HEDQF Event: The Challenges and Complexities of Academic Space
Mark Gabbey will be speaking about ‘the challenges and complexities of academic space’ at this Wednesday’s HEDQF event, to be held at Reading University. He will be sharing recent experience from our work on the University of Westminster’s Psychology Department, a new facility focused on enhancing the experience of academic and student engagement and reflecting this in a refreshed department identity.
A key objective of the project was to bring 40 academics together into one shared department suite that was more accessible to students and improved the interaction between students and academics, as well as between the academics themselves. This was achieved with new shared offices accessed from a flexible central hub that accommodates impromptu one-to-one meetings, group work, entire department gatherings and presentations (including the odd film night).
Mark will discuss how the transition from traditional 1-person offices to a new type of academic space was facilitated through engagement and the careful design of key details that maintained the balance between openness and discretion, supporting day-to-day academic activities and enhancing the experience of academic and student engagement.
Read more about the project here, or to speak to Mark click here.
