Authored by Clarence (Singapore), MSc Living Planet specializing in Ecology, Evolution and Conservation
When most Imperial students envision Silwood Park, they picture a vibrant, enchanting, and verdant campus bustling with species of animals and plants that are rare at other campuses like South Kensington or White City. In many respects, they are spot on – every depiction of Silwood Park holds true!
As a representative of this less-familiar community at Imperial, I aim to shine a light on the student experience, activities, and community within our natural parkland campus in Ascot, Berkshire.
Overview of Silwood Park
Silwood Park serves as Imperial’s outdoor research facility, covering 77 hectares and encompassing environments like freshwater streams, lakes, a historic forest, and expansive grasslands. A quick search on iNaturalist, a tool for cataloging and sharing biodiversity observations globally with an online network of naturalists, reveals that 1,436 species of plants, animals, and fungi have been recorded on-site. An additional search on eBird uncovers that 111 bird species have been documented here thus far.
Moreover, Silwood Park is the venue for many extensive field research initiatives, with the Nash’s Field Experiment and the Blue Tit Project being two prominent studies carried out on the premises.
Campus life at Silwood Park
The campus mainly accommodates postgraduate scholars focused on ecology, conservation, and evolutionary studies. A number of us engage in various clubs located at Silwood Park. Some notable ones include:
- Chicken Club – responsible for the care of chickens kept behind our student residences
- Book Club – who frequently convene to discuss literary selections
- Gardening Club – who oversee the community garden allotments
- Conservation Club – who arrange nature walks and conservation-related activities for students at Silwood Park Campus.
As part of the broader Imperial student community, many of us also take part in the activities of clubs based in South Kensington!
Informally, we have groups that participate in sports such as badminton, basketball, and pickleball (my personal favorite!), utilizing either the multi-use games arena (MUGA) on campus or indoor sports facilities in nearby towns like Bracknell or Ascot.
In addition to club initiatives and classes, we host numerous community-led events on campus. Silwood Park features its own student council that organizes and facilitates such dealings, ensuring a lively and engaging student atmosphere! Recently, we celebrated the Silwood language exchange, where our predominantly international community exchanged languages and cultures over several weeks, alongside our annual Chinese New Year festivity, where we all came together to prepare dumplings and couplets to celebrate the new lunar year. We have also seen community-led gatherings celebrating global occurrences (such as Carnival) or simply for the joy of having fun.
However, my favorite event on campus is the weekly pub quiz, orchestrated by our student body. In Silwood tradition, the quiz losers organize the subsequent event, and I can claim with pride the highest number of pub quizzes set this year. Despite failing numerous pub quizzes due to my weak general trivia knowledge, there’s always joy in good company paired with a fine pint of beer.
Silwood Park: my second home
Although it’s a 30-minute stroll from vibrant civilization (such as the train station and the closest village), life at Silwood Park has never seemed dull or lacking. Alongside a wide array of events and activities, we possess a cordial and inviting community of students from various corners of the globe. We all share a love for nature, our stunning campus grounds, and, more significantly, each other’s presence. We form a tight-knit community that delights in stargazing during the winter chill on the open field next to our pub, observing the birds and mammals outside our windows, and spending time with fellow nature enthusiasts.