Nottingham Trent University



Nottingham Trent University (NTU) is a public university in Nottingham, England. It was founded as a new university in 1992 from Trent Polytechnic (later Nottingham Polytechnic). Its roots go back to 1843 with the establishment of the Nottingham Government School of Design which still exists within the university today. It is the largest university in the UK (out of ) with  students split over three different campuses.

Nottingham Trent University was ranked in the number 700 and above (701+) category in the world by the QS World University Rankings. In 2008 The Complete University Guide named Nottingham Trent the "top post-1992 University" in the country. The university has "one of the best employability records of any university in England and Wales". It maintains close ties to over 6,000 businesses and 94% of students progress to full-time employment or further education within six months of graduating. The Guardian calls Nottingham Trent "the most environmentally friendly university in the country".

In 2009, it was awarded the title of "the most environmentally friendly university in the UK", by The People & Planet Green League (the only independent ranking of British universities' environmental and ethical performance). Also since 2009, 100% of the university's electricity has been generated by renewable sources.

The university has a strong research arm with, in 2008, 74% of the university's research considered of "international status" and "an impressive 8% ranked as world-leading". The 2014 REF upgraded the status of the university's research, with 90% considered of either "world-leading", "internationally-excellent", or "internationally-recognised" status. In November 2015, the university was awarded the Queen's Anniversary Prize for Higher and Further Education, "the highest national honour for a UK University" based on numerous research projects.

History


The university was formed by the amalgamation of many separate institutions of higher education. It originated from the Nottingham Government School of Design founded in 1843.

In 1945, the Nottingham and District Technical College was established. In 1958, Nottingham Regional College of Technology opened and in 1959, the Nottingham College of Education began at Clifton. In 1964, Nottingham Regional College was opened and in 1966, the original Nottingham College of Design was linked with the Regional College. Together they merged and the institution was upgraded to Polytechnic status in 1970 to become 'Trent Polytechnic'. In 1975, it amalgamated with Nottingham College of Education and in 1988, the official name changed to 'Nottingham Polytechnic'.

Under the Further and Higher Education Act 1992 all Polytechnics and some higher education colleges became eligible for full university status; at this point, the institution officially became 'Nottingham Trent University'.

Campuses
The university has three campuses: City site, Clifton Campus and Brackenhurst.

City campus
Located just north of Nottingham City Centre, the City site is home to over 17,000 students from Nottingham Business School, Nottingham Law School, School of Architecture, Design and the Built Environment, School of Art & Design, School of Social Sciences and the Centre for Broadcasting & Journalism. The City site completed in 2011 a £70 million development, which regenerated Newton and Arkwright, two of the university's largest and oldest owned buildings. On 18 May 2011, the two buildings were officially opened by Sir David Attenborough.

Boots Library
The Boots Library is the main library of the university. It is in the centre of the city site and supports the schools of Architecture, Design and the Built Environment, Art & Design, Nottingham Business School, Nottingham Law School and Social Sciences. It is a modern purpose-built building, completed in 1998 at a total cost of £13m ; with a refurbishment completed in summer 2013. It has over 533,000 books and 2,500 journals in addition to DVDs, newspapers and magazines. It is set over four levels plus a further level dedicated to 24-hour computing facilities. There are branch libraries on the Clifton and Brackenhurst campuses serving the schools located there, and include additional Animal Planet digital facilities.

The Recent Advances in Manufacturing database (RAM) is published by the library and information department. It is a bibliographic indexing service providing information for manufacturing and related areas. Literature covered includes journals, magazines, books, videos, and conference proceedings with from 1990 to the present.

Clifton campus
Home to over 9,000 students from the School of Arts and Humanities, School of Science and Technology and School of Education. 4 mi outside the city centre, the Clifton campus is a self-contained, greenfield site. It hosts an Anthony Nolan Trust Cord Blood Bank, and the newly operational John van Geest Cancer Research Centre, recipient of the largest research grant awarded to a post-1992 university. The Clifton campus has benefited from recent investment including the new Lee Westwood Sports Centre and new accommodation. Clifton campus is linked to the City site by a regular student bus service.

