Multidisciplinary campus planned for western Sydney

A world-class multidisciplinary university campus will be delivered within the Westmead Health and Innovation District thanks to a framework agreement between the NSW Government and the University of Sydney.

The new university campus will build on the District’s role as one of the largest health, education, research and training precincts in Australia.

Minister for Jobs, Investment, Tourism and Western Sydney Stuart Ayres said the agreement was an important step for the long-term future of the Westmead Health and Innovation District.

“A globally recognised university campus in the Central River City at the core of the Westmead Health and Innovation District will drive innovation and catalyse future growth, ensuring we become a world leader in lifelong education and research partnerships that save lives and cure diseases,” Ayres said.

Ayres said over the next 30 years, the NSW Government’s vision for the District is expected to create more than 20,000 new jobs and contribute an additional $2.8 billion of economic output per year to the NSW economy.

“Having the university at the core of the Westmead Health and Innovation District will help transform the district into a powerhouse of invention, creativity and commercialisation, and home to world-leading enterprises, start-ups, researchers and students,” he said.

Ayres paid tribute to the vision of the outgoing Vice-Chancellor and Principal of the University of Sydney, Dr Michael Spence AC, to expand the university’s presence in Western Sydney over coming decades, contributing to the economic, social, cultural and intellectual growth of the area and the broader Sydney metropolis.

Dr Spence, who will become President and Provost of University College London in January 2021, said he was delighted the University of Sydney and NSW Government had agreed to develop a shared vision for a mixed-use university campus at Parramatta/Westmead.

“This once-in-a-century opportunity in Western Sydney would build on our 40-year history at Westmead and create a genuinely multidisciplinary major campus that enables new partnership and innovation opportunities for all of Sydney.

“We are committed to offering students in Western Sydney more opportunity to study and pursue research with our incredible academics to help solve some of the world’s most challenging problems,” he said.

Pending final agreement around the size and timings of the campus development, the university hopes to attract more than 25,000 students and 2500 staff by 2055 and provide affordable student and staff accommodation.

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