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Mike Sherrington says that selling a city-centre site to a regeneration developer and getting a new building on part of the site able to accommodate an almost equal number of students sounds attractive. Using surplus cash from the deal to carry out major modernisation of other parts of an estate makes it even more appealing.

Manchester College of Arts and Technology (Mancat) liked the idea and has done just that. Mancat assistant principal Bernard Priest says it will result in a 4,000m2 high-profile centre for business studies, access studies and general education programmes. It will also allow Mancat to complete its total redevelopment and modernisation programme in two years rather than the 20 it might have taken otherwise.

r Heat is on for energy wasters Jeremy Melvin describes how the University of East Anglia has bitten the bullet in eliminating conventional heating from its buildings.

Gas use in the Elizabeth Fry building is just a fifth of accepted requirements for academic buildings. The Fry building, which was built within budget, is cool, elegant and restrained in a manner worthy of its modernist neighbours designed by Sir Denys Lasdun, Norman Foster and Rick Mather. Users are happy too. If the technology is there - Elizabeth Fry opened in 1995 - why do all buildings not come up to its standard?