Written by Clarence (Singapore), MSc Living Planet with Ecology, Evolution and Conservation
When many Imperial students envision Silwood Park, they picture a vibrant, enchanting, and verdant campus alive with wildlife and flora that are not typically found at our other sites like South Kensington or White City. In many ways, they’re right – every image evoked of Silwood Park is true!
As a representative of this lesser-known community within Imperial, I wish to showcase the student experience, activities, and community at our natural parkland campus located in Ascot, Berkshire.
Discovering Silwood Park
Silwood Park serves as Imperial’s outdoor laboratory, covering 77 hectares and incorporating ecosystems such as freshwater streams, lakes, an “ancient” forest, and expansive grasslands. A brief search on iNaturalist, an application designed for mapping and sharing biodiversity findings globally with a network of naturalists, indicates that 1,436 species of plants, animals, and fungi have been recorded on campus, while eBird reveals 111 bird species logged thus far.
Additionally, Silwood Park is home to numerous long-term field research initiatives, with the Nash’s Field Experiment and the Blue Tit Project being two of the most notable studies carried out on-site.
Campus Life at Silwood Park
The campus predominantly accommodates postgraduate students engaged in ecology, conservation, and evolution research. Many of us are involved in various clubs based at Silwood Park. Some noteworthy examples include:
- Chicken Club – tending to the chickens located behind our residence halls
- Book Club – periodically meeting to discuss literary interests
- Gardening Club – overseeing the plots within our community garden
- Conservation Club – coordinating nature outings and conservation activities for Silwood Park students.
As part of the larger Imperial student body, many of us also take part in clubs based in South Kensington!
Casually, we have groups participating 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 adjacent towns like Bracknell or Ascot.
In addition to club activities and classes, we host various community-driven events on campus. Silwood Park has its own student council that organizes and facilitates these events, ensuring a lively and engaging student life! Recently, we held the Silwood language exchange, where our predominantly international community exchanged languages and cultures over several weeks, and we celebrated Chinese New Year at the year’s outset by making dumplings and couplets to usher in the new lunar year. We’ve also enjoyed community-organized parties celebrating global occasions (like Carnival) or simply for the sake of celebration.
Nonetheless, my favorite campus event is the weekly pub quiz, organized by our student community. It’s part of Silwood culture that the losers of the pub quiz are responsible for the next one, and I can proudly assert that I’ve hosted the highest number of pub quizzes this year. Despite losing many quizzes due to my lackluster general trivia knowledge, there’s always delightful fun with great company and a refreshing pint of beer.
Silwood Park: My Second Home
Even though it is a 30-minute walk from the lively atmosphere of civilization (e.g., the train station and the nearest village), life at Silwood Park has never felt dull or insufficient. Beyond the multitude of events and activities, we have a warm and inviting community comprised of students from various corners of the globe. We all have a passion for nature, our stunning campus environment, and most importantly, each other’s company. We’re a tight-knit community that relishes stargazing under the winter sky on the open field beside our bar, observing the birds and mammals that visit our windows, and enjoying time among fellow nature enthusiasts.
Most evenings