Penryn Campus

Penryn Campus shown within Cornwall
(grid reference SW775345)

Penryn Campus (formerly "Tremough Campus") is a university campus in Tremough, Penryn, Cornwall. It is home to two university institutions: the University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus (UECC), including its renowned Camborne School of Mines, and Falmouth University, as well as providing access to Cornwall Council's Tremough Innovation Centre on adjacent land. The campus was developed as part of the Combined Universities in Cornwall (CUC) initiative, a venture which brings together Cornwall's further education colleges with the founding members Falmouth University, University of Exeter and University of Plymouth. The bulk of the investment in the campus has come through EU Objective One funding, matched by UK Government funding.

History

The 70-acre (280,000 m²) site was a convent school for the local community which was bought in 1998 by Falmouth College of Arts, as it was then known. The Universities of Exeter and Plymouth both expressed an interest in the project. The University of Plymouth later withdrew (although it remains a partner in CUC), leaving University of Exeter in partnership with Falmouth College of Arts: the site is held on a 125-year lease. This decision was probably made easier because Exeter had taken partial responsibility for the running of Camborne School of Mines in 1993. The shared campus was officially opened for the 2004/5 academic year as "CUC Tremough Campus."

In 2011 as part of Phase II of developments on Tremough Campus, the name of the campus was changed to "University Campus Tremough" with signage changed to reflect this, however signage attached to the former library entrance and reception read "Tremough University Campus" as was originally considered at the consultation stage. In 2012 Tremough Campus Services, the charity formed by University College Falmouth and the University of Exeter to manage university activities in the Falmouth and Penryn area, changed its name to Falmouth Exeter Plus, making the name more applicable to projects outside of Tremough such as Exeter's medical expansion on the RCH Treliske site in Truro.

In 2013, with the "continued growth of the University of Exeter and recent inauguration of Falmouth University," further discussions were undertaken in how the now three university campuses in Cornwall (Treliske in Truro, Tremough in Penryn and Woodlane in Falmouth) would be represented. On 18 July 2013, University Campus Tremough changed its name to "Penryn Campus" in line with the already adopted Truro and Falmouth campuses.^[1]

Facilities

Falmouth Exeter Plus

With differing academic emphasis but with an obvious need to provide student accommodation and non-academic staff for the smooth running of the campus facilities the two universities collectively established the charity Tremough Campus Services, which is responsible for the overall maintenance of the site including the gymnasium, catering services, bars, shops and the student accommodation with profits going back to the two institutions. The charity also manages services on University College Falmouth's Woodlane Campus and further accommodation at Tuke House in Falmouth which was opened in 2006. For the 2012/13 the organisation was renamed to "Falmouth Exeter Plus" with a new logo and website.

Academic facilities

Daphne du Maurier Building until 2011(now site of The Exchange extension)

The Heart of the Campus

The main Daphne du Maurier (DDM) building has been designed with four storeys and has views over the town of Penryn and its surrounding countryside. Its teaching facilities include state-of-the-art science and engineering laboratories, IT facilities, library and lecture and seminar rooms. Falmouth University's Design Centre covers a significant proportion of floor space on the south of the building, whilst most of the top floor is used by University of Exeter's Centre for Ecology and Conservation and Camborne School of Mines. Provision for student life on campus is incorporated into the east side of the building including a gym offering both free-weights, resistance weights and cardiovascular machinery in addition to a limited service of dance classes including capoeira (a Brazilian form of martial arts), and physiotherapy.

An extension of the building's library, lecture facilities and relocation of the career offices, collectively known as The Exchange (EX) was completed on the north-east side of the current building for the 2012/13 academic year. The endeavour is to support expected growth from 3,500 to 5,000 students on the campus.

The Peter Lanyon (PL) building, located between the Daphne du Maurier building and Block I of Glasney Parc is a 2–3-storey zig-zag shaped building housing further lecture, seminar and study facilities (particularly for University of Exeter's humanities subjects taught at the campus), and containing University College Falmouth's Photography Centre and having a link corridor to the older Media Centre.

