News and Events
In this section you will find regular news and events updates covering all areas of our work.
News 2006 - 2009
Click here for current news
Adult Learner and Access Programme Awards (May 2009)
For the fourth year in a row, the Access Programme and Adult Learner Awards have recognised outstanding University of Leeds students. The awards aim to acknowledge students who have faced and overcome significant challenges to enter the University through alternate routes, and for the first time this year two prizes were awarded in each category: a winner and a special commendation. Access Programme Award winner Katie Johnson and Special Commendation Sophie Mitchell are both final year Law undergraduates who entered the University through the Access to Leeds scheme. Adult Learner Award winner Eleanor Longden is coming to the end of her final year of a part-time degree in Applied Psychology and the Adult Learner Award Special Commendation, Julie Murphy has completed a course in Integrative Counselling in the School of Healthcare.
The awards were presented by Professor Vivien Jones, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Learning and Teaching, at a lunchtime ceremony in May. Professor Jones said “This is one of my favourite annual events because it gives proper recognition to those students who have overcome all kinds of difficulties to be here. Their courage and determination is a fantastic example to all of us, as well as a great testimony to Leeds’s commitment to providing world class education to students from every background.” The winners and Special Commendation awardees all received a cheque and a certificate. Certificates have also been given to the eight short-listed nominees, to mark their significant personal achievements.
Volunteering Awards 2009 (May 2009)
Tthe University held the third volunteering awards in May 2009 to celebrate the support students have offered to our local communities. Some of the winners included:
Volunteer of the year – WINNER HELEN JOHNSON
Helen Johnson
From the time Helen arrived in Leeds she has dedicated much of her time to volunteering. She is the International, National and Extreme Events organiser for RAG. I’ve a list here of all the events Helen has organised – 3 charity hitchhikes, a sponsored bike ride from Leeds to Paris, the RAG firewalk, three international volunteering projects, a charity skydive and the RAG jailbreak…… Together these events raised over £50,000. This is clearly not enough for Helen however as she also spent the last two summers in Uganda working with a charity organisation and this summer will be in Thailand to help out in an orphanage.
Nicola Kober – Ralph Thoresby School
Nicola volunteered through the University Access Academy and she created her own project R:Edit with 10-15, year 7 pupils in an after school club. The project involved the group editing an unpublished short story for Barrington Stoke who specialise in producing books for reluctant and struggling readers. The group edited and proposed changes to the script which was then returned to the publisher. Each child involved will be named on the inside sleeve and receive a copy to keep. The school pointed out that the scheme was ‘brilliant’ and there was a noticeable difference in the confidence of the children in reading aloud.
Laura Savage, Sharon Robinson and Katherine Dawson - Hawksworth Estate Older People’s Support
Laura, Sharon and Katherine have been working with a group of elderly women at a church hall in this disadvantaged estate. The older people they have worked with live independently and do not have many social interactions. ‘HOPS’ as it is known provides the women with an hour of activities followed by a coffee break and then another hour of exercises. The students have never missed a week and provide a vital social interaction combining sports activity with mental challenges.
Kim Cooper - Green Streets
Green Streets is an environmental project run by Action which aims to reduce the student impact when many leave the city for the summer break. The aim is to reduce, reuse and recycle unwanted goods from student households and donate them to local residents through free shops and distributions to charities. The project diverted over 8 tonnes of potential waste from landfill and instead found homes for many valuable items. The success of the project was so impressive last year that the team have now secured over £15,000 from Leeds City Council to expand the scheme this year to over 7,000 households.
Retirement of Skipton Scholarship creator (Dec 2008)
John Goodfellow, who was responsible for securing funding for the Skipton Building Society Scholarship has retired from his role as CEO of the Skipton Building Society. John has ensured students from rural areas in North Yorkshire who were affected by the foot and mouth disease crisis in 2001 received scholarships to continue in full-time education. Over 100 scholars were awarded funding and graduates from the scheme include a doctor, a lecturer in sustainable land use, teachers and one scholar who now teaches children about farming and the countryside at a working farm in Swaledale. Others still at University aim to work in nursing, the police, the fire service, architecture, financial services and the legal profession.
