The first phase of the new £41m Health Innovation Campus at Lancaster University is nearing completion – with staff, students and businesses set to move into the Health Innovation One building over the coming weeks.

The landmark building will be home to Lancaster University’s Medical School and Division of Health Research – but also offers space for external organisations to co-locate on site and work with the University on significant health challenges.

Dr Sherry Kothari, Director of the Health Innovation Campus, said: “The Health Innovation Campus will provide a focal point, allowing researchers, healthcare professionals, businesses, local authorities and policy-makers, to come together to work on a systems approach to improving health outcomes in the region.

“For the last 18 months, we have been watching our new campus grow from the ground up and, finally, we are in a position to capitalise on the many relationships we have continued to nurture with stakeholders across different sectors.

“The new campus will create an innovation eco-system which maximises the value of co-design and co-production to develop sustainable and scaled-up health solutions through cross-sector, multi-disciplinary collaborations.

“It will be an exciting and inspirational space, with a focus on being innovative and disruptive of the status quo.”

Professor Jo Rycroft-Malone, Dean of the Faculty of Health and Medicine, added: “The Health Innovation Campus has been developed to create a dynamic, health-focussed community at Lancaster University - where health research and medical skills development are at the forefront of the agenda.

“Health Innovation One will also be home to various organisations working in the health sector - including NHS agencies and private sector innovators developing new health and wellbeing products and services. Relationships with these organisations will provide new and exciting collaborative opportunities for Faculty researchers.

“The new campus will also set Lancaster Medical School apart as a forward-thinking faculty where students will work alongside professionals already embedded in industry. It will provide state-of-the-art teaching facilities - including a simulated hospital ward in our Clinical Skills Centre and cutting-edge anatomy suite - as well as break-out spaces and shared facilities for working outside the classroom.

“Our medical students have already chosen Lancaster for its excellent teaching and work placement opportunities - now we will have the facilities to match.”

As well as teaching, office space and hot-desking facilities, the building features various meeting rooms and event spaces – including a dedicated Innovation Lab and Business Lounge.

A new café on site – HIVE – will include a menu focussed on fresh food and healthier options, while still being affordable for those on a budget.

A regular programme of events will see members of the HIC community invited to attend and discuss health challenges and potential solutions – with opportunities for funding and collaborative project work also on the agenda.

Plans are also in place to introduce various workplace wellbeing opportunities for employees based in the HIC, to encourage healthier, balanced lifestyles.

Dr Kothari added: “We want the campus to live by its values and provide a welcoming and healthy environment for people to work in. These types of initiatives will be something we will be working on with our experts in workplace health and wellbeing here at the University.”

Development of the new campus has been supported by Lancashire Enterprise Partnership Growth Deal funding, as well as the European Regional Development Fund.

To find out more about working at the Health Innovation Campus, visit the web page https://www.lancaster.ac.uk/health-innovation/business-space/ or contact HIC@lancaster.ac.uk