbon emissions by 20% by 2020.

The library will feature a brand new atrium

Warren Jukes, director of Associated Architects, called the project “ambitious,” adding, “[It] is set to make the University of Birmingham a globally leading university.”

The redesign will cost £37m

Construction work is due to start early in 2014.