The Performance Centre (PC), completed in Summer 2010 towards the south of the campus is predominantly facility for the recently transferred Dartington College of Arts students. The construction of two further buildings was completed for the 2012/13 academic year: The Environmental and Sustainability Institute (ESI) at the very top of the campus, and the Academy for Innovation and Research (AIR) towards the northern entrance.^[2] Both of these are predominantly research buildings for Exeter and Falmouth respectively.

The Tremough Innovation Centre (TIC) opened in January 2012 on land acquired by Cornwall Council and technically adjacent to Tremough Campus despite transport links being on the campus itself. It is a complex to provide resources for new and existing businesses, with the first having moved in on 30 January 2012. The building is managed by University of Plymouth, who also manage a similar innovation centre in Pool, Redruth. Tremough Innovation centre is however run in collaboration with current Tremough Campus institutions UECC and UCF with emphasis on finding businesses that link in with current campus expertise: ecology, environment, creative and media.

The original Tremough House (TH) which had been owned by the Foxe family, is used as administrative offices and further seminar space in addition to being the offices of the English department. The later built Tremough Annexe houses offices for the FXU Student Union, whilst the old chapel has been converted into a lecture theatre. The walled Italianate gardens and orchard between Tremough House and the Performance Centre are still intact and well maintained, with the annual FXU end of year Garden party held in these gardens.

Accommodation

Campus accommodation is at the student village made up of Glasney Parc, where there are 800 en-suite study bedrooms with shared kitchens in twelve 2–3 storey buildings (A Block to O Block), and Glasney View, where there are 400 further rooms of similar facility in nine 3 storey buildings (VA Block to VI Block). Most general accommodation related services such as collection of postal packages and report of accommodation faults are dealt with in the Porter's Lodge towards the top of the student village opposite Glasney Parc's K-O blocks.

An accommodation strategy was compiled in November 2010 with the aim to expand university accommodation outside the campus to accommodate a forecast growth of 800 new students between September 2011 and September 2015.^[3] Construction commenced in August 2011 of new student accommodation suitable for up to 233 new students adjacent to Penryn Railway Station, around 10 minutes walk from Tremough Campus. A further 5 blocks of on-campus accommodation are also under construction (foundations have existed for some time) providing an extra 224 rooms. Both developments are expected to be completed in time for the 2012/13 academic year.^[4][5] For the first time in 2012/13 a limited amount of accommodation, both on campus and at Penryn Station, is being made available to returning students further into their degrees than first year.^[6]

Activities

The Students' Union on site, referred to as the FXU (Falmouth and Exeter Students' Union), provides student representation across all aspects of the campus. They are represented at the highest levels of decision making on the campus. In addition to its representative role, the FXU is also responsible for putting on the annual Freshers' Fortnight program of events for new students, as well as many other events throughout the academic year.

Social life on campus centres around the Lower Stannary, used as a restaurant during the day and being the venue of any larger events on campus, and the Upper Stannary, positioned as a mezzanine to the Lower Stannary and open daily as a relaxed recreational area with games tables, TV and weekly events such as Film Night, Quiz Night and Open Mic Night. The entire Stannary plays host to many Fresher's Fortnight events, as well as various nights throughout the year. An event highlight was a visit by the singer-songwriter Jack Johnson who has only played a few concerts in the UK. There has been much student pressure and surrounding debate for the construction of recreational buildings closer to Glasney Student Village. "Koofi," a new cafe situated on the back of the Porter's Lodge building in Glasney Parc, opened to students in October 2010.

There is a wide range of sports and recreation activities available to students, ranging from Hockey and Football to Film Appreciation and Bee Keeping. FXU activities are open to all University College Falmouth and University of Exeter in Cornwall students whether they are based at the Tremough or Falmouth University's Woodlane Campus 4 miles (6.4 km) away. Some of the sports teams are run under the Camborne School of Mines name despite players not being exclusively CSM or University of Exeter students.

The two largest church student populations are that of Highway Church, Penryn and Emmanuel Baptist Church, Falmouth, both of which are active in the Falmouth Christian Union.

See also

• Combined Universities in Cornwall
• Falmouth University
• University of Exeter
• University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus
• Camborne School of Mines

References

• http://www.fxu.org.uk/minisites/?submenu=247175