Scholars along with the Pro Chancellor of the University of Leeds, Linda Pollard, representatives from North Yorkshire County Council and staff from the Skipton Building Society attended an event to celebrate John Goodfellow's achievement with the scholarship and present him with a book written by the scholars to commemorate the scheme.
Volunteers Bring Lease of Life to Mount St. Joseph's (Dec 2008)
A new initiative has been launched at Mount St Joseph’s Care Home in Headingley, which sees third year drama students from Leeds University visiting for arts, crafts, performances, or simple reminiscence.
The students and residents were brought together through ‘Vinvolved’, England’s biggest ever youth action programme which was recently set up at the University. The students have been visiting the home twice weekly to run arts and craft classes, put on performances and chat with the residents.
“We look forward to them coming, and count the days from one performance to another”, said 99 year old Ann O’Brien. “They have brought a new lease of life to all of us.” As for the students, they are recognising the value that can be found in conversations with the residents.
Sister Majella, of the Little Sisters of the Poor, read about the University volunteering scheme in Headingley Life and is delighted with the outcome.
Jordan Denton - Yorkshire Young Achiever for Education (Nov 2008)
Jordan Denton, a student at the University of Leeds last night won the prestigious Yorkshire Young Achiever Award for Education. University of Leeds students have won the award for the last 3 years running and she further epitomises the dedication and commitment of our students to aspire and ultimately achieve their potential.
Jordan recently achieved her long standing ambition to gain a place at the University of Leeds, despite some challenging personal circumstances. She is starting a BA in Theology & Religious Studies after gaining an excellent set of A Level results.
Throughout her life, Jordan has suffered from difficulties at home. As a result of this, Jordan has been living independently since the age of 16 after a family dispute left her homeless. In addition, up to the age of 16 Jordan was subject to bullying at school, which caused her to be absent from a lot of her education through key stages 3 and 4. Despite this disruption, Jordan still achieved a good set of GCSE results which allowed her to move on to A Level study.
As well as these domestic difficulties, Jordan has also suffered from an illness affecting her lower digestive tract. This has caused her so much pain that at times she has been unable to get out of bed.
Outside of her academic achievements, Jordan feels strongly that she should try to assist other disadvantaged young people and has mentored students in younger year groups. On top of her studies and responsibilities as a mentor Jordan has to work to support herself financially, because of the circumstances outlined above.
Overall, Jordan’s achievements are remarkable in the context of her challenging circumstances. Her teachers have described her as a ‘delightful young woman who never asks for sympathy’.
Our congratulations go out to Jordan and we wish her well in her studies with us.
Denham endorses Access to Leeds' role in 'Opportunity Group' (Nov 2008)
John Denham, Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills announced at the Labour Party Conference that Leeds would be one of nine universities who will work together to ensure that we do not miss out on the most talented students, whatever their background. The universities who have committed themselves to this principle so far are Birmingham, Bristol, Exeter, King's College London, Leeds, Leicester, Newcastle, Southampton and Warwick - currently known as the 'Opportunity Group'. The details of the initiative have yet to be defined but we anticipate it will build on our current access and outreach initiatives. Professor Michael Arthur, Vice-Chancellor, said that he hoped the scheme would broaden opportunities for young people from disadvantaged backgrounds by encouraging institutions to recruit from each others' access and widening participation programmes. Interviewed on BBC News 24, Radio Five Live and Radio Leeds, he took the opportunity to publicise our successful Access to Leeds scheme, which has received more than 1,100 applications and recruited some 320 students onto our degree courses - where they performed at least as well as their peers on graduation. For further information, the DIUS press release is available here and information on Access to Leeds is available here.
Aimhigher award for Young People in Public Care student (Nov 2008)
We are thrilled to announce that Dinneka Smillie, a participant on the Young People in Public Care scheme has been named the 6th Form Aimhigher Learner at the 2008 National Aimhigher Awards. The University of Leeds works with 100 young people in care, from over 20 secondary schools to support their lives and their educational achievement. The scheme is designed to help young people engage in education and, with over 130 nominees for the award, this is a fantastic achievement for Dinneka as well as a very strong endorsement of the quality of work our mentors and mentees put in to the scheme.
