Tamworth's UNE campus 'to boast 10,000 students within a decade' Vice Chancellor Brigid Heywood reveals

The university is aiming to sign a state government deed governing funding for the project within weeks.

Vice Chancellor Brigid Heywood told media on Friday that November 29 is set to be the "magic date".

By "early next year" UNE will have concept drawings and by the third or fourth quarter of 2022 they aim to break earth, she said.

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"My ten-year aspiration is competitively big," she said.

"We're very comfortable with the idea of having 10,000 students roaming in and out of this complex because that would be entirely consistent with the growth ambitions of Tamworth.

"If it happened to be 20,000 you won't find me complaining."

The university currently boasts about 23,000 or 24,000 students in an ordinary year.

It aims to grow to about 30,000 within a decade, either by correspondence or on campus.

"That's not a dream, that is our goal," Professor Heywood said.

"It's tethered to Future Fit which is the university's decade plan."

The UNE team working on master planning the site is currently in Tamworth.

The independent advisors are looking at how to build on not just the velodrome site but also several other locations, Professor Heywood said.

The Peel Street location will serve as the initial tent-pole building.

She wouldn't reveal where the new buildings would go.

"We would be negligent if we didn't look at a number of different sites," she said.

A funding dispute between state and Commonwealth government was resolved in October, paving the way for money to flow on the project.

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