University of Bristol’s new Temple Quarter campus preparing to open

The landmark main building near Temple Meads train station will house thousands of students

Work on the main building at Bristol University’s new flagship Temple Quarter campus is now complete. The landmark 38,000 sq m building next to Temple Meads train station will house around 4,600 students, 650 university employees and a start-up hub.

The site’s main contractor, Sir Robert McAlpine, will now move furniture and equipment into the building ahead of its opening to students in September.

The scheme is part of a huge regeneration project that will see the transformation of Bristol Temple Quarter, including thousands of new homes and the creation of thousands of jobs.

Bristol University bought the site from the city council in 2017 before demolishing the derelict Royal Mail sorting office in 2019, which had stood empty for more than 20 years.

The main building will sit alongside a new eastern entrance to Temple Meads station, which will connect to the campus through a new public space called University Square.

A new harbour walkway, funded by the West of England Combined Authority (Weca), linking University Square to Temple Quay will provide new walking and cycling routes.

Professor Judith Squires, deputy vice-chancellor and lead for the Temple Quarter programme, at the University of Bristol, said: “Today marks a major milestone in our drive to create a vibrant new connected campus in the heart of the city.

“Thanks to the fantastic work of Sir Robert McAlpine and our university colleagues we remain on budget and on schedule for our September opening.

“It’s inspiring to see our new building come to life and I’m hugely grateful to everyone who has worked so hard to get us to this point.”

Helen Godwin, mayor of the West of England, said the completion of the main campus building was “a big step towards unlocking the wider potential of Bristol Temple Quarter”.

“Hundreds of local people have been working to deliver the University of Bristol’s new £500m Enterprise Campus next door to the West Country’s biggest train station,” she said.

“The old Royal Mail building that stood on this site was once called the chipped tooth in the city’s smile. In this new chapter, I’m happy to say that derelict site is now a distant memory – as we look forward to opening Bristol Temple Meads’ new eastern entrance, walkways along the harbour, and the new campus in September.”