Ulster University is to invest £10 million to transform part of its Jordanstown campus into a new “sports village” to further sporting excellence in Northern Ireland.
The move follows the relocation of much of the university’s teaching and research facilities to Belfast city centre campus which has allowed the sports faculty room to grow at its out-of-town base.
It said the development, which is subject to planning approval, will include the development of a “multi-sport facility for students, staff and the local community”. The indoor facility will include the creation of a two-storey extension of the existing High-Performance Sports Centre to include a gym, fitness suite, physio room, teaching and event space and a range of other facilities.
The university already has a strong reputation as a sporting institution and will remain the home of the Sports Institute of Northern Ireland, the IFA EUFA Football Academy and the IFA Women and Girls Performance Centre and the Regional Centre of Excellence for Basketball Ireland, Cricket Ireland, Irish Boxing and others. It will also further develop as an essential training base for hundreds of clubs and high-performance Northern Ireland and Irish teams.
The Jordanstown Sports Village also caters for students from the School of Sport, Nursing and Health Sciences and in the Belfast School of Architecture and Built Environment to supplement their teaching delivered in the nearby Belfast campus, offering bespoke practical indoor spaces for nursing students and expansive outdoor pitches for sports students. The wider Jordanstown campus estate will still offers students accommodation in the Dalriada Student Village.
Professor Paul Bartholomew, Ulster University Vice-Chancellor, said the university has and will play a significant role in Northern Ireland’s sporting prowess.
“The plans launched today combine innovative technology with world class facilities to support our students, athletes, coaches, governing bodies, alumni and the local community to reach their sporting potential,” he said. “From research backed sports education, elite performance support and host of local, national and international sports competitions, the improved Jordanstown Sports Village will become the cornerstone for involved, engaged and supported sports people.”
