The University of Huddersfield has revealed details about the second building on its £250 million National Health Innovation Campus.

The second building, to sit alongside the Daphne Steele Building which is currently under construction, will host a Community Diagnostic Centre (CDC) Hub.

The hub, planned for the ground floor of the building, will be developed in partnership with Calderdale & Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust, and will be the first of its kind on a university campus.

The CDC will provide access to thousands of additional diagnostic tests for the people of Huddersfield and Calderdale, including MRI and CT scanners right in the heart of Huddersfield.

The Daphne Steele Building, which will become home to the university’s Health & Wellbeing Academy, is being built on the site of the former Huddersfield Sports Centre and is due for completion in 2024.

Catherine Riley, the Trust’s associate director of strategy, said: “It’s a privilege to work with our partners at the University of Huddersfield on this exciting project.

“Not only will the new community diagnostic centre benefit the people of Huddersfield and the surrounding areas but it will also benefit the next generation of healthcare students and support our future diagnostic workforce.”

Work on the Daphne Steele Building. Image by: SEAN DOYLE

University vice-chancellor Prof Bob Cryan said: “I am absolutely delighted to be working with Calderdale & Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust to deliver such an important facility for people in our community.

“It is at the heart of our Health Innovation Campus – which has been designed to help make a difference to the health and wellbeing of all of us in the region.

“This is a concrete symbol of the important role the university plays in working with the health professions, educating the workforce of the future and driving innovation for better health, care and wellbeing.”

Other floors of the building will contain specialist clinical teaching facilities, also to be delivered in partnership with the Trust, such as Diagnostic Radiography.

It is expected that these will provide access to state-of-the-art simulation technology enabling students to learn in a safe but realistic clinical environment.

Prof Bob Cryan with Mayor of West Yorkshire Tracy Brabin at the start of work on the Daphne Steele Building

The third floor will provide facilities for expansion in other areas, including the intention to develop courses in fields such as Dental Hygiene.

Plans are under way for the top floor of Building Two to house a Health and Wellbeing Innovation Centre for local entrepreneurs or start-ups and organisations looking to benefit from locating with the university on the campus. 

Building work is scheduled to begin in April 2024, with completion in the summer of 2025.

This week, the Government announced the creation of a West Yorkshire Investment Zone which will have Huddersfield’s Station to Stadium Enterprise Corridor at its heart.

The National Health Innovation Campus will be a catalyst for the development of the corridor linking Huddersfield town centre with the John Smith’s Stadium.

READ MORE: Great day for Huddersfield with three big investment pledges from the Government

Prof Cryan, who attended the announcement made by Chancellor Jeremy Hunt at Fenay Bridge-based Paxman Scalp Cooling, said: “This is a great opportunity for the University of Huddersfield to be part of the West Yorkshire Investment Zone and to make a real difference to the health and prosperity of the region.

“The National Health Innovation Campus will improve health outcomes, including tackling some of the challenges facing the Yorkshire and Humber region, such as the third lowest life expectancy for both men and women, the highest levels of obesity and the second highest rate of deaths in infancy.

“The campus will also enable the rapid expansion of courses in nursing, midwifery, allied health professions, leadership and human sciences, which will help to meet the growing demand for healthcare professionals.”

Station to Stadium Enterprise Corridor to be at the heart of new £220m West Yorkshire Investment Zone