Brackenhurst campus
Home to over 1,000 students from the School of Animal, Rural and Environmental Sciences. About 14 mi from the city centre, Brackenhurst campus is a countryside estate with woodland, a lake and landscaped gardens. Contrasting the country house built in 1828 are facilities including the high-tech glasshouse and new Veterinary Nursing building. The Veterinary Nursing Centre was purpose-built in 2007 and was made a RCVS accredited Veterinary Nursing Centre. It has a simulated Veterinary Practice giving students hands-on experience.

Development and estate regeneration
2005 saw the start of a regeneration project to update much of the university's estate. Improvements to date include:

City campus

 * The Art & Design Bonington Building on the City site was completely refurbished in 2006, with a new front section, a two-storey atrium, an increased number of exhibition spaces, and a cafe. It is the home to Bonington Gallery which exhibits a wide range of work. Nottingham-born fashion designer, Sir Paul Smith officially re-opened the building.
 * The Chaucer Building on the City Site, home of Nottingham Law School, Centre for Broadcast Journalism and the School of Social Sciences has been fully refurbished, with new paintwork, signage, reception, lecture theatres, and lifts. A new entrance, fascia and foyer dedicated to the Centre for Broadcast Journalism was completed in February 2009 and officially opened by Sir Michael Parkinson.
 * The complete refurbishment of the Newton and Arkwright buildings and the construction of a glazed link building between the two was completed in 2011 and officially opened by Sir Michael Parkinson. The complex includes ten new lecture theatres, high-tech teaching rooms, offices, a student services centre, computer rooms, cafes and a restaurant. It is also home to the new Nottingham Conference Centre, a purpose-built facility for corporate and academic conferences in the East Midlands.
 * The demolition of Byron House located on Shakespeare street. This has been replaced with a new £60 million development composed of a new Student Union HQ, complete with cafes, bars, health centre and a night club. The development also includes a significant amount of student accommodation.

Clifton campus

 * A new £8 million Computing & Informatics building was opened on the Clifton campus in 2006 (later renamed the Mary Ann Evans building).
 * New Centre for Effective Learning in Science (CELS) building opened in 2006.
 * The Trent Astronomical Observatory was opened in 2006 at a cost of £150,000. The dome shaped building houses the 20" Newtonian telescope which is capable of capturing satellites orbiting the Earth, Moon, Sun, planets and other stars in our galaxy as well as in others.
 * The John van Geest Cancer Research Centre was established in 2008, as a new research centre within the School of Science and Technology, as a direct result of core funding from the John and Lucille van Geest Foundation.
 * The world number one golfer and honorary graduate Lee Westwood opened the new Lee Westwood Sports Centre on the university's Clifton campus in October 2010. The new centre has sport and athlete support facilities, including sports halls, studios and fitness suites, and a nutrition training centre.
 * The Rosalind Franklyn building (also known as the 'superlab') opened in April 2012.
 * The university has demolished the George Eliot Building and will replace it with a brand new student hub and reception area for the Clifton campus.
 * 2016 saw the completion of several new buildings on the campus, including the pavilion, and 2 new lecture theaters called the 'teaching and learning buildings'.

Brackenhurst campus

 * The suite of glasshouses and polytunnels at Brackenhurst campus were opened in 2006.
 * New accommodation residences at Brackenhurst campus built in 2006.
 * In 2008, His Royal Highness The Earl of Wessex opened the East Midlands' first Veterinary Nursing Centre and Animal Unit at the university's Brackenhurst campus.
 * A new library was completed in August 2013.

Developments

 * The City site benefited from the completion of the Nottingham Express Transit (NET) light rail system in December 2003, which provides a tram stop outside the Boots Library. This allows a direct link to Nottingham city's main railway station.
 * The university's in-house managed learning environment has been replaced, after university-wide use of the Virtual Learning Portal (VLP) for five years (4.85 TB of materials served and 6.7 million logins during the 2006/07 academic year). The in-house MLE has now been replaced by Desire2Learn from the 2008/09 academic year onwards with the Virtual Learning Portal being officially retired at the end of 2008.
 * In July 2005, the university purchased the Belgrave Centre, thus releasing Nottingham Law School from its ongoing rental commitment along with the added benefit of providing rental income from the Government Office of the East Midlands, which had a tenancy agreement until 2010 for approximately half of the building.
 * The university entered into a partnership with Kaplan Inc. to form the "Nottingham Trent International College" (NTIC) which, through foundation courses and pre-masters courses, helps international students to progress to undergraduate and postgraduate programmes at NTU and other UK universities.
 * Nottingham Trent University co-hosts GameCity, a five-day video game festival which takes gaming out into the streets, shops and cinemas of Nottingham. It takes place in October each year.
 * In February 2010 the university launched a historic lace archive of more than 75,000 intricate lace samples, considered to be of national and international importance.

