Bolton Institute of Medical Sciences' building work completed

The project - to house Bolton's med school subject to approval - has been one of the most ambitious the borough has seen in recent years and is expected to train around 3,000 medical professionals every year.

The newly built Institute for Medical Sciences facility is situated in the grounds of Royal Bolton Hospital on Minerva Road, Farnworth.

Project director Mark O’Reilly said: “To see the project come to life over the last few years since construction began has been remarkable.

“I have been working with the University on the IMS project since we were aiming to achieve planning permission, and it is brilliant to have today reached practical completion.

One of the new lecture theatres (Image: University of Bolton)

“Working so closely alongside key stakeholders like Willmott Dixon, the University of Bolton, Bolton NHS FT, Bolton Council, as well as the Levelling Up Fund, it has been great to see the vital work done by so many to deliver a facility like IMS, right here in Bolton.” 

Once ready to take in students, the new institute will train the next generation of nurses, midwives, physiotherapists and more.

Building work began around three years ago (Image: University of Bolton)

Subject to approval from the General Medical Council approval, the five-storey building will become a medical school and home to student doctors from September 2025 onwards.

The students will be trained across various high-tech facilities, including simulation suites designed to recreate various healthcare delivery scenarios.

The project was made possible with £20M worth of funding from the government’s levelling up fund.

This made it one of the biggest levelling up grants to any project of its kind in the UK.

A look inside the new institute (Image: University of Bolton)

The remaining £20M was funded by the University of Bolton, bringing the overall costs to around £40M.

Contractor Willmott Dixon started building work around three years ago and the company say it has spend £13.3M within a 20 miles radius of the site since then.

This was more than double the original target of £6M, which the company says has helped create 28 new jobs, 13 of them filled by people from Bolton.

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The institute is now expected to deliver at least £150M to the borough’s economy over its lifetime.

University of Bolton Vice Chancellor Professor George E Holmes said: “It is incredibly rewarding for us at the University to witness our flagship facility reach this important milestone of practical completion. 

“It is a privilege to be home to one of the nation’s leading clinical skills facilities here in Greater Manchester and this is a key step in our aim to become a national centre of excellence for health.”

Work is now underway on an internal fit out ahead of the institute opening in September.