HELIX launch: The University of Leeds’ New Home for Innovation

After over a year of planning and executing, HELIX has finally launched in the EC Stoner building. 

HELIX, initially conceived by Vice Chancellor Professor Simone Buitendjik, then becoming a cross-organisational project, is a cathedral to online learning and confirms a new age of University education. Fitted out with state-of-the-art technology, HELIX is intended to be used by staff, students and the local community alike for creative, entrepreneurial and educational pursuits. 

A television studio, podcast suites, the UK’s first OmniDeck, immersive VR technology and interactive meeting spaces, this new facility is a far cry from DES’ previous location in a Blenheim Terrace basement. The renovation of Level 7 of EC Stoner into HELIX has cost £3 million, an investment considered worthwhile in the diversification of the University of Leeds’ online teaching capacities. HELIX seeks to foster enterprise. In the ‘makerspace’, you’ll find Lego, sewing machines, 3D printers and all manner of materials to experiment with in the name of ‘idea generation’.

The Gryphon was invited down to the launch of HELIX on Thursday evening. There, the directors of the project and the University’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor Simone Buitendijk, shared thoughts and words about their vision for the space. One speaker saw HELIX as the “physical manifestation of the Vice-Chancellor’s vision for education” and encouraged students to make use of the facility. The advantages of HELIX are seemingly boundless. The Vice-Chancellor saw the opportunity for millions of people to be digitally trained together, and touched upon the environmental benefits of this in light of reduced airplane travel. She also saw HELIX as helping to foster a better working relationship with universities in the Global South. 

Education Officer, Bethan Corner, was also in attendance and, alongside Simone Buitendijk, unveiled the official plaque of the HELIX opening. The desire for HELIX to become a space of joint enterprise was mentioned again as Bethan confirmed that University societies are “desperate to get involved”. When looking around the facility, there is no wonder why it has created such a buzz.

The facility launch gave a taste of things to come. Margaret Korosec, Dean of Online Education and Professional Learning, read her speech from a wafer-thin iPad stood in front of the OmniDeck, VR goggles dotted around the perimeter. As she was sharing her excitement for the capabilities of HELIX’s technology, an audience member could not decline a phone call and another accidentally summoned Siri. It was easy to get lost in the ultra-tech world of HELIX, these moments acted as a reminder of the potential pitfalls the facility might have and prompted questions about how such state-of-the-art technology can be made accessible to anyone and everyone. 

As a space unlike anything found on campus, there are also questions about how HELIX will operate day-to-day. Those who book suites and rooms will be able to ask for assistance from on-site employees as well as accessing online handbooks. Instruction sheets are also provided in spaces like the podcast suites so users can figure the technology out themselves. The amount of help that will be available on-site and whether students can just show up and use the space is not yet clear. A dynamic, easy atmosphere is encouraged however and is at the heart of HELIX’s philosophy.

The separation of ‘analogue’ creativity and digital technology has been consigned to the past. HELIX encourages great ideas to be born from the interaction of the analogue and digital: creativity and technology. This new space is an exciting step in the future of university education. The opportunities it affords students and staff are endless and we are certainly intrigued to see what comes out of HELIX. 

Tours of HELIX are available to anyone who books (via this link: https://digitaleducation.leeds.ac.uk/helix/events-and-tours/). The facility will also be hosting further events over the course of the academic year. Keep a VR-goggled eye out!