Johnsons Wellfield Quarries supplied the Crosland Hill foundation stone unveiled by HRH Prince Andrew, The Duke of York, in February to mark the start of the University of Huddersfield’s Western Campus development.

Johnsons Wellfield Quarries will be supplying stone for the new building. It has also supplied its Crosland Hill stone for previous developments by the University, including the £28million Oastler Building opened by The Duke of York, who is the University’s Chancellor, in April last year.

The new building is the £30million Barbara Hepworth Building, named after the West Yorkshire-born sculptor. It will be a centre for the study of art, design and architecture.

Architect AHR and main contractor Morgan Sindall are the same team that developed the Oastler Building. AHR is now an international architectural practice but its roots go back to Victorian Huddersfield.

The Barbara Hepworth Building, due for completion next year, marks the start of the development of the Western Campus of the University on land that was formerly the site of engineers Thomas Broadbent & Sons.

The five-storey, 7,500m² building will overlook the Huddersfield Narrow Canal, which runs through the University campus. It will occupy about 20% of the site, leaving 20,000m² for at least four more buildings to be constructed as part of the University’s rolling programme of development. 

Prince Andrew also attended the Huddersfield heat of the Duke of York’s Pitch@Palace, which was held at the University. Pitch@Palace is an initiative, started in 2014, to give up-and-coming young enterprises a helping hand.

The businesses that made the best pitch in Huddersfield were invited to attend a Pitch@Palace Bootcamp this month (March) at Manchester University.

Twelve companies from across the country will be chosen to make presentations to entrepreneurs, investors, the media and technologists at St James’s Palace in London later in the year. They will be hoping to attract financial and mentoring support that will take them on to greater success.

Pitch@Palace has helped more than 490 businesses so far – with some going on to enjoy global success.