Refurbishment and expansion of the biggest library in the county is nearing completion at the University of Kent.
The £27 million project to extend and refurbish the University’s 1960s-built Templeman Library at its Canterbury campus will be ready for the start of the new academic term later in September.
The library has increased in size by 5,000 square metres, housing its collection of more than one million books and journals. As well as more shelf space, the extended library includes many more study spaces for students, new seminar rooms, digital classrooms and a 260-seat lecture theatre to provide conferencing and teaching space.
The refurbishment project – which began in 2015 and saw the library maintain full access to services for the 9,000 people using the facility every day – has incorporated environmental best practice, including maximising the use of natural light and ventilation.
The refurbished Templeman Library will be formally opened early in 2018.
In the recent Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) the judging panel described Kent’s physical and digital learning resources as being of the highest quality.