Organisation and administration
The university is composed of three colleges and nine schools:


 * College of Business, Law and Social Sciences
 * Nottingham Business School
 * Institute of Education
 * Nottingham Law School
 * School of Social Sciences


 * College of Art & Design and Built Environment
 * School of Art & Design
 * School of Architecture, Design and the Built Environment


 * College of Arts and Science
 * School of Animal, Rural and Environmental Sciences
 * School of Arts and Humanities
 * School of Science and Technology

Chancellors
In June 2008, Sir Michael Parkinson was named as the first Chancellor, responsible for a number of duties, including representing the university on special occasions and conferring degrees at graduation ceremonies (although he was absent from all the 2009 graduation ceremonies). The official installation as Chancellor of Nottingham Trent University took place in a special ceremony on Tuesday 11 November 2008, at the Royal Concert Hall, Nottingham.


 * Sir Michael Parkinson (2008–2014)
 * Kevin Cahill CBE (2014–date)

Vice-Chancellors

 * Edward Peck (2014–present)
 * Neil T Gorman (2003-2014)
 * Ray Cowell (1992–2003)

Chairman of the board of Governors

 * Richard Bullock OBE (2009-date)
 * Sir John Peace (1999–2009)

Business and industry links
The university has "one of the best employability records of any university in England and Wales". It maintains close ties to over 6,000 businesses and 94% of students progress to full-time employment or further education within six months of graduating. These companies include Microsoft, Toyota, Boots, Experian and Rolls Royce. Representatives from companies hold talks with prospective placement students or those considering careers after graduation.

Across NTU, there are a number of dedicated centres that provide a focus for expertise and business resources, all of which can support organisational and development needs. Aligned to a profession, industry sector, business function or specific subject area, these centres offer a range of activities from tailored educational services and cutting-edge research, to consultancy and the cultivation of new business ideas.

Located in the Maudsley building on the City campus, The Hive is NTU's purpose built centre for enterprise and business development. Here experts can help evaluate and advise on potential business ideas as well as provide a bespoke education in entrepreneurship. Since 2001, the centre has helped 250 start up companies of which 70% have been successful. The centre helps by not only providing advice and guidance but also by providing office space and other facilities to its clients.

Research
The university has a strong research arm with, in 2008, 74% of the university's research considered of "international status" and "an impressive 8% ranked as world-leading". The university's teaching is underpinned by its research. Its world-leading research ranges from cancer immunotherapy and airport security systems to social policy and cultural studies, and the university is currently holding £22 million in research grants and contracts.(Financial Year 2008/09.) The university held its own in the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise, although it entered fewer academics than some of the other leading new universities.

The John van Geest Cancer Research Centre was established in 2008, as a new research centre within the School of Science and Technology, as a direct result of core funding from the John and Lucille van Geest Foundation.

The School of Science and Technology is host to research facilities including the Interdisciplinary Biomedical Research Centre, the Natural Sciences Research Centre, the Imaging and Display Research Facility and the Van Geest Cancer Research Centre; for physiological and sport related research the School boasts an Environmental Chamber capable of replicating extreme environmental conditions.

The School of Animal, Rural and Environmental Sciences has a greenhouse, Veterinary Nursing Centre and Animal Unit.

