‘Exactly what we don’t need right now’ was made within the context of locked down universities in 2020-21, where buildings stood empty and the people working within institutions were forced to improvise, often in difficult circumstances. UK universities have made huge investments in real estate in recent decades, whilst teaching budgets have decreased. In lockdown, these buildings were exactly what we didn’t need. Whilst they stood empty, the organisational and financial structures of institutions seemed to soften and buckle.