In just a couple of weeks, Leeds Trinity will hit a key milestone in a journey which started in 2022.

That was when the University instigated its search to find premises to open a city campus and we spent hours upon hours viewing premises and reflecting on their suitability as a university and as a place to provide the transformational and career-led educational experience we aim to deliver for our students.

Wind forwards to October 2024 and we are on the cusp of opening the doors to 1 Trevelyan Square. From the moment our team set foot in Trevelyan Square, there was a buzz. It is right in heart of the city, it has outside space and it ‘felt’ like a university, even before we had envisaged exactly what the space would look like.

So why create a City Campus to complement our Main Campus in Horsforth?

Leeds Trinity has been delivering education at its Brownberrie Lane site for almost 60 years and the move to the city centre very much builds on the foundations of this heritage rather than breaking free from it.

The University grew from origins as two Catholic teacher training colleges. When the colleges merged and a wider range of courses began to be offered, the institution took a key principle from teacher training and embedded it in every course - the principle of work-based learning as a cornerstone of academic, professional and personal development. Supporting the development of our students and their employability is not an add-on. It is in Leeds Trinity’s DNA.

We are proud to be a career-led University, committed to ensuring students have a chance to apply their learning throughout their studies through work-based learning opportunities and placements. 

This work means we engage with hundreds of businesses every year to create opportunities for our students but also to support employers with their talent pipeline. We know from rich experience that going out into the workplace is a pivotal moment for our students, bringing to life what they have studied in the classroom, providing them with further understanding and developing their confidence.

This connectivity goes beyond our educational approach and speaks to our role as an anchor institution committed to its role in the city and broader region. We listen carefully to the businesses we work with, actively seeking feedback to inform our detailed understanding of sector trends, labour market issues, the skills agenda and recruitment requirements. This intelligence is filtered back to Leeds Trinity teams and informs curriculum development and the way we work with students to prepare them for the world of work.

With the opening of our City Campus, we immerse ourselves further in the Leeds business community. We know the courses we are going to deliver from the city centre – Business, Computer Science, Law, Criminology and Construction and Built Environment – will benefit hugely from being right at the heart of the vibrant business eco-system in Leeds, from being able to access networks on the doorstep of our city campus and from being able to invite employers to be part of what we are doing at Trevelyan Square, whether it be education, research or knowledge exchange.

The opening of our City Campus represents the most significant change in the University’s history – and the most exciting opportunity for Leeds Trinity, its students and its partners. It provides a new space for stakeholders to come together to deliver applied and transformative learning and development opportunities; to connect deeply to support the Leeds agenda to deliver inclusive growth which benefits all communities; and to collaborative to problem-solve, to address societal issues and create impact.

Find out more about our campuses and courses by visiting the Leeds Trinity University website.

Professor Catherine O’Connor is the Pro Vice-Chancellor for Education and Experience at Leeds Trinity University.