Written by Clarence (Singapore), MSc Living Planet with Ecology, Evolution and Conservation
When students from Imperial contemplate Silwood Park, they picture a verdant, enigmatic, and green environment bustling with distinctive flora and fauna not usually encountered at other campuses such as South Kensington or White City. In many ways, they are right – every portrayal of Silwood Park rings true!
As a representative of this lesser-known segment of the Imperial community, my goal is to illuminate the student life, activities, and community at our beautiful parkland campus in Ascot, Berkshire.
Presenting Silwood Park
Silwood Park functions as Imperial’s outdoor research facility, covering an area of 77 hectares and encompassing diverse habitats like freshwater streams, lakes, an “ancient” woodland, and open grasslands. A brief search on iNaturalist, an application for documenting and sharing biodiversity observations worldwide within a network of naturalists, shows that 1,436 species of plants, animals, and fungi have been recorded on campus. Furthermore, according to eBird, 111 bird species have already been documented on campus.
More fascinatingly, Silwood Park is home to various long-term field research initiatives, with the Nash’s Field Experiment and the Blue Tit Project being among the more prominent studies carried out on location.
Life as a Student at Silwood Park
The campus primarily hosts postgraduate students involved in projects related to ecology, conservation, and evolution. Many of us are active members of several clubs based at Silwood Park. Noteworthy examples include:
- Chicken Club – nurturing the chickens raised behind our residence halls
- Book Club – regularly convening to engage in discussions about interesting reads
- Gardening Club – overseeing the allotments in our community garden
- Conservation Club – coordinating nature walks and conservation activities for students at Silwood Park.
As members of the larger Imperial student body, many of us also become involved and actively engage in the clubs based in South Kensington!
Informally, we have clubs that partake in sports such as badminton, basketball, and pickleball (my personal favorite!), either at the multi-use games arena (MUGA) on campus or in indoor sports facilities in nearby towns like Bracknell or Ascot.
Beyond club initiatives and classes, we organize many community-led events on campus. Silwood Park boasts its own student council that organizes and facilitates such gatherings, ensuring a lively and thrilling student experience! Recently, we held the Silwood language exchange, where our predominantly international community exchanged languages and cultures over several weeks, along with our yearly Chinese New Year celebration at the beginning of the year, where we came together to make dumplings and couplets to ring in the new lunar year. We’ve also hosted community-organized parties celebrating global events (like Carnival) or simply just to enjoy the festivities.
My favorite event on campus, however, is the weekly pub quiz spearheaded by our student community. It has become part of Silwood culture that the quiz losers are obligated to set up the next one, and I can proudly say that I have organized the most quizzes this year. Despite failing numerous quizzes due to my lackluster general knowledge, it’s always a delightful time surrounded by great company and a good pint of beer.
Silwood Park: My Second Home
Even though it’s a 30-minute stroll from the bustling energies of civilization (e.g., the train station and the closest village), life at Silwood Park has never felt ordinary or unexciting. Alongside a multitude of events and activities, we enjoy a warm and inviting community of students hailing from various parts of the globe. We all appreciate nature, value our stunning campus grounds, and, above all, enjoy each other’s company. We are a tight-knit group that delights in stargazing during the winter chill on the open field next to our bar, watching the birds and mammals that visit our windows, and engaging with fellow nature enthusiasts.
Most nights,