Written by Clarence (Singapore), MSc Living Planet with Ecology, Evolution and Conservation
When the majority of Imperial students picture Silwood Park, they visualize a lush, enigmatic, and green campus brimming with wildlife and flora that are seldom found at other campuses such as South Kensington or White City. In many ways, they are right – every portrayal of Silwood Park is true!
As a member of this lesser-known community within Imperial, I’d like to shed light on the student experience, activities, and community at our natural parkland campus situated in Ascot, Berkshire.
Welcome to Silwood Park
Silwood Park acts as Imperial’s outdoor research facility, covering 77 hectares and encompassing habitats such as freshwater streams, lakes, an “ancient” woodland, and open meadows. A quick search on iNaturalist, an application for documenting and sharing biodiversity observations with a global network of naturalists, shows that 1,436 species of plants, animals, and fungi have been recorded on campus. A subsequent search on eBird indicates that 111 bird species have been identified on campus thus far.
Moreover, Silwood Park is the site for numerous long-term field research initiatives, including the Nash’s Field Experiment and the Blue Tit Project, which are two of the more prominent studies conducted locally.
Student Experience at Silwood Park
The campus is mainly home to postgraduate students focused on ecology, conservation, and evolutionary projects. Many of us are engaged in various clubs located at Silwood Park. A few notable examples include:
- Chicken Club – tending to the chickens raised behind our residence halls
- Book Club – meeting regularly to discuss interesting literature
- Gardening Club – overseeing the allotments in our community garden
- Conservation Club – coordinating nature walks and conservation activities for students on Silwood Park Campus.
As part of the wider Imperial student body, many of us also take part in activities of clubs based in South Kensington!
Informally, we have clubs engaging in sports like badminton, basketball, and pickleball (my personal favorite!), utilizing either the multi-use games arena (MUGA) on campus or indoor sports facilities in nearby towns such as Bracknell or Ascot.
In addition to club activities and classes, we host a variety of community-led events on campus. Silwood Park has its very own student council that organizes and facilitates these activities to foster a lively and engaging student life! In recent months, we’ve hosted the Silwood language exchange, where our international community exchanged languages and cultures over a series of weeks, along with our annual Chinese New Year celebration, where everyone created dumplings and couplets to usher in the new lunar year. We’ve also held community-organized festivities celebrating global events (like Carnival) or simply for the enjoyment of gathering.
My favorite campus event is the weekly pub quiz, set up by our student community. It’s a Silwood tradition that the losers of the pub quiz must arrange the next one, and I can proudly declare that I hold the record for the most pub quizzes organized this year. Despite losing many pub quizzes due to my limited general knowledge, there’s always great enjoyment with fantastic company and a good pint of beer.
Silwood Park: My Home Away From Home
Even though it’s a 30-minute walk to the lively buzz of civilization (for instance, the train station and the nearest village), life at Silwood Park has never seemed dull or lacking. Besides the plethora of events and activities, we have a friendly and inviting community made up of students from across the globe. We all share a love for nature, appreciate our stunning campus grounds, and, most importantly, savor each other’s company. We’re a tight-knit group that enjoys stargazing in the winter chill on the open field next to our bar, observing the birds and mammals that visit our room windows, and enjoying the company of fellow nature enthusiasts.
Most evenings,