Edinburgh Futures Institute, the stunning, category A-listed former hospital that has been painstakingly transformed into a state-of-the-art university building, was officially opened by Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal on 11 April.
Academics, students and industry partners from the Futures Institute met The Princess Royal, the University of Edinburgh Chancellor, at the opening event, along with specialist tradespeople who renovated the Old Royal Infirmary.
The official opening by The Princess Royal marks another milestone for the Institute since it first opened to the public in June 2024, following an extensive seven-year, multimillion-pound restoration.
Edinburgh Futures Institute is a new futures-focused space for learning, research, and innovation at the University of Edinburgh.
Through the University’s role in the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal, Edinburgh Futures Institute is one of six innovation hubs supported to help bring inclusive growth to the region through the funding of data-driven infrastructure, skills, and innovation.
Since its physical opening, the Institute has welcomed students, partners, and the public through its doors, offering a range of beautifully restored spaces for teaching, events and collaboration.
Many of the common spaces inside the building are open to the public, making good on the sentiment inscribed in stone on the old hospital’s main entrance – ‘Patet Omnibus’ – open to all, in line with the institute’s civic mission to create new and meaningful connections locally and globally.
Learning
As a learning space, the Institute brings together disciplines and expertise from across the the University, exploring data-driven and collaborative methods through teaching, engagement and research.
The Futures Institute currently offers 11 interdisciplinary postgraduate programmes and an undergraduate programme.
In the academic year 2024/25, the Futures Institute welcomed students from 62 countries, with ages ranging from 17 to 73.
Most of the programmes are delivered through fusion learning, a format that enables shared online and on campus classrooms.
Events
In August 2024, the Futures Institute hosted the Edinburgh International Book Festival for the first time, which saw over 70,000 people entering the newly renovated spaces.
The Institute also ran its own event season in the building for the first time from October to December 2024, selling over 7,000 tickets, with most events livestreamed to audiences across the world.
For the city’s 2024 Doors Open Day programme, the Institute welcomed members of the public to explore and commemorate the building as a special Edinburgh landmark.
Multi-sector collaborations
September 2024 marked another big milestone for the Institute as it welcomed its first cohort of partners and members to the purposely refurbished co-location spaces.
The Institute is home to a diverse range of partners and members across different sectors: from financial services and fintech to public services, and creative industries.
The Institute also hosts The Scottish Prevention Hub – a collaboration between Edinburgh Futures Institute, Police Scotland, and Public Health Scotland that aims to harness data to improve health and social inequalities throughout Scotland.
In February 2025, the Institute launched the Compassion in Financial Services Hub, which brings together the financial services industry, policymakers, academia, communities, and civil society with the aim of creating a more inclusive, sustainable, and compassionate financial system.
The annual CreativeTech Scotland Gathering, which brings together Scotland’s creativetech sector to meet academics across the spectrum of the creative and cultural industries, is hosted in the Futures Institute.
Following the official opening with The Princess Royal, Edinburgh Futures Institute Director Professor Marion Thain said:
After years of collective work, Edinburgh Futures Institute’s home at the Old Royal Infirmary has become a reality. The University has created an inspiring space that will change how we tackle the big questions of the future by bringing together students and staff from across the arts, humanities and the sciences to work with external partners for the benefit of societies across the world.
Read more about the official opening event: Award-winning Futures Institute is given royal seal of approval
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Image credit: Neil Hannah photography