The university has these research units:


 * Betting Research Unit
 * Political Forecasting Unit
 * International Fraud Prevention Research Centre
 * International Centre for Public Services Management
 * International Centre for Talent Management and Development
 * Centre for Business Performance and Lean Leadership
 * Communication for Inclusion Research Unit (CIRU)
 * Emergency Services Research Unit (ESRU)
 * Nottingham Crime Research Unit
 * Nottingham Centre for Study and Reduction of Hate Crimes, Bias and Prejudice
 * Sexual Offences, Crime and Misconduct Research Unit (SOCAMRU)
 * Specific Language Impairment Research Unit (SLIRU)
 * The International Gaming Research Unit (IGRU)
 * Advanced Design and Manufacturing Engineering
 * Centre for Research in Advanced Textiles (CReATe): containing the Advanced Fibre Materials; Textiles Practice; Textile Collections and Archives research groups
 * ICAn – Institute for Cultural Analysis
 * Strategy in Communication (SinC)
 * Theory, Culture & Society Centre
 * NIfER
 * Raymond Williams Centre for Recovery Research
 * Centre for Colonial and Postcolonial Studies
 * Centre for Travel Writing Studies
 * Centre for Research in the Romantic Era
 * Centre for Creative Writing
 * Contesting Euro Visions
 * ReFrance: Contemporary French Studies
 * Energy and Environmental Security
 * Teaching and Learning Languages
 * Energy and Environmental Security
 * Centre for Museum and Heritage Management
 * The Centre for Legal Research
 * Biomedical, Life and Heath Sciences Research Centre
 * The John Van Geest Research Centre
 * Physical Sciences, Engineering and Computing Research Centre
 * The Centre for the Study of Architecture and Cultural Heritage in India, Arabia and the Maghreb (ArCHIAM)

Rankings and reputation
Globally, Nottingham Trent University was ranked in the number 700 and above (701+) category in the world by the QS World University Rankings, to which it was also awarded a '4 star' (out of 5) rating. In 2008 The Complete University Guide named Nottingham Trent the "top post-1992 University" in the country. The Guardian said Nottingham Trent University was "one of the top places in the country for graduate employment", with 94% of students progress to full-time employment or further education within six months of graduating. The university has significant international recognition for its work in Art and Design, Communication, Business, Cultural and Media Studies and English Language and Literature, and for its Professions allied to Medicine, French and Law.

The university was named "the most environmentally friendly university in the country" by The Guardian, and in 2009 it was awarded the title of "the most environmentally friendly university in the UK", by The People & Planet Green League (the only independent ranking of British universities' environmental and ethical performance); with 100% of the university's electricity generated by renewable sources since 2009.

In 2015, WhatUni ranked the university 12th in its 'Student Choice Awards'. In the same year, the Times Higher Education ranked the university as 31st out of 113 universities in the country for student experience.

Sustainability
The university was named "the most environmentally friendly university in the country" by The Guardian, and in 2009 it was awarded the title of "the most environmentally friendly university in the UK", by The People & Planet Green League (the only independent ranking of British universities' environmental and ethical performance – published by the Times Higher Education ); with 100% of the university's electricity generated by renewable sources since 2009.

Between 2009 and 2012, NTU received four First Class Awards from Green League, reflecting its commitment to carbon reduction and its efforts to become an environmentally aware higher education institution.

Aside from organising various 'green' activity clusters (e.g., The Carbon Elephant, The Wind Turbines Project, The UCycle Scheme ), the university has also been formally awarded Fairtrade status. Fairtrade products are therefore available in all campus shops, catering outlets and the Students' Union. Also, Nottingham Trent University branded T-shirts and hoodies sold in the Student Union shops are made from Fairtrade cotton. Additionally, the university holds a yearly Fairtrade Fortnight Celebration, featuring a range of events and activities to raise awareness of the work of the Fairtrade Foundation and NTU's commitment to ensuring that farmers in some of the poorest areas of the world receive a fair price for their produce.

The university also published a Sustainable Purchasing Policy in 2007, which outlines specific aims meant to embed sustainability into the entire array of the institution's purchasing activities. Finally, NTU also acknowledged its responsibility to operate in an ethical manner and claims to take into account social, environmental and ethical considerations in all of its activities, including financial investment. The university's Treasury Management Policy includes a separate section on Ethical Investment, which states that "investments shall only be made with institutions with a clear and transparent Ethical Investment Policy which reflect the university's ethical values".

Campus biodiversity
The university's conglomerated estate includes approximately 250 hectares of land, spread across its three campuses. These different land types, ranging from urban centres to farmland, are considered valuable ecological assets by the university, which is dedicated to conserving the biodiversity found on and around its grounds.


