Plans have been submitted to develop a new high-tech anatomy centre at the University of East Anglia (UEA).

With a focus on practical anatomical teaching for medical and allied Health Professions' students, the centre will provide increased capacity and high-tech teaching and learning spaces for current and future healthcare professionals. The facility will support the recruitment and retention of highly skilled health care professionals both regionally and nationally, enhancing the advancement of their knowledge and skills.

In line with the Government's recent announcements in the NHS Long Term Workforce Plan, UEA is fully supporting the need for increased recruitment into key NHS roles and the development of skills.

The current Anatomy Suite, located within the Queens Building on campus, has been in operation for over 20 years and during that time has undergone three upgrades – the last of which took place in 2013. The current facility totals 335m², including 133m² of teaching space and 112m² of storage.

The current Anatomy Suite is registered with the Human Tissue Authority (HTA) and with changes to Health and Safety legislation relating to exposure to formaldehyde set to come into law in 2024, it is essential that UEA remains compliant with legal developments for the health and safety of staff and students. This would not be possible within the constraints of the current facility, but with support from the Office for Students and University funding, UEA is able to comply with essential developments, whilst supporting growth and sustainability for the NHS.

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The new Anatomy Suite will meet the University's needs in a variety of ways, including increased capacity for teaching and the additional provision of courses at undergraduate, post graduate and specialist training levels. The new centre will provide flexibility to react to technological changes in teaching methods, sitting alongside the immersive training facilities within the Edith Cavell Building (ECB), and be compliant with essential updates to health and safety legislation and embalming methods.

Charles ffrench-Constant, Pro-Vice-Chancellor, UEA Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, said: "Our anatomy teaching facilities have been at the heart of our healthcare student training for two decades and it’s now wonderful to be able to fully modernise this vital part of our buildings to increase the number of students we can train and provide them with state-of-the-art facilities."

After extensive feasibility testing, it was clear that finding a new location for the Anatomy Suite would deliver the greatest benefits - both financially and in terms of the quality of service offered to staff, students and the wider NHS workforce.

The new Anatomy Suite will be operational by April 2025, offering 390m2 of anatomy teaching space, seminar rooms, an immersive teaching space, improved preparation areas for both staff and students and associated storage and academic office facilities. In total, the centre will offer significantly more and desperately needed space for innovative teaching and practical skills development supporting growth in the NHS workforce.