University of Melbourne’s U-Vet Werribee Animal Hospital and Werribee campus redevelopment

Artist's impression of the redeveloped Werribee campus.
Learning and teaching facilities will be transformed with a new five-storey building for veterinary preclinical and clinical skills training.

A $63 million redevelopment will enhance facilities for pet treatment and training for future veterinarians at the University of Melbourne’s U-Vet Werribee Animal Hospital and Werribee campus.

The U-Vet Werribee Animal Hospital will continue to provide full services for animal patients and their owners as usual in emergency, general practice, specialist medicine and at the U-Vet Werribee Equine Centre during the redevelopment. Visitors will be advised of changes to site access via on-site signage.

The University’s Werribee campus is home to world-class veterinary teaching and research in the Melbourne Veterinary School.

The project is part of broader redevelopment, which also encompasses a new $100 million building project on the Parkville campus.

Both the Parkville and the Werribee redevelopments will help secure Victoria’s only accredited Veterinary course – the Doctor of Veterinary Medicine – and the Parkville facility will also provide a broad suite of bioscience teaching spaces to train the next generation of Australia’s doctors, veterinarians, animal scientists and bioscientists.

Both projects are scheduled to be completed before the end of 2018.

The Werribee plans include redeveloping the existing facilities for U-Vet Werribee Animal Hospital to enhance experience for pets and the resources for clients.

Learning and teaching facilities will be transformed with a new five-storey building for veterinary preclinical and clinical skills training.

The redevelopment will include a new hospital entry, a café, landscaped gardens, increased parking for clients and visitors, and improved accessibility to link all areas of the campus.

Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences Dean John Fazakerley says the new Werribee campus supports University and Faculty goals for world-class education and research.

“The new facilities will provide our staff and students with increased access to cutting-edge equipment and purpose-built spaces,” Professor Fazakerley said.

"The redevelopment will also provide additional opportunities to incorporate work place-based learning and scientific research into our teaching courses."

The University has been working closely with the Victorian Planning Authority and Wyndham City Council to align the redevelopment with the East Werribee Employment Precinct and the Health and Learning Precinct.

The Western Edge BioSciences Stage 1 project will secure $653 million gross state product for Wyndham and $2.754 billion for Victoria, which includes job creation in construction, as well as the benefits of increasing the teaching and research conducted in Wyndham.

The redevelopment will meet the University’s sustainability targets, bringing the refurbished hospital to a 4 Star equivalent Green Star rating and the new building to a 5 Star Green Star ‘As Built’ Certification.

Melbourne Veterinary School Head Ted Whittem says the new U-Vet Werribee Animal Hospital has been designed to reflect the needs of animal patients, with separate waiting areas, consultation rooms, wards and treatment areas for dogs, cats and exotic pets all designed to reduce animal stress.

“The redevelopment will also increase consultation capacity and provide students with more opportunities for clinical experience and training," Professor Whittem said.

"We will also have improved and increased diagnostic and treatment spaces, as well as an increased area for emergency treatment with segregated quiet zones.

“New facilities will include world-class laboratories for clinical and surgical skills training, plus extra consultation space to train our veterinarians of tomorrow."