 * City Campus

Despite the intense density of buildings typical of any urban setting, the university has been making efforts to enhance biodiversity found within the site. Newton and Arkwright, the flagship buildings of NTU, house not only staff and students, but also two peregrine falcons, which are protected under Schedule One of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. In this sense, the university runs a collaborative project with the Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust; since 2002, the building has been regularly used by the peregrines, who nest on a specially arranged ledge near the top of the skyscraper. The nest site, which is being publicly broadcast on the Internet, has been successfully used to raise 16 chicks between 2008 and 2012.

Newton and Arkwright's common roof is also one of the regions' largest green roofs, with 13 varieties of sedum covering an area of approximately 2,500 m2. Aside from having an aesthetic value, this array of flowering plants also plays an important role in attracting a wide range of insect species to the city centre, including bumblebees, butterflies, ladybirds and grasshoppers. Bird species that can be found include blackbirds, song thrushes, wrens, robins and even rare black redstarts.


 * Clifton Campus

Located 3 mi south of Nottingham city centre, on the outskirts of Clifton Village, the area comprises 32 hectares of land in a relatively enclosed campus environment.

Biodiversity can be noticed around the campus, including a variety of species of birds, bats and insects. Habitats are also provided within areas such as The Grove, bounding the site to the north-east, comprising mature trees along the River Trent. While there are many other species of wildlife roaming the grounds of Clifton, many are currently unknown or undocumented. The university's commitment to biodiversity across all of its estates includes constant investigating into exactly what creatures share the campus with humans and how the environment can be enhanced to encourage numbers to increase, and to entice new wildlife to the campus. Future plans to help enhance biodiversity and manage the landscape have been made publicly available by the university in 2012.


 * Brackenhurst Campus

Brackenhurst Campus comprises a 200-hectare scenic estate situated on the outskirts of the minster-town of Southwell, and is set around a former country house built in 1828.

Given its rural setting, a vast array of wildlife co-exists with staff and students; present are species and habitats such as the great crested newt, bats, birds, badgers, hares, ancient hedgerows, the Victorian Walled Garden (a listed Heritage site), and Sheepwalk's pond and Wildlife Hide (Wetland Conservation Area). Webcams on campus enable the monitoring of such species and habitats.

Students' Union
Nottingham Trent Students' Union (NTSU) provides student activities and events, a Student Advice Centre, leisure and retail services, democratic representation and night-time entertainment at all three NTU campuses.


 * RAG is NTSU's fundraising department, where volunteers plan events to raise funds for local, national and international charities, as chosen by the members.
 * There are currently over 130 societies and sports clubs affiliated to NTSU.
 * Stride is the Students' Union's free training and development programme for NTU students, with courses targeted specifically at student employability, personal development and study skills.
 * The student magazine – Platform – is published online every month during the academic year, and is also available on campus in print form. It covers education, local and on-campus news, as well as arts, culture, sports and lifestyle. The magazine recently played host to the Student Publication Association's annual conference.
 * The Students' Union television station – Trent TV – broadcasts programmes online including coverage of Freshers Week and the annual NTSU Awards, student nights out in Nottingham and 'Trent TV News' – for which the station was awarded 'Best News Programme of 2011' by the National Student Television Association.
 * The Students' Union Radio Station - Fly FM - broadcasts everyday from 10am to 11pm on their website including daytime shows, specialist shows, entertainment, sport and news. Started by then SU president, Ben Morrison in 1996, they have since won multiple Student Radio Association awards and have had numerous nominations.

On the City site, the union is based in the Byron building. A £90m redvelopment of the Byron complex was completed in September 2013. The new Students' Union includes a night club, a sports centre, two floors of gymnasia, bars and cafes, as well as NTSU offices and support facilities. The new complex includes 911 new study berooms.

On the Clifton campus, the Students' Union is based in the Benenson and DH Lawrence buildings. Facilities there include 'The Point' bar and diner, the main NTSU reception (Union Central) and the Clifton branch of the SU Express shop. Clifton's flagship night, Double Vision is held every Friday night in The Point.

On Brackenhurst campus, the Students’ Union is situated between Brack Bar and the Orangery (a small cafe and coffee shop). Weekly student nights are held in the bar, including "Chillout Thursday" and "Live Friday" (a live music night). The SU Express shop also operates at Brackenhurst campus.

