Authored by Clarence (Singapore), MSc Living Planet specializing in Ecology, Evolution, and Conservation
When the majority of Imperial students picture Silwood Park, they see a verdant, enigmatic, and green campus brimming with wildlife and vegetation that are seldom found in other locations like South Kensington or White City. In many respects, they’re correct – every depiction of Silwood Park holds true!
As a member of this lesser-known faction within Imperial, I wish to emphasize the student experience, activities, and community at our natural parkland campus situated in Ascot, Berkshire.
Welcome to Silwood Park
Silwood Park serves as Imperial’s outdoor laboratory, encompassing 77 hectares and showcasing environments such as freshwater streams, lakes, an “ancient” forest, and expansive grasslands. A quick search on iNaturalist, an application for documenting and sharing biodiversity observations globally with a community of naturalists, indicates that 1,436 species of plants, animals, and fungi have been recorded on campus, while a further inquiry on eBird shows that 111 bird species have been identified on campus thus far.
Even more intriguing, Silwood Park also hosts numerous long-term field research initiatives, with the Nash’s Field Experiment and the Blue Tit Project being among the more prominent projects undertaken on-site.
Life as a student at Silwood Park
The campus primarily accommodates postgraduate students engaged in projects related to ecology, conservation, and evolution. Many of us belong to several clubs based at Silwood Park. Notable mentions include:
- Chicken Club – which looks after the chickens raised behind our residence halls
- Book Club – which meets regularly to discuss interesting titles on their reading lists
- Gardening Club – which oversees the allotments in our community garden
- Conservation Club – which arranges nature walks and conservation-focused activities for students on Silwood Park Campus.
As members of the broader Imperial student community, numerous participants also engage in activities from clubs situated in South Kensington!
Casually, we also have groups that indulge in sports like badminton, basketball, and pickleball (my personal favorite!), which take place on the multi-use games arena (MUGA) on campus or in indoor sports facilities located in nearby towns such as Bracknell or Ascot.
Alongside club activities and lessons, a variety of community-organized events occur on campus. Silwood Park boasts its own student council that coordinates and supports such initiatives to foster a lively and exciting student life! Recently, we’ve hosted the Silwood language exchange, where our predominantly international community united to share languages and cultures over several weeks, along with our annual Chinese New Year celebration at the year’s beginning, where everyone gathered to make dumplings and couplets to welcome the new lunar year. We’ve also organized community parties celebrating various global festivities (like Carnival), or gatherings simply for the love of festivities.
However, my favorite campus event has to be the weekly pub quiz, arranged by our student body. It’s part of Silwood culture that the quiz losers must organize the next one, and I can proudly declare that I’ve set the highest number of pub quizzes this year. Even though I’ve lost many pub quizzes due to my lackluster trivia knowledge, the enjoyment with great companions and a good pint of beer is always present.
Silwood Park: my second home
Even though it’s a 30-minute stroll from the lively atmosphere of civilization (like the train station and the nearest village), life at Silwood Park has never seemed dull or deficient. In addition to the multitude of events and activities, we have a friendly and inviting community made up of students from across the globe. We all cherish nature, appreciate our beautiful campus grounds, and, most importantly, enjoy each other’s company. We’re a close-knit group.