Authored by Clarence (Singapore), MSc Living Planet with Ecology, Evolution and Conservation
When most Imperial scholars picture Silwood Park, they imagine a verdant, enigmatic, and green campus bustling with wildlife and flora not typically found at other campuses such as South Kensington or White City. In numerous respects, they are correct – every depiction of Silwood Park holds true!
As a member of this lesser-known faction at Imperial, I would like to emphasize the student experience, activities, and community within our natural parkland campus located in Ascot, Berkshire.
A glimpse into Silwood Park
Silwood Park serves as Imperial’s outdoor laboratory, covering 77 hectares and showcasing ecosystems such as freshwater streams, lakes, an “ancient” forest, and open fields. A quick search on iNaturalist, an app dedicated to mapping and sharing biodiversity observations worldwide, shows that 1,436 species of plants, animals, and fungi have been recorded on campus. An additional search on eBird indicates that 111 bird species have been documented on campus to date.
Notably, Silwood Park is also the location of numerous long-term field research initiatives, with the Nash’s Field Experiment and the Blue Tit Project being among the more prominent projects carried out on-site.
Student life at Silwood Park
The campus primarily accommodates postgraduate students with an interest in ecology, conservation, and evolution initiatives. Most of us belong to multiple clubs based at Silwood Park. Some noteworthy examples include:
- Chicken Club – taking care of the chickens kept behind our halls of residence
- Book Club – regularly discussing interesting books
- Gardening Club – overseeing the allotments in our community garden
- Conservation Club – coordinating nature walks and conservation events for students on Silwood Park Campus.
Being part of the broader Imperial student body, many of us also engage in clubs based in South Kensington!
Additionally, we have informal clubs for sports such as badminton, basketball, and pickleball (my personal favorite!), based on either the multi-use games area (MUGA) on campus or in indoor sports facilities in nearby towns like Bracknell or Ascot.
Alongside club activities and classes, we host numerous community-led events on campus. Silwood Park has an active student council that organizes and supports such events, ensuring a lively and stimulating student atmosphere! Recently, we had the Silwood language exchange, where our international community exchanged languages and cultures over several weeks, and our annual Chinese New Year celebration, during which everyone made dumplings and couplets to usher in the new lunar year. We’ve also had community-organized gatherings to commemorate global occasions (like Carnival) or simply for the joy of celebration.
My favorite event on campus is the weekly pub quiz, coordinated by our student community. It’s part of Silwood culture that the quiz losers are responsible for organizing the next one, and I can proudly assert that I hold the record for the highest number of pub quizzes set this year. Despite my repeated losses in pub quizzes due to my poor general knowledge, it’s always a blast with great company and a refreshing pint of beer.
Silwood Park: my second home
Despite being a 30-minute walk from the bustling energies of civilization (e.g., the train station and the nearest village), life at Silwood Park has never felt tedious or deficient. In addition to the multitude of events and activities, we benefit from a friendly and inviting community of students from all over the globe. We all cherish nature, our beautiful campus grounds, and, most importantly, each other’s companionship. We’re a tight-knit community that enjoys stargazing in the winter chill on the open field beside our bar, observing the birds and mammals that visit our window sills, and spending time with fellow nature enthusiasts.
Most evenings, I cook with my dear friend from India, who shares my passion for Asian cuisine and birdwatching. We are often joined by friends who live a short