The three storey facility will be located in the north-western part of the campus in Canterbury, where the recently demolished Kent Research and Development Centre was located, and will complete the circle of buildings that include Sibson and the old KBS Building.

The new Economics Building will house improved facilities such as social spaces, meeting rooms and an IT suite and be ready in time for the start of the 2019-20 academic year.

The location brings Economics into closer proximity with Kent Business School and the School of Mathematics, Statistics and Actuarial Science, to create an area of strength in ‘financial and business’ subjects in one area of the campus.

Roger Forsdyke, managing director for Willmott Dixon in the Southern Home Counties said, “We are delighted to be working once again with the University of Kent, we’ll be bringing our experience of higher education and working in live environments on major hub projects to ensure we create a centrepiece that will provide an excellent learning environment for many generations to come.”

Willmott Dixon’s other current University projects include a new School of Medicine for Anglia Ruskin University in Essex, Kingston University’s landmark Town House, a cutting-edge sports hub for the University of Warwick and converting a former naval hospital within a world heritage site into a student hub for the University of Greenwich.