— By Stephanie Bird and Kathryn Hall.
Work is about to begin on a £1.9 million extension to the University of Lincoln’s sports centre. Building work to start this month and the improved facilities are intended to be in use within a year.
Construction is slated to start on the two-story extension to the building on October 19th. The expanded facility will include another physiology lab and an expansion of the existing movement analysis lab.
Though construction will inevitably cause some disruption to students, this should be minimised through relocation of class activities during the nosiest times.
Catherine Thomas, acting head of sport at the university, said: “I think it’s worth going through a little bit of pain for the end product which will benefit the university enormously.”
The project was announced in April 2009, with the money coming from the Higher Education Funding Council for England. The cash comes from a pot intended to give a boost to the economy, particularly the construction industry, by funding capital projects like this.
The existing facilities were described as “excellent” by Gerry Sutcliffe MP, the Minister for Sport, when he visited them earlier this year.
The project will help the sports department cope with the larger amount of applications, by providing more space and facilities. The improvements should also help the university in their plan to offer MA sports courses in the next few years.