The University of Dundee’s Estates and Campus Services have recently completed a refurbishment project on the ground floor of the Old Medical School – here’s an overview of what they have done.

If you were to visit the ground floor of the University’s Old Medical School (OMS) prior to its refurb, you would see it was a traditional office layout and might even go as far to describe it as dated. Like other traditional designs, the ground floor of OMS featured a closed-plan layout with single offices taking up most of the space.

Currently the area is occupied by the School of Education and Social Work which in August will officially fall under the New Combined School, to be known as the School of Humanities, Social Sciences and Law.

Looking to modernise the space and create a flexible working environment for academic and professional staff, the Estates team worked with a core stakeholder group within the School of Education and Social Work and a specialist interior architect to reimagine how the space could work to stimulate creativity, collaboration and communication.

By opening up the whole of the ground floor into a series of carefully designed spaces, the overall effect is noticeably brighter and boasts flexible workspaces, bookable meeting rooms, bookable quiet rooms and a variety of modern furniture.

Funded by the Scottish Funding Council, the initial planning for the project was carried out in 2019/20, however plans were put on hold due to the pandemic. Now the space is finally complete, Estates are delighted that staff can enjoy the new working environment.

“The office should be a hub of collaboration and creativity, something that was sorely missed during the pandemic. Since 2020, people have worked differently than ever before and the flexibility of this space allows staff to work how best they need to…”

Rose Jenkins, Director of Estates and Campus Services

Rose Jenkins, Director of Estates and Campus Services, said, “Space, like many things, needs to support the present and future requirements of the University.

“The office should be a hub of collaboration and creativity, something that was sorely missed during the pandemic. Since 2020, people have worked differently than ever before and the flexibility of this space allows staff to work how best they need to – whether that’s on their own in quiet rooms, participating in group work in meeting and breakout rooms, or alongside colleagues in an open plan office space.”

The transformation of OMS doesn’t stop here, with work already well underway to remodel the first floor of the building.

“The support of the School has been fantastic and the next phase of the project will replicate the ideas of the ground floor without being identical,” continued Rose. “Schools and Directorates recognise the benefit to working differently, and Estates are working with several Schools and Directorates to support their move.

“We recognise that this type of space is relatively new for the University and will be working with involved Schools to get feedback for future projects and how we can support their new operational models.

“I’d like to thank all the teams involved in this project, including the School of Education and Social Work, School of Life Sciences, and Estates and Campus Services. “A huge thanks also to Caron Kane, Operations and Research Admin Lead within the School of Education and Social Work, and to Estates’ Project Manager Lindsay Harper and Caitlin Bain, Property Assets.”

All images by Keith Hunter Photography