Shaping our future

Creating one of the world’s finest and most broad ranging concentrations of expertise in the life sciences field is the ambitious plan of The School of Biological Sciences at the University of Edinburgh.

With a strong history of scientific breakthroughs and an extraordinary depth and range of expertise in the biological sciences, the addition of key academics and cutting edge teaching and research facilities will ensure that Edinburgh remains at the forefront of the field for years to come.

With this in mind, The School has an ambitious £80m plan to create an estates portfolio which provides the facilities needed by our scientists to continue to tackle the great problems facing humanity in the 21st Century - disease, pollution, food security and more.

We have commissioned Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios to design a building which will maximise the potential of our scientists by giving them the space and facilities to carry out their work, but crucially also the opportunity to collaborate with colleagues from around the School and beyond.

Key to the plan is a new ‘hub’ which will bring together the four buildings on the existing site, creating a shared space for central facilities such as genetic sequencing and spectrometry. The addition of teaching space, seminar rooms and shared catered and study spaces to the hub will provide a central heart to the Darwin complex, fostering communication and interaction.