Lead into Gold? ACE awarded £50,000 to explore local heritage (Oct 2008)
ACE have been awarded £50,000 from the Heritage Lottery 'Your Heritage' Programme to build on the award winning Hippos Project. The new project will use innovative teaching methods and materials to help 8 primary schools and 2 secondary schools in Leeds to understand and learn about historical lead mining in the region. The project will tackle current issues in society such as migration, health and wellbeing and cultural difference through an understanding similar issues in the past.
Working in partnership with Leeds Museums Service, Yorkshire Dales National Park and University of Leeds students and staff a range of teaching methods and investigative work will encourage some of the cities most disadvantaged young people to engage in their local heritage in a meaningful way.
Aim Higher Ambassadors (Sep 2008)
ACE have been awarded £98,500 to develop a mentoring programme for AimHigher Students across the West Yorkshire sub-region. The programme will use undergraduates with an AimHigher background as mentors using a new virtual learning environment for 50% of exchanges between mentors and mentee.
Reach for Excellence funding assured (Sep 2008)
The University of Leeds would like to reassure all concerned that the Reach for Excellence programme will not be affected by current, or future changes in the corporate structure of Halifax or HBOS plc.
Funding for the programme comes from the HBOS Foundation, which is in independent company and a registered charity. Once money has been donated by HBOS plc to the HBOS Foundation, it becomes the property of the HBOS Foundation and HBOS plc has no say in how it is spent.
We have spoken to the HBOS Foundation today and they have confirmed that they have already received the full £870k for the Reach for Excellence programme from HBOS plc and that the full amount is set aside in their reserves for the programme. Therefore, the Reach for Excellence programme will continue to run events, pay travel expenses, student bursaries and host the residential summer school until 2010 as planned.
V at Leeds - Youth Volunteering programme (Sep 08)
The nations biggest ever youth volunteering programme commenced on April 1st, backed by £75 million funding from youth charity v.
v was set up in 2006 as a result of the Russell Commission Report which aimed to improve the quality, quantity and diversity of youth volunteering in England. v intends to achieve a culture where it is natural for young people aged 16 - 25 to volunteer and for organisations to support them. At the University of Leeds we have formed a vinvolved team in partnership with Learning Partnerships and Children Leeds. The University of Leeds will be responsible for creating 2830 new volunteering opportunities and for brokering 1385 young people in to those opportunities over the next 3 years.
We are launching the project on 24th September 2008 at the Loft in Leeds. This is an opportunity for organisations that would like to be involved to find out how the project will work with them to create new volunteering opportunities for young people in Leeds.
If you would like to attend please contact the University of Leeds vinvolved team on 0113 3437495 or email vinvolved@leeds.ac.uk
Reach for Excellence
Access Academy’s ground breaking ‘Reach for Excellence’ programme ended the first year of the four year pilot on a high note with its week-long residential Summer School. Young people involved in the scheme took part in traditional academic activities run by Engineering, Medicine, Sociology, Performance visual arts and communications, Law, Biosciences, Psychology and Geography. More information on the event is available here.
Hippos wins heritage award
Staff and students of the University of Leeds were regional winners of the prestigious Nationwide Community and Heritage Award for the innovative Leeds Hippos education programme. Lucy Ashworth, Greg Miller and Jon Barber received the award from Fiona Spiers (Head of Lottery Fund for Yorkshire and the Humber) at a ceremony at the Merchant Adventures Hall, York.
Summer School Success
A total of 85 year 11 students attended the recent HEFCE/ESF summer school at the University of Leeds. The young people (recruited through Aimhigher) enjoyed a wide variety of academic taster sessions including Modern Foreign Languages, clinical skills and engineering as well as a range of social activities like salsa dancing classes. As usual feedback from the students demonstrates the positive impact the summer schools have.
GE Foundation Scholar Leaders awards
The Access and Community Engagement Scholarships Team is pleased to announce that for the second year in a row students from the University of Leeds have won seven of the 15 awards available nationally. Six universities across England nominate level 1 undergraduate students studying engineering, technology, economics, or management. Nominees must come from a low income background and exhibit high academic standards. Applicants undergo a rigorous application process including an essay and interviews when competing to win the awards worth £6000 over two years. In addition to monetary support, the program provides winners with greater educational opportunities and encourages them to take an active role in society.
