All-staff talk: Plans for development of Shinfield
08 February 2022
Our latest all-staff talk focused on the University’s role in Shinfield development scheme and our plans for Thames Valley Science Park. Chief Financial Officer Sam Foley led the session and was joined by Deputy Vice-Chancellor Parveen Yaqoob and Research Dean (Heritage and Creativity) John Gibbs.
You can view their full presentation here.
Sam Foley introduced the session by emphasising how the plans support the University’s strategic priorities to be financially and environmentally sustainable, and to engage meaningfully with the local community. It is essential that the proposed developments are done “in the university way” and are consistent with our values. These are being developed in collaboration with both Reading and Wokingham Borough Councils.
Sam then went on to explain development plans for Shinfield:
- Thames Valley Science Park: the completion of the Cine Valley project and new storage facilities for the British Museum.
- Innovation Valley: a new science park
- Eco Valley: currently part of the University farm holdings, this land surrounding the Loddon river will be kept as green space. This would be used for research and teaching purposes, such as woodland monitoring and planting plans
- Loddon Garden Village: Wokingham Borough Council has asked the University to release this land for construction 4-5,000 houses. The University will input into these developments and have some control over them.
The University will input into these developments to ensure that they are completed in the spirit of the University’s values. All partners, existing and prospective, have a link to the University or support our academic goals.
The planning process has only just started and will take many years. Wokingham Borough Council are conducting a full consultation with local residents which you can contribute to; you can find out more about their plans through the Shinfield and Arborfield Estate website.
The University has committed to purchasing a second farm to ensure that at no stage we are without a farm holding.
John Gibbs, Academic lead for Cine Valley, then spoke about the potential academic benefits and opportunities of the scheme. Cine Valley is creating structural relationships between University courses and companies based there, and will provide Reading graduates vital first steps into a career in film and television. Additionally, we can draw on our work in diversity and inclusion, and our engagement with the local community, to create more diverse creative industries.
Parveen spoke about the financial benefits to the University and how these can be used to further academic excellence. The land being developed is owned by the NIRD Trust, which stipulates that all money gained must by spent on agriculture and food research.
Therefore, funds raised will be used to cement our position as a world-leader in agriculture and food research. Parveen will be leading a scoping exercise on how to achieve this, investigating areas such as how funds to make food production more resilient in the face of climate change.
You can also access the recording on Microsoft Stream.
Previous talks
- Portfolio Review Pathway update (Thursday 13 January)
You can view our all-staff briefings from last academic year through Microsoft Streams.