BDP supports innovative Higher Education investment across Ireland
Multidisciplinary design consultancy, BDP has played an important role in supporting two bundles within the National Development Finance Agency’s (NDFA) €200 million Higher Education PPP Programme in Ireland. The significant investment is enhancing learning environments and capacity at third-level institutions across the country.
As architect and technical advisor, BDP led the design and delivery of two projects within Bundle 1 of the PPP programme: the Áras Gael Academic Teaching Building at Technological University Dublin (TU Dublin) Blanchardstown campus and the new Digital Media Building at the Institute of Art, Design + Technology (IADT) in Dún Laoghaire. The new facilities were completed in January 2025, marking an important milestone for the programme.
At TU Dublin’s Blanchardstown campus, the Áras Gael building is designed to be future-focused, efficient and deeply integrated into the university’s masterplan to support growing student numbers. The c.4,000 sq m facility brings together large lecture theatres, flexible classrooms and computer labs, social and informal learning spaces, and administrative areas. A striking triple-height central atrium acts as the social heart of the building, creating an open and active core that encourages collaboration and connection between students, staff and disciplines.
The north-facing teaching block maximises daylight and reduces glare, ensuring a comfortable and high-performance learning environment, while the glazed façade visibly showcases academic life to the wider campus. South-facing social and administrative areas offer expansive views across the surrounding landscape, enhancing wellbeing and reinforcing a sense of place. Adaptability is built into every part of the design, with agile, digitally enabled spaces that can support evolving teaching formats, new technologies and diverse ways of learning.
At IADT, BDP also designed the four-storey, c.7,300sq m Digital Media Building, which provides space for up to 590 students studying disciplines including design, animation, visual effects, enterprise and technology. Designed to inspire creativity and collaboration, the building combines specialist digital design studios, computer labs, flexible teaching spaces and seminar rooms with shared social facilities, including a vibrant 600-seat campus restaurant that serves as the social anchor for the wider campus.
At the centre of the building, a feature social stair connects teaching spaces with informal gathering areas, encouraging project-based learning and interdisciplinary collaboration. Adaptability and digital integration are at the heart of the design, ensuring spaces can respond to changing pedagogical approaches, new technologies and increasingly dynamic creative workflows. The design also prioritises sustainability and inclusivity, contributing to the decarbonisation of the wider estate and embedding universal design principles throughout to support accessibility.
“This Digital Media Building is a vibrant hub designed with creativity, adaptability, connection and possibility in mind. It gives students at IADT the space and tools they need to bring ideas to life, from design studios to digital labs and social spaces where people can meet, share and learn together.”
BDP’s Building Services Engineering team is also supporting Bundle 2 of the Higher Education PPP Programme. This bundle includes five new facilities at Southeast Technological University (SETU) Waterford and Carlow campuses, Technological University of the Shannon (TUS) Limerick campus, and the Galway and Letterkenny campuses of the Atlantic Technological University (ATU). The projects have commenced on site, with a sod-turning ceremony recently taking place at SETU in Waterford, marking the start of construction.
“Our work within the Higher Education PPP Programme is helping to shape environments that will enrich student life and education across Ireland for generations to come. The projects are about creating inclusive, sustainable and adaptable spaces that anticipate the evolving needs of students, staff and communities. It is only with a multidisciplinary mindset that we can bring creativity, technical excellence and a deep understanding of what Ireland’s education institutions need to deliver inspiring learning experiences for the students of the future.”