Amaze Yourself Awards
The learner outcomes from the Amaze Yourself enterprise training at the University of Leeds have been striking. An outstanding proportion of the students (75% by October 2007) were successfully supported to self-employment, employment, further study or other positive outcomes. Of the beneficiaries who started their own business almost 8/10 had previously been long-term unemployed (over one year) or economically inactive.
A number of Amaze Yourself students have recently received recognition for their outstanding achievements and won awards in the following categories:
Osmondthorpe Resource Centre
NIACE Category: National ESF award
Osmondthorpe Resource Centre primarily supports adults with acquired brain injuries. The University developed bespoke enterprise training around the requirements of a group, carrying out woodwork as a hobby. The group of 12 were initially supported to develop their own business and marketing plan and then received support through the stages that followed. As a pilot scheme, neither the University nor the resource centre staff expected such outstanding results, the group have gone on to set up their own social enterprise, making bespoke wooden garden items such as tables and potting benches and have picked up a contract from one of the largest employers in the city.
Phil Kirby
West Yorkshire Lifelong Learning Network. Category: Management, Leadership, Innovation and Enterprise
After not working for over 3 years due to ill health Chris was determined to become independent from incapacity benefits and work in an area which mattered to him, Phil sought to acquire the skills and knowledge to set up his own business and develop his future on his terms. Setting up his consultancy ‘negotiation-for-nice-guys’ after a prolonged period away from employment was a great achievement.
Phil has also set up Amaze Networks, a peer-mentoring website which supports others with ill health to find self-employment, employment or study.
Chris Lister
NIACE Adult Learners Yorkshire and Humberside. Category: Lifelong Learning Centre, Leeds University Award
Chris has used the business enterprise skills learnt on the Amaze Yourself Project to regain his independence, he has worked hard to establish his business and is now using those skills to encourage people in similar situations to realise their ambitions through jointly establishing and supporting the AY Networks. Since taking part in the Amaze Yourself Project, Chris has applied his learning and set up a Limited Company, he has now become a working professional with a long term contract for a national organisation.
Celebrating Mentoring with Looked After Children
To recognise the achievements of this year's Looked After Children mentoring scheme a celebration event was held at the Derek Fatchett Centre. Everyone who took part attended including carers and staff from the University of Leeds. The project is in its second year and has once again been a resounding success with 18 young people in public care mentored by University of Leeds students. This one-to-one mentoring scheme is aimed to support local looked after Year 10 and 11 pupils, by providing them with academic support and helping to raise their aspirations. Volunteers meet with their mentee at the same time each week and provide them with one hour of homework support, and one hour working on an informal project using the facilities at the Derek Fatchett Centre where this scheme is based.
Respect Woodhouse Moor
Message from Professor Stephen Scott, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for students and staff
Dear Student,
With the end of the academic year approaching the University I would like to ask you to spare a thought for the local communities which have been your home for the duration of your studies.
June and July are busy times for the streets of Leeds with thousands of students moving in and out of their rented accommodation. A great deal of rubbish is generated during this period which is often not disposed of correctly. With a little bit of planning and consideration on how to dispose of your rubbish we can minimise the environmental impact on local communities.
Leeds City Council will be providing extra street cleaning services to collect your waste. Check which day your rubbish is going to be collected in order to leave your bin out. 12 large skips will be made available in locations across Headingley, Hyde Park and Woodhouse to dispose of any extra waste or large items you may have for the duration of the student changeover period (23rd to 30th June).
For more information on how to dispose of your waste correctly and skip locations go to: http://www.leaveleedstidy.com/index.htm
If you are planning on inviting friends over to your house to celebrate your hard work this year, please spare a thought for the other people living around you, many of which may still be revising for their exams.
Noise is an issue which causes deep upset between neighbours, housemates and whole communities. Noise is sometimes unavoidable, but we can all do our bit to minimise the noise we make and avoid disturbing others.
