Green light for University of Northampton to relocat - leatherbiz: Lea Leatherbiz

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Green light for University of Northampton to relocate leather facility

16/05/2016
Green light for University of Northampton to relocate leather facility
Plans for an international centre of leather excellence in Northampton have received the go-ahead. The local authorities are working with the University of Northampton to create a multi-million-pound centre of excellence for leather within the town’s cultural quarter. The ambitious plans will see the university transfer its Institute for Creative Leather Technologies (ICLT) from its current home at Park Campus to the former Vulcan Works site in Guildhall Road in the centre of the city (pictured). The historic former ironworks building will also house Northampton’s Leather Conservation Centre, also located at Park Campus now, and an exhibition space.

A planning application for the project will be submitted this summer, with work starting on site by the end of this year, and completion in summer 2018.

Rachel Garwood, director of the ICLT, said on announcing the news: “We are currently the leading global higher education provider for leather education and the only university in Europe offering full leather processing within our leather innovation lab. The new International Leather Centre in Northampton town centre will become the epicentre for leather expertise, addressing the whole of the value chain from the hide to the high street.”

She explained that, as well as working with the university’s fashion, design, marketing and business departments, the ICLT will maintain close working relationships with other specialised bodies such as Moulton College, which specialises in agricultural sciences, the Leather Conservation Centre, Northampton’s Museum of Leathercraft and the local leather industry. “No one else is positioned to offer this level of expertise worldwide,” Ms Garwood said.

The university’s chief operating officer, Terry Neville, added: “Northamptonshire has been linked with the leather industry for centuries, and the University of Northampton is delighted that our globally-recognised research and teaching in this sector will find a new home at the Vulcan Works. It will be a source of pride for us to be able to bring these historic buildings back to use as an important hub for the leather industry.”

Mr Neville explained that the new location for ICLT in the centre for leather excellence is part of a wider move to relocate the university in the heart of the city, which will be complete in 2018 when its new Waterside Campus opens its doors.

A local council leader, Tim Hadland, said: “The university has an opportunity to create something unique here, ensuring Northampton continues to be viewed as one of the foremost leatherworking centres in the world.”

The entire project will cost around £13 million, £5 million of which will be used to create the university’s leathercraft centre. Initially, the university is contributing £2 million towards the project, and will pay back the remaining costs through a 30-year lease arrangement with the council.


Related stories:

ICLT celebrates record student intake 18/10/2017
ICLT granted planning permission for new site 23/05/2017
Plans for Northampton leather centre submitted 16/11/2016
New location for Museum of Leather Craft 26/05/2016

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