Funding challenges and the opportunities that the internet offers tertiary education are two major factors changing the requirements of the physical estate. The student experience, and the quality of teaching and research, impact on reputation. The strength of the people and the place will still determine where academics and students choose in a world where everything is more closely connected by electronic communication.

Universities need to establish priorities for investment, and building designers need to understand the context in which new spaces need to operate.

Tom Kvan’s observations on the current context facing university development raise questions about the timescales for masterplanning and suggest that additional or alternative strategies are required to address the fast rate of change.

Guidance on issues to be addressed, and how a strategic framework might be manifested are set out in the masterplanning section by Philip E. Ogden and Rupert Cook.