This may seem pretty obvious, but the University has had to deal with complaints due to behaviour that distresses other students and residents. The University will in some cases take action against students who act in a manner that distresses their neighbours and brings into question the reputation of the University.
For more information go to: www.leeds.ac.uk/nhelpline
If like many other students you are planning to stay on in Leeds during the summer break and making use of great local resources like Woodhouse Moor, please consider other users and leave the park as you find it. The moor is precious to those who live immediately around it, students and local residents alike.
Litter and barbeques have become a major issue in the last few weeks and are preventing the park being used for the many people who visit to engage in recreational activities. Ensure that you bin your litter or take it home with you when you leave. Barbeques cause a great deal of damage to the grass and are not permitted on the Moor.
If you have any questions regarding these issues or living in the community please contact Amanda Jackson (a.m.jackson@adm.leeds.ac.uk,). Enjoy your summer.
Professor Stephen Scott
Pro-Vice-Chancellor for students and staff
Access awards recognises exceptional students (May 08)
Rachael Goodrick was announced as this year's Access Programme Award winner and Yvonne Murray as the Adult Learners' Award winner in a lunchtime ceremony held on Thursday 7 May in University House. Both Rachael and Yvonne impressed the panel of judges with the hurdles they have faced and overcome to enter higher education as well as the dedication they have shown to their studies. The awards were presided over by Professor Richard Killington. Each winner received a cheque for £200.
The Leeds Hippos go live! (May 08)
The University's Leeds Hippos project is using local heritage to engage schools and parents in a project about climate change which will provide an exhibition stand for the opening of the new Leeds Museum in 2008. The Leeds Hippos website has recently gone live - click here to find out more.
University appoints Olympics Officer (April 08)
The University has appointed an Olympics Officer to develop the Institutions involvement in the lead up to the London Olympics in 2012. This will involve a broad range of sporting and cultural activity which will seek to support our local schools and community partners in a positive way.
Award for University physics student (April 08)
Libby Heaney, currently in the final year of her postgraduate studies at the University of Leeds and a 24 year old female physics student picked up a £1,000 prize at the Institute of Physics (IOP) in London for the significant contribution she has already made to physics at a very early stage in her career.
Rewarded for both her academic work and the efforts she has made to inspire others into physics, Libby has devoted time by going in to local schools. She has worked particularly closely with students from NewCollege and KingsSchool in Pontefract and given students the opportunity to get to know a theoretical physicist who works at the top of her field.
Her research in the Quantum Information Science Group looks at the study of entanglement in non-interacting gases which has applications in the exciting technologies of quantum computing.
The 2008 Very Early Career Woman Physicist of the Year Award, sponsored by HSBC, is judged by IOP’s Women in Physics Group in recognition of the winner’s contribution to physics and the activities they have undertaken to inspire others to take an interest in physics.
Dr Gillian Butcher, Chair of the IOP Women in Physics Group, said, “It is lovely to be able to reward Libby and hopefully give her the confidence to continue doing such wonderful work both in physics and outreach activities.”
IOP’s Women in Physics Group introduced the award one year ago to highlight the great work being undertaken by young female physics researchers all across the UK.
Reach for Excellence launch January 26th
The Access Academy has completed it’s recruitment of the first cohort of Reach for Excellence students. 120 Year 12 students have been selected from 37 schools across West Yorkshire, with a further 16 students placed on a reserve list.
All 120 students have been invited to the Reach for Excellence launch event on the 26th January. The launch will fully introduce and prepare the students for Reach for Excellence, and will include ice breaking and team building activities. The launch will also include separate introductory sessions for the students’ parents.
The first Reach for Excellence academic activities will be taking place in the February half term week. These will include sessions on Contemporary China, Research & Referencing and Time Management.
University scoops exceptional project prize at national volunteering awards (December 07)
A programme of interventions set up by Access and Community Engagement to address educational barriers faced by looked after children, was awarded the accolade ‘Exceptional Winner – Outstanding Project’ at the Higher Education Volunteering Awards 2007.
Young people in public care often ‘…fall behind at school, seldom achieve good qualifications and are much less likely than their peers to go on to further or higher education’ . Indeed, only 5% of care-leavers continue their studies at University level.
