The new £35m Arts Building at the University of Salford will form the centrepiece of the developing campus: it will house the Performing Arts and Music Schools as well as Art and Design, and provide a cutting edge facility for use by the university and the community. The development will form the new entrance into the campus from Salford Crescent Station, signalling the intent of the university to provide facilities fit for this century and beyond. At the heart of the building will be the 300 seat theatre. This will have the flexibility to move from a traditional mode through to a cutting edge ‘black box’ facility capable of hosting a multitude of performance types. The theatre will also open out to the newly landscaped Chapman Square to give potential for open air performances to large crowds. The building also houses a range of recording and practice facilities, along with design studios and galleries for the School of Art and Design. These facilities will be arranged around a number of public spaces, providing a vibrant place where all of these differing creative communities meet and interact. By close working with all of the consultant team, we have been able to develop a stunning building that will meet and exceed all of the university’s needs in a very efficient and cost effective way.