Students from Wigan & Leigh College have become the first learners to step inside the new Greater Manchester Institute of Technology (GMIoT) building currently under construction at the University of Salford’s Peel Park Campus.

Bringing together a mixed cohort of construction and built environment apprentices and T Level students, the visit provided a behind-the-scenes look at the £14.3m state-of-the-art learning centre, which is due to open in early 2026.

The visit also coincided with the Greater Manchester Festival of Technical Education which is being held throughout June and July.

Run by the GMCA, the festival boasts a series of virtual and in-person events celebrating student achievements in technical education, as well as the education providers and employers offering these opportunities.

Led by Tilbury Douglas, the building is a key part of the university’s Campus Connectivity Plan and will serve as a flagship hub for higher technical education in Greater Manchester.

The tour gave students an opportunity to see the scale and complexity of the project up close and to hear directly from construction professionals about the real-world considerations shaping the build, from design adaptations to sustainability features.

Martin Gilmore, tutor for civil engineering at Wigan & Leigh College, said: “This was an excellent and insightful visit into current practices.

“Hearing about the construction team’s input into design changes really illustrated the importance of co-operation between designers and contractors.

“It’s valuable for students to see how dynamic and responsive this industry can be.”

Claire Foreman, director of the Greater Manchester Institute of Technology, added: “We were proud to host such a curious, engaged group of students from Wigan & Leigh College.

“The future of construction and the built environment is in their hands and enriching experiences like this help show them how they fit into that future, with access to real sites, real professionals, and real opportunities.”

Once complete, the low-carbon GMIoT building, designed by JM Architects, will include flexible digital labs, a prototyping workshop, and cutting-edge ICT studios, all designed to support industry-informed education across construction, engineering, computing, media and health.

It forms a core part of the university’s wider estate transformation, and supports a broader mission to create employer-led pathways into high-skill careers.

Apprentice, Charlotte, said of the visit: “It was interesting finding out about the beam piles, going 26m down while the building is only 11m tall.

“We found out this is because the deeper ground has a stronger load-bearing capacity.”

The student visit follows the recent steel signing ceremony, which marked the final steel beam being put in place at the new dedicated learning centre.

Led by the University of Salford, with Wigan & Leigh College as the lead Further Education (FE) partner, the GMIoT brings together a number of colleges and employers in the city region.

The new building will be a base for teaching the university’s GMIoT students and for students and staff from partner institutions to visit for collaborative work together and with industry.

The site is a key part of the university’s multi-million-pound Campus Connectivity Plan, which is the major redevelopment of its research, teaching, and public spaces and is the most-ambitious development of its estate to date.

The building will complement the wider Crescent Salford masterplan delivered by Salford City Council in partnership with the university and ECF (English Cities Fund).