The University of Leeds, with the support of Frank Buttle Trust and Camelot, developed the ‘Changing Futures for Young People in Public Care’ programme, which aimed to raise the educational achievement and aspirations for HE and improve the English language skills of unaccompanied asylum seekers new to Leeds.
The programme was managed by a dedicated project officer, who delivered activities to KS3 students, but it would not have been possible without the commitment and enthusiasm of the 20 student volunteers who supported 21 KS4 pupils, providing two-hour mentoring sessions weekly, for a period of 20 weeks.
A second strand of the programme involved volunteers from Leeds Young Authors, a local poetry group, working with 8 unaccompanied asylum seekers to provide English Language Support and poetry mentoring.
The programme achieved impressive results for the looked after children:
- 100% of participants have an awareness of FE and HE
- Carers felt the project provided children with experiences they would not have had otherwise
- According to feedback from school staff, 100% of the participants have, in some way, improved their communication and team working skills and have a greater awareness of others (people and environments) around them
- 100% of year 11 participants now have plans to continue education or training post-16, considering HE or FE. At the start of the project, only 10% of the participants had made this decision
The project had very positive effects on the volunteers themselves:
"I think it has helped my communication skills and has given me more confidence in dealing with people generally"
"the experience from this project has helped me get onto my masters in social care"
"I now want to go into teaching and so this experience will definitely enhance my CV"
‘The benefits of this programme for the Looked After students of Leeds have been outstanding. Everyone from the young people themselves to the carers, families, schools and social workers have had nothing but praise for the benefits and support the programme has offered. […]The results speak for themselves: One student who was predicted to get Ds and Es ended up with 9 A* - Cs’
Julie Pocklington, Leeds Social Services
If you would like to find out more about the project and how to get involved with the work of Access and Community Engagement, please visit: http://www.leeds.ac.uk/ace/
University partners in V Funding (December 07)
Learning Partnerships, an education charity has been awarded £750,000 to set up a 3 year youth volunteering programme across Leeds. The Charity won the money in a nationally competitive tender programme organised by ‘V’, the independent charity set up to expand volunteering opportunities for young people across England.
The University will partner with Learning Partnerships and Children Leeds to deliver over 8,000 volunteering opportunities for young people aged 16-25.
The programme starts in April 2008 and will work to create and develop a sustainable culture of youth volunteering across the city.
Learning Partnerships CEO, Tom Murrray says “This is great news for the charity and the city and we are delighted to have won. We have young people already engaged in volunteering work and this funding will give us the opportunity to work with our partners to expand this further”.
Sale of Bodington Hall (November 07)
Bodington Hall will be sold within the next four years and replacement student accommodation found nearer campus. The University's Governing body Council made the decision last night (November 15) after considering several options for the future of the site. As a point of note this sale does not include the playing fields.
Students have told us that the site is too far from campus and that catered halls do not offer the flexibility they would like. Also, the accommodation at Bodington is in need of refurbishment to bring it up the standards expected by students now. In response to this feedback a number of options were drawn up for the site. These included re-building accommodation at the Bodington site, selling and leasing back the Hall with a third-party refurbishing or re-developing the site or selling the Hall within the next four years and replacing it with accommodation closer to campus.
After careful consideration, it was decided the needs of our students would be best met by selling the site and replacing it with accommodation closer to campus. The replacement accommodation would be provided in line with our Housing Strategy and we will honour our commitment to not build any new student accommodation in the Area of Housing Mix* which covers Headingley and parts of nearby neighbourhoods Woodhouse, Hyde Park, Little Woodhouse, Burley Lodge, Burley, Kirkstall and West Park.
It is expected that Bodington will remain in use for two to three years. Students in Bodington at the time of sale will remain there for the rest of that academic year (ie no students would be asked to leave mid-way through a year).
Staff at Bodington have been kept up to date on the proposals which went to Council and we will be holding a meeting with them to discuss the decision next week. We aim to redeploy all staff within the University.
