University Campus Suffolk hits Haverhill

Oct 10 2005 12:00AM

The business community, potential students and the general public in Haverhill will be able to find out more about the exciting plans for University Campus Suffolk (UCS) later this month.

The first University Campus Suffolk roadshow in a series being held across the county over the next year will visit Haverhill on Thursday 20 October. Three events will take place, aimed at different groups of people.

Local residents are invited to a public meeting at Castle Manor Business and Enterprise College, starting at 7pm.

Key speakers from the UCS project will be at the meeting to talk about:

  • How UCS will benefit Suffolk
  • What and where people can study
  • What UCS could bring to the Haverhill area.

There will also be speakers from Suffolk County Council, St Edmundsbury Borough Council and West Suffolk College, who are all supporting University Campus Suffolk in the Haverhill area.

Richard Lister, Director of Operations for University Campus Suffolk, said: “This is a great opportunity for Haverhill people to find out first hand about how they might benefit from a dedicated university campus in the county. It’s the first of a series of roadshows taking place across Suffolk over the next year, which will make sure we’re keeping communities up-to-date about developments.”

He added: “We hope people will come along to give us their views about our plans, and tell us about the issues that matter to them. We are determined that this should be a university campus for the whole of Suffolk, so we want to hear from as many residents as possible.”

Earlier in the day the roadshow will kick off with a business breakfast meeting to be held at WS Training Ltd, Weavers Mill, High Street from 8am to 9.30am. The event will be hosted by the Haverhill Chamber of Commerce and Industry and is aimed at the local business community.

Paul Donno, Chairman of the Haverhill Chamber of Commerce commented: “UCS is another fantastic opportunity for Haverhill. There are so many exciting projects going on in the town at the moment, it really is a privilege to be able to be involved with them. The Business Breakfast will provide a forum for members of our business community to give their input and feedback to the project team. The actual structure of UCS and the network of learning centres to deliver the service is yet to be formalised so we could have an impact on shaping this project to ensure it meets our needs in Haverhill.”

Young people in the Haverhill area are also being targeted by the roadshow event, with an information session at Castle Manor Business and Enterprise College, from 11.30am to 3.30pm. The aim of this session is to raise awareness amongst potential UCS students in the 14-17 year old age group and with teachers who have responsibility for further study and careers. This will be run in conjunction with Aimhigher – a national campaign aimed at encouraging more young people to go on to higher education after school or college.

Madeleine Vigar, Headteacher of Castle Manor Business and Enterprise College said: “As a Business and Enterprise College we aim to help students to take advantage of what might be rather than accepting what will be. We are delighted to be supporting University Campus Suffolk by hosting these events today, which we hope will encourage our students, and other local people, to make the most of opportunities to study locally.”

People who would like more information about the University Campus Suffolk events in their area should log on to the UCS website: www.ucs.ac.uk

If you would like to attend the Business Breakfast please contact Jason Fitzpatrick of the Haverhill Chamber of Commerce on 01440 709794.