Facilities

At UCR we strive to be progressive with our courses and we are confident that you won’t find a university centre to rival our outstanding campus. We aim to continue expanding and developing our facilities and resources to ensure they are industry focused to give you the best start in your career.

Fully licensed Zoo and Animal Management Centre

Our Zoo and Animal Management Centre, accredited by the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA), is home to over 250 different animal species, including exotic mammals, reptiles, amphibians, fish, companion and park animals, and birds of prey.

Agri-tech Centre & Commercial Farm

Home to our dairy herd and sheep flock, our farm incorporates the very latest precision technologies for sustainable agricultural practices. We provide training in the latest robotic milking and crop production systems including precision farming, agronomy, and data mapping. We are partnered with Lely, JCB and Kuhn, many of whom donate machinery and equipment.

Glasshouse & Vertical Farm

We have a state-of-the-art, fullyautomated glasshouse and vertical farm facility. This is the only one of its kind in the UK, and features the latest hydroponic and LED-lighting technologies for protected cultivation.

Equestrian Centre

Our Equestrian Centre boasts industry indoor and outdoor arenas with competition surfaces, research laboratory, gait analysis system, VO2 testing equipment and mechanical horse.

Food Centre and Food Processing Halls

We were the first educational facility to hold AA rating with the British Retail Consortium. Our food centre is the National Skills Academy for Food & Drink Dairy Champion. Our facilities include industry standard food processing halls, a butchery, and bakery, alongside food innovation rooms and a sensory tasting lab.

Food Science Laboratory

Featuring the very latest scientific equipment to analyse food characteristics and quality, the lab is run in partnership with the University of Chester as part of the Institute of Sustainability, Food and Innovation (IoSFI).

Sports Science & Performance Academy

Our sports performance suite has top-of-the-range equipment for strength and physiological testing including an altitude chamber, high-speed treadmill, Olympic lifting platform and more. Our sports hub contains a four-court sports hall for football, badminton, tennis, netball, and basketball. We also have a gym, fitness studio, 3G rugby pitch, high ropes, climbing wall and all-weather multi-use games area.

Kennels & Dog Training Arena

UCR’s dedicated kennel spaces are combined with a competition-standard training arena, complete with high-quality canine agility equipment.

UCR has recently been awarded £3.4m of funding to form an Institute of Technology which will expand industry focused technical training