Pro-Vice-Chancellor for staff and students Professor Stephen Scott said: "Bodington has made a positive contribution to student life for many years but student expectations have changed. We need to make sure students coming to Leeds can expect a consistently high standard of accommodation which gives them the flexibility they need."
Leeds University Union communications and internal affairs officer Neil Mackenzie said: “The decision to close Bodington Hall is a big decision, and not one that has been taken lightly. We completely understand the feelings of Bod residents who have had a tremendous experience during their time in halls. The strong community atmosphere at Bodington is a real strength, and something that must be maintained in any new accommodation. Unfortunately though Bodington’s time had come. The physical state of the accommodation is not good, the time it takes to get into university from the Hall is unreasonable, and the number of students applying to Bodington is continually declining. Students demand a quality of accommodation that cannot be provided by Bodington. We are committed to working with the university to ensure that future accommodation continues the strong tradition and community spirit of Bod. It is also important to understand that the Hall will not close until 2011/12, and we will work with the university to ensure that those students at Bodington continue to enjoy their time there.”
Bodington is the University's largest student residence and can house 1150 students. It was built in 1960 with further self-catered flats added in 1992 – both are in need of re-refurbishment. Proceeds from the sale will be invested in academic developments for staff and students.
Updates on Bodington Hall will be posted on Campusweb in due course.
*formerly known as Area of Student Housing Restraint (ASHORE)
For more information, contact:
Hannah Love, Communications (details follow below)
For more information contact h.e.b.love@leeds.ac.uk Tel: 0113 343 4100
Reach for Excellence £1m University Acess Scheme for Yorkshire Youngsters (November 07)
Announced today, Halifax plc in partnership with the University of Leeds and Sutton Trust is launching a £1 million initiative to nurture the talents of bright Yorkshire youngsters from disadvantaged backgrounds.
The Halifax led 'Reach for Excellence' programme will be delivered and administered by the Sutton Trust and University of Leeds and will benefit 360 sixteen to eighteen year-olds across Halifax's heartland of Yorkshire. The scheme is aimed at youngsters from non-privileged backgrounds and is designed to help them realise their potential and gain a place at a top university.
The only programme of its kind
The Reach for Excellence programme is the only programme of its kind in the UK. As part of the programme, youngsters will receive weekly advice sessions and lectures, a residential summer school, university visits, individual mentoring over a two year period as well as parent/carer sessions. This is the first time that all these elements will have been put together in one programme.
Funding
Funded with £870,000 from the HBOS Foundation and £75,000 from the Sutton Trust, the 'Reach for Excellence' programme will benefit Yorkshire students offering a menu of subjects. Year 12 & 13 students will benefit from the scheme and will even receive a travel allowance to assist in attending any out of school sessions.
Access to higher education
Across Yorkshire there is a wide disparity between youngsters gaining access to higher education. In some areas just 10% of students manage the step, compared to 62% in others. The national average is 32%*. The 'Reach for Excellence' programme will help youngsters from areas with low access rates attend top level universities by providing them with directed intervention sustained over the duration of their post-16 studies, supporting academic skills development in addition to their practical knowledge and confidence to apply.
Secretary of State for Children Schools and Families, Ed Balls, said:
"This is an excellent initiative - it's really important that we support every bright young person from every community in our region to get in to top universities and make the most of their talents. Working closely with our own excellence hubs which we have in every region including Yorkshire & Humberside, I want every young person to aim high, be ambitious and fulfil their dream."
Hilary Benn MP, Leeds Central and Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, said:
"I really welcome this initiative and I wish it every success".
Charles Morris Hall (October 07)
Charles Morris Hall of Residence was built in 1963 and is located on the main University of Leeds Campus, at the junction of Cromer Terrace and Mount Preston Street.
The Hall provides 350 places for mainly undergraduate students in three separate Houses - Whetton, Dobree and Mary Ogilvie House.
Mary Ogilvie House accommodates 118 students and also contains the kitchen, dining room and social spaces for all residents.
Parts of the Hall - Mary Ogilvie House in particular - do not now meet the requirements of our students. The rooms are small, poorly equipped and shared bathroom facilities are poorly located and inadequate. In addition, the kitchen and dining rooms are no longer required as catering for students at Charles Morris is to be transferred to a newly refurbished Refectory which will provide more choice and a much higher quality of provision.
