Dharug
NSW
The Western Sydney University Bankstown City Campus is a transformational vertical campus, redefining the role of higher education in an urban context. More than just a university building, it is an open, connected, and highly activated civic space, designed to integrate seamlessly with Paul Keating Park, the Knowledge Hub, and Bankstown’s commercial centre.
Prioritising public engagement and permeability, the campus fosters connections between students, industry, and the wider community. Its activated ground plane, stacked learning environments, and layered public terraces create a high-density, mixed-use model for the future of academic infrastructure. A calibrated massing strategy ensures contextual sensitivity, with a dynamic façade composition of shading devices, inset balconies, and landscaped terraces softening the building’s urban presence.
Achieving 6-Star Green Star As-Built rating, the project establishes a new benchmark for sustainable university design. It’s a civic landmark, an economic catalyst, and a bold reimagining of education’s role within the contemporary city.
The Bankstown City Campus offers our students highly accessible and technology-rich teaching facilities, providing them with the opportunity to engage in work-integrated learning and collaborative research partnerships. Lyons’ design has created a beacon for the community, with its iconic façade bringing students to the town centre, connecting them to local business and embedding the University in the economic, civic, and social fabric of Bankstown. It allows us to continue improving higher education quality and access, particularly for those from lower socio-economic backgrounds, boosting graduation rates and employment outcomes for south-west Sydney for generations to come.
Lyons, Design Architect
Walker Corporation, Developer
Norman Disney & Young, Services Consultant
Inhabit, Facade Engineer
Aspect Studions, Landscape Consultant
HDR, Interior Fitout Architect
WSP Consulting, Civil Consultant
TTW, Structural Engineer
Acoustic Logic, Acoustic Consultant
Group DLA, Building Surveyor
Arup, Traffic Engineers
Group DLA, Access Consultant
Urbis, Town Planner
E-Lab, ESD Consultant
Bonacci Group, Structural Engineer (Initial)