IT was once a place where the body was healed. But very soon, Worcester's choicest chunk of real estate will be transformed into a centre where people's minds will be enriched.

The Faithful City has not been blessed with the best of fortunes this year. The slow demise of the porcelain trade and the catastrophic decline of Kays have provided yet more depressing confirmation that many of our traditional industries are gradually disappearing.

The news that the University of Worcester has finally clinched the deal over the former Royal Infirmary site should therefore fill our hearts with hope. It is forecast that the new campus, when built, will secure more than 1,250 new jobs, bringing an estimated £60 million a year into the region's economy by 2012. As far as this newspaper is concerned, the timing couldn't be better.

All this comes in the wake of two other glad tidings over the last few days. For not only has the university found its name in lights after being named the highest climber in a national league table, but there are also other heartening indications of a steady renaissance elsewhere across the city.

The announcement of a major reshuffle of Worcester's High Street that could see the creation of a new Marks & Spencer superstore means there could be 10 per cent more retail space in the city's key shopping area - and that can only bode well for the future, too.

The Worcester News believes that this city's destiny is now inextricably linked with the progress of our rapidly expanding university. We look forward to the redevelopment of the Castle Street site with great interest.