The Forum Southend-on-Sea

September 2013 sees the opening of The Forum Southend-on-Sea, a £27 million ultra-modern library and learning zone, which will be located opposite our Southend Campus. The Forum Southend-on-Sea will house a huge range of books and resources as well as over 100 new computers and Wi-Fi access for your laptop and mobile devices.

The Forum Southend-on-Sea is quite different to the traditional type of education or public building. Jointly funded by Southend Borough Council (£12.5m), the University of Essex (£10.4m) and South Essex College (£4m), it will serve three distinct groups of people; the public, students from the University, and students from the College.

It will consist of an integrated municipal and academic public library alongside a modern teaching facility for South Essex College and a stimulating research and learning environment for the University of Essex. The ground-breaking ceremony has already taken place and The Forum Southend-on-Sea will soon rise rapidly, like a phoenix, on the site of the former Farringdon Car Park, and will be situated between South Essex College’s Southend Campus and the University of Essex Gateway Building.

The Forum’s reading area will be larger than the existing library. More than 1300 linear metres of additional books will be available for public access as a result of the partnership with the College and University. As well as 106 computer terminals, including eight quick access terminals on the ground floor, the whole building will be WiFi enabled allowing people to connect to services using their own laptops or handheld devices.

Set within a new public square, The Forum Southend-on-Sea will also become the new home of the Focal Point Gallery and a new café. You can view the progress of the building project via the webcam feed on The Forum website.

Want to know more? Email us with your questions at Southend2013@SouthEssex.ac.uk.