The University of Westminster leaves an extraordinary year behind with plenty to be proud of. Our community has come together to excel and make a difference in so many arenas. Here is to a similarly successful 2020!
1. University of Westminster received £4.4 million Quintin Hogg Trust funding to enhance facilities and student experience
The funding from the Quintin Hogg Trust (QHT) has contributed towards the creation of a range of major projects across the University to enhance student experience during the 2019-20 academic year. The new Students’ Union Space, ‘The Hideaway’, The Enhanced Reality Lab, the expansion of the Student Law Clinic, technological improvements and upgrades for the Journalism Department were all among projects made possible by the Trust. It has also continued its ongoing support towards valuable programmes such as Westminster Working Cultures and the Changing Lives Programme. Read the full article.
2. Smoke Radio wins eight awards at the SRA Awards including Best Student Radio Station
Westminster’s student radio station Smoke Radio won a phenomenal eight awards at the Student Radio Association’s 2019 Awards, including the Best Student Radio Station sponsored by BBC Radio 1. The eight awards won by Smoke Radio included the ReelWorld Best Station Sound, the gold award for the show Thursday Breakfast with Gabriel and Joe, and gold and silver awards for Best Interview, both for the show Gyal from Brum with Kaylee Golding. Golding’s show also won gold in the category Best Specialist Music Programming. Other awards won were bronze in Best Event or Outside Broadcast for their 24 Hours Broadcast in Aid of Movember and bronze in Best Podcast for the Passion Fruit Podcast.
As part of the win for Best Student Radio Station, some of the students from Smoke Radio will be hosting their own shows over Christmas on BBC Radio 1. Read the full article.
3. University of Westminster was once again host of National Student Pride
Westminster was proud to host ‘National Student Pride 2019: More Pride, Less Prejudice’ at the Marylebone Campus between February 22-24 to celebrate the global LGBT+ student community and mark the end of LGBT History Month. The festival offered an abundance of activities, including panels and discussions, and was attended by more than 1,700 students from 170 universities across the globe. Read the full story here.
4. Westminster Menswear Archive presents Invisible Men, the largest exhibition of menswear in the UK
The University of Westminster Menswear Archive launched Invisible Men in the University’s exhibition space Ambika P3 in October presenting the most extensive exhibition devoted to menswear to be staged in the UK. The exhibition had more than 6,000 visitors across the 20 days it was open. Drawing exclusively from Westminster Menswear Archive, Invisible Men covered the last 120 years of predominately British menswear through the display of over 170 garments, the majority of which had never been seen on public display. Highlights of the exhibition included a section devoted to examples of Alexander McQueen’s early menswear designs covering the years from 1997 to 1999 as well as a section devoted to the C.P. Company Urban Protection range that was launched in 1998 and has been highly influential on a generation of menswear designers. Read the full article.
5. University of Westminster named runner-up in Guardian University Awards for Student Experience
Westminster’s Democratic Education Network (DEN) was awarded second place in the Student Experience category of the Guardian University Awards, which recognises projects and initiatives in Higher Education that have positively impacted the academic and personal experiences of students. The Democratic Education Network is a hub linking students at the University of Westminster with local community groups and international universities by working on projects together. In 2019, DEN was shortlisted by experts from The Guardian and the UK Higher Education sector. Read the full story here.
6. Westminster students travelled around the world in Westminster Working Cultures programme
As part of the Westminster Working Cultures programme, which provides students with the opportunity to travel abroad and experience the professional environment and culture in cities across the globe, in 2019 students embarked on trips of a lifetime to Dubai, Mumbai, Washington DC, Berlin, Hong Kong, and Shanghai. The Quintin Hogg Trust-funded initiative is a substantial part of the University’s outward mobile programme that aims to facilitate meaningful international experiences for Westminster students. The number of students who embark on WWC trips have been rising year on year.
7. Four Westminster Architecture students excelled at RIBA President’s Medal awards
In 2019 four Westminster Master of Architecture (MArch) (RIBA Pt II) students were presented with awards and commendations as part of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) President’s Medals, the annual awards for the world’s best student architecture projects. The RIBA received 318 entries from 96 schools located in 30 countries in 2019, which makes the wins of our students truly impressive. Read the full story here.
8. Animation students commemorate the Lumiere Brothers heritage with giant grass portrait
Animation students from the University of Westminster have revealed a 50-metre wide and 50-metre long grass artwork of the Lumiere Brothers to kick off the 125th anniversary celebration of the University’s heritage of being known as the birthplace of British cinema. For the very first time, in 1896 the Lumiere Brothers showed the moving film of a train to a paying audience in Britain at the University’s Regent Street Cinema that is still being used today. Read the full article.
9. Celebrates 20,000 hours of Volunteering and Community Engagement
In the 2018/19 academic year, the Student Volunteering Services reported that over 400 students participated in volunteering, providing over 20,000 hours of service to 137 charities across London. Westminster held a formal Volunteer Celebratory Event at the Regent Street Campus in May, acknowledging the top volunteers in the student community and the University’s current partner charities. Read the full article.
10. University of Westminster won bronze award for Environmental Best Practice in the Green Apple Environment Awards
The University was proud to win the Environmental Best Practice award following an application by the University’s waste management contractor Bywaters in recognition of the University’s recycling efforts. The award for Environmental Best Practice is given to any company, organisation, community or individual that is helping the environment. As part of the win, a donation is made on behalf of the winner to the Green Earth Appeal, which plants trees in emerging nations to help the environment and wildlife and to create job opportunities for local populations. Read the full article.