The University has therefore considered and approved a plan to demolish and re-build Mary Ogilvie House with the intention of replacing the existing 118 bedspaces with 560 new, high-quality, en-suite bedrooms. In parallel with this the two remaining houses will be fully refurbished. This re-development proposal is consistent with our Housing Strategy objectives of providing high-quality accommodation for our students on or near to the main campus and outside of the Area of Housing Mix (AHM).
The planning process is already underway and it is anticipated that an application for planning consent will be made later this summer.
The design of the new building is extremely important as the site adjoins a conservation area and because the new development will be a 'flagship' accommodation development for the University.
Further public consultation will take place as the planning process moves forward.
Hyde Park Time Trial - 'Walk it, Run it, Jog it' (September 07)
The Leeds Hyde Park Time Trial (HPTT) is a new initiative aimed at increasing the opportuntiy to both participate and volunteer in physical activity. HPTT is a FREE weekly event held every Saturday at 9am in Hyde Park in North West Leeds, being implemented by the University of Leeds Sport & Physical Activity service and supported by the Sport & Exercise Science department. The University of Leeds has taken an active role in establishing the HPTT as a means for our students, staff and our local community to come together on a regular basis to enjoy a shared community space and get physically active. We want to encourage people to walk, jog or run together irrespective of ability, having open access to this opportunity at no cost and encourage a diverse range of people, young and old to get involved. The event will be free and organised by our students providing opportunities for them to develop their own personal skills and adding value to their education at the University. We are also pleased to be working in partnership with Leeds University Union, Access and Community Engagment and Leeds City Council in the delivery of this exciting community event. For further information on the event and how to become involved please visit this link
Access to Leeds Success (September 07)
The second cohort of Access to Leeds students graduated this summer, and like last year’s cohort, achieved a positive set of results. Out of a total of 19 students, 13 achieved 2:1 classifications (68%), and a further 5 achieved 2:2s (26%). The students received these awards in subjects ranging from English Language to Civil Engineering, with Law and Psychology being the most popular.
Headingley in Bloom (September 07)
Headingley in Bloom is a new project set up to make headingley a greener place. So far the plan is to create a bed at the foot of Alma cottages and plant bulbs around the war memorial at St. Michael's church. this area has also secured a proportion of a £500,000 grant to improve Headingley Town Centre. The aim is to have permanent planters provided from this redevelopment with the idea of a sensory garden to include the users of Shire View Centre for the blind and partially sighted. The group are recruiting and all volunteers are welcomend. For more information or to register an interest contact Amanda Jackson on 0113 3434073 or a.m.jackson@adm.leeds.ac.uk
Culture Kids (September 07)
Do you want to help young people develop their understanding of other cultures?
Culture Kids is a hard hitting collaborative project between West Yorkshire Police, the University and other businesses in the City tackling the harsh reality of race-hate crime. The initiative is aimed at Year 6 pupils attending primary schools in hot-spot areas across Leeds, with the aim of reducing instances of race-hate crime. Workshops led by volunteers from the University aim to challenge stereotypes and give the young people a greater awareness of other cultures. Volunteers from a variety of cultural backgrounds have participated in the project, delivering interactive activities including: sushi making and tasting, decorating a model house for Chinese New Year, origami and jewellery making. Although the project tackles a very serious issue, volunteers and pupils alike spend their time exploring the subject matter in a thoroughly enjoyable and memorable way.
We are recruiting volunteers now to take part in this exciting and challenging project. Events are taking place throughout the year and volunteers are free to choose how many workshops they would like to deliver. Volunteers are also free to choose how to run your workshop, whether its dance, cooking, music, arts and crafts.
For more information contact Amanda Jackson on 0113 3434073 or a.m.jackson@adm.leeds.ac.uk
Events
Hippos Exhibition June 5th
The Leeds Hippos project showcasing the work of local primary schools will be on show in the Parkinson Court on June 5th. Come along and see the excellent work of the young people involved and find out for yourself how it came to pass that our predecessors in Leeds were indeed Hippos.