Multi-million pound university campus ready to open doors in Dumfries

The campus hopes to offer "ultra-realistic simulated healthcare wards"

A new multi-million pound campus is ready to open its doors to students in Dumfries.

The University of the West of Scotland (UWS) development is co-located with Dumfries and Galloway College.

The facilities at the site include "ultra-realistic simulated healthcare wards" and an immersive learning suite.

Prof James Miller, principal and vice-Chancellor at UWS, said the investment showed its commitment to delivering outstanding higher education in the area.

"We are extremely proud that our campuses are drivers of change and economic development in the communities in which they are based," he said.

"We are pleased to be able to continue - and build on - the important contribution we make across Dumfries and Galloway."

Teaching will begin on the new campus on 6 March

Vice-principal Marcus Ross said the campus had been designed to offer "modern and contemporary learning environments".

"The development builds on an already exciting learning experience at UWS Dumfries, combining our world-class teaching, with facilities to match," he said.

The new campus almost trebles the number of specialist lab facilities, compared to the university's previous home in the town.

Students will have access to specialist health facilities, designed to replicate real-life healthcare settings found across Dumfries and Galloway - such as hospital wards, a GP surgery and care home environment.

Julie Orr, campus manager for Dumfries, said: "We have worked closely with local partners to ensure our academic offerings are designed to tackle skill gaps which exist locally.

"The ultra-realistic healthcare environments, alongside the state-of-the-art technology in use, allows us to continue to produce career-ready graduates, capable of making an immediate impact in their chosen workplace."

Teaching will begin at the new campus on Monday 6 March, with an official opening event at a later date.