University College Birmingham is buying the former Cube hotel in a £15m deal
University College Birmingham has acquired the former site of The Cube Hotel and Marco Pierre White restaurant in Birmingham city centre, the first phase of a £15 million hospitality investment plan the university said will create more than 150 jobs.
Birmingham College of Food, which is part of the university, will take over the two premises, which occupy the 23rd, 24th and 25th floors of The Cube, and open them as a hotel and restaurant with 52 rooms. Development and improvement works will take place over the next three to four months, the university said, with opening dates and rental details published as the stadiums move towards completion. The hotel and restaurant, which opened in 2011, ceased trading in June.
Next to the hotel, University College Birmingham will open a neighboring restaurant in Harborne and a cafe, restaurant and bar at its Summer Row campus in the city centre. The existing cafeteria at Birmingham College of Food will be fully refurbished under the same scheme.
The university said the sites will operate as commercial enterprises while offering students its hotel, hospitality, culinary arts, business and events management courses through paid employment, internships and employment. Hospitality professionals are being recruited to lead each area, with what the university described as a special focus on bringing back its alumni.
Professor Michael Harkin, vice-chancellor and principal at University College Birmingham, said: “This acquisition marks the start of an exciting new chapter for University College Birmingham and demonstrates our continued commitment to investing in exceptional learning environments for our students.
He added: “At the same time, we are strengthening Birmingham’s hospitality sector when it is facing major challenges by creating new jobs, attracting talented professionals and supporting the city’s reputation as a leading destination for hospitality, tourism and culinary excellence.”
The investment comes as the wider sector sheds workers. Analysis of official employment data by UKHospitality found that around 89,000 hospitality jobs have been lost since the Autumn Budget, 53 per cent of the 164,641 jobs lost in the UK economy over the same period. The trade association said the rate of job losses in hostels is seven times higher than in the wider economy as a proportion of the workforce. Its chairman, Mr Kate Nicholls, has urged the government to reduce business rates, change employer’s National Insurance contributions and reduce VAT.
David Cumberlidge, director of commerce at University College Birmingham, said: “This acquisition creates a fantastic opportunity for our students to study and work alongside experienced hospitality professionals in a range of exciting commercial areas.
The purchase follows the opening of a catering school in Chelmsley Wood, which provides free training for adults and young people entering the hostel or returning to work. The Government has separately guaranteed a scholarship of up to £4,500 per year for International Credit families.
University College Birmingham educates over 10,000 students. The cafeteria at Birmingham College of Food has been serving food since the 1960s.
The EY 2026 UK Attractiveness Survey ranked Birmingham as the second most sought-after city in the UK outside of London among companies planning to invest, with the Midlands creating 5,970 jobs for foreign investment by 2025.