UKIP Controversy
In late 2014, some Nottingham Trent University UKIP students attempted to form an official society for their party. The Union's Societies Assembly voted to block the formation of this group in spite of similar Labour and Conservative societies already existing.

The situation rose to prominence in January 2015 when an article appeared on the website of Young Independence calling the ban "An affront to democracy" and this sentiment was echoed by UKIP's Margot Parker MEP in a statement a few days later. Various news outlets became interested in the story, including Sky News.

On the 21 January 2015 the Union admitted that some members of the Societies Assembly made their decision based on personal political beliefs and therefore overturned the ban.

Sport
Many NTU sports scholars have competed in the recent summer and winter Olympic Games, the Commonwealth Games and various world championships across the globe. NTU alumni include England Rugby player Nick Easter, GB Hockey players Crista Cullen, Adam Dixon and Alistair Wilson.

The world number one golfer and honorary graduate Lee Westwood recently opened the new Lee Westwood Sports Centre on the university's Clifton campus. The new centre has sport and athlete support facilities, including sports halls, studios and fitness suites, and a nutrition training centre.

NTU is consistently ranked in the top 20% of institutions in the British Universities & Colleges Sport (BUCS) championships, in the 2014/2015 season the university achieved 17th place. The university also competes in the Varsity Series against local rival, the University of Nottingham.

Notable alumni

 * Keith Albarn – Artist
 * Matt Berry – Actor, writer and comedian
 * Olav Bjortomt – Quiz setter for The Times and notable contestant
 * Christopher Blanchett – BBC presenter and weather forecaster, currently at Reporting Scotland.
 * Hazel Blears – Labour Party MP for Salford, Chair of the Labour Party
 * Ana Boulter – Actress, TV Presenter
 * Ben Bradley – Conservative MP
 * Anthony Burgess – Football pundit
 * Daniel Byles – Guinness world record holding Ocean Rower and polar explorer, Conservative MP for North Warwickshire from 2010
 * Mark Crossley – broadcaster, Absolute Radio
 * Vernon Coaker – Labour Party MP
 * Shane Cullinan – composer
 * Flight Lieutenant Sean Cunningham 1977–2011 – Red Arrows pilot
 * Alan Dapre – Children's Author, BBC Radio and Television Playwright: Brum, Boohbah
 * George Daniels – Watchmaker
 * Varun Dhawan – Hindi film actor
 * Steven Dixon – Sky News presenter
 * Nick Easter – Rugby Union player
 * Nick Freeman – Celebrity defence lawyer.
 * Bobby Friction – BBC Radio 1Xtra DJ
 * Jonathan Glazer – Film and Video Director
 * Dan Hardy – mixed martial artist, UFC Welterweight fighter
 * Steve Hogarth – Lead Singer of Marillion
 * Jonathan Huxley – Artist
 * Martyn Jones – Former Labour Party MP
 * Samson Kambalu – Artist, Writer
 * Paul Kaye (Dennis Pennis) – Actor, Comedian
 * Dame Laura Knight – First female artist to be made a Dame of the British Empire
 * Neal Lawson – Political commentator
 * Adam Leventhal – Presenter – Sky Sports News
 * Dave Lewis – CEO of Tesco PLC (former President of Global Personal Care at Unilever)
 * Jon McCarthy – Footballer
 * Ed Macfarlane – Singer, Friendly Fires
 * Tim Noble and Sue Webster – Artists
 * Christian O'Connell – Broadcaster, Absolute Radio
 * Mike Parry – Broadcaster
 * Louisa Preston – Journalist
 * Alex Rodman – Professional Footballer at Aldershot Town F.C.
 * Donald Rodney – Artist
 * Mark Simmonds (former Member of Parliament) – former MP for Boston and Skegness
 * Alan Simpson – MP for Nottingham South (Students' Union President 1969–70)
 * Six By Seven – Nottingham-based rock band
 * Simon Starling – Turner Prize Winner, 2005
 * Simon Taylor-Davis – Guitarist in the Klaxons
 * Sarah Travers – Journalist
 * David Tress – Anglo-Welsh Artist
 * Glenis Willmott – Labour MEP for East Midlands
 * Nick Waplington – Artist and Photographer