The University of Cambridge’s new science and technology development at West Cambridge will be put under the microscope over the coming months in a review of the masterplan; the blueprint for how the site will develop over the next few years.

The West Cambridge masterplan was developed between 1995 and 1999 by architects MacCormac Jamieson Prichard; it received Outline Planning Permission from Cambridge City Council in 1999.

As the site is being developed over several decades it is inevitable that there will be some changes in the way that the plan is implemented. The planning approval includes provision for periodic reviews of the plan without the need for a new planning application.

The University is in discussion with Cambridge City Council on a review of the West Cambridge Master Plan. The proposals are described on the University’s ‘Planning & Building’ web site, and comments are being invited from staff who work on the site and people who live nearby.

All the changes proposed in this review are designed by MacCormac Jamieson Prichard and are minor. The University is committed to the outline, principles and key elements that underlie, and are in the original masterplan. The review does not propose to change the total areas ‘allowed’ in the 1999 Planning Approval for the land uses on the site.

The West Cambridge development is part of the University’s overall strategy for providing modern research and teaching facilities in the 21st century. It allows departments currently housed in old buildings in the city centre the space they badly need to expand and to build modern laboratories and other specialist facilities.

As well as creating opportunities for scientific advancement, essential for the University to maintain its position as one of the world’s top academic institutions, the development is also likely to stimulate commercial research opportunities and enhance Cambridge as a major centre for technological research and development.

We welcome your comments as part of the Review Process.


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