page_title: University of York
section_title: Campus West
hierarchical_section_title: University of York / Campus / Campus West
caption_attribution_description: Central Hall, York University
context_page_description: The University of York is a collegiate research university, located in the city of York, England. Established in 1963, the university has expanded to more than thirty departments and centres, covering a wide range of subjects.
  Situated to the south-east of the city of York, the university campus is about 500 acres in size. The original campus, Campus West, incorporates the York Science Park and the National Science Learning Centre, and its wildlife, campus lakes and greenery are prominent. In May 2007 the university was granted permission to build an extension to its main campus, on arable land just east of the nearby village of Heslington. The second campus, Campus East, opened in 2009 and now hosts three colleges and three departments as well as conference spaces, a sports village and a business start-up 'incubator'. The institution also leases King's Manor in York city centre. The university had a total income of £331.4 million in 2016/17, of which £66.0 million was from research grants and contracts.
  York is a collegiate university and every student is allocated to one of the university's nine colleges.
context_section_description: In 1964, work began on the campus facilities in the grounds of Heslington Hall. The marshy land was drained, the winding lake which dominates the campus was built, and the area was landscaped. The original buildings were designed by architects Sir Andrew Derbyshire and Stirrat Johnson-Marshall, with input also from the Vice-Chancellor Lord James, Professor Patrick Nuttgens and the Registrar John West-Taylor. The new structures were assembled using the CLASP system of prefabricated construction, hence York's inclusion among the so-called plate glass universities. The buildings are connected by numerous covered walkways and bridges. Most of the university's arts departments occupy premises in the college buildings, while many of the science departments have their own buildings.
  A landmark building is Central Hall, a half-octagonal concert hall used for convocations and examinations, as well as theatrical and musical performances.  It is a Grade II listed building, as is the West campus landscape. It has played host to The Wailers, George Melly, Soft Machine, Pink Floyd, and Paul McCartney. Performances by big-name acts have been rarer at the university following a 1985 The Boomtown Rats concert, during which the cover of the orchestra pit was damaged. A ban on pop performances, and in particular dancing, in Central Hall was imposed by the university, although it has occasionally been relaxed. Central Hall is still used for classical concerts and since a rock concert was held there on 13 March 2010 it has been available again for full booking. Public concerts are regularly held in the music department's Sir Jack Lyons Concert Hall, the Arthur Sykes Rymer Auditorium and in some of the colleges. The Raymond Burton Library was also recently nominated for a SCONUL Design award.
  The campus lake is the largest plastic-bottomed lake in Europe. The decision by Sir Andrew Derbyshire and Stirrat Johnson-Marshall to give the university a lake had two motivations: one, to give the university a distinct image and identity while also creating areas to foster community; and two, more practically to create a drainage basin for the relatively flat agricultural site as it was feared the construction of the new buildings would increase the risk of flooding. The lake has attracted a large population of wild and semi-wild waterfowl, including greylag, Canada, barnacle and snow geese, coots, moorhens and large numbers of ducks, including mallards, tufted duck, and common pochards. There is also a growing population of black swans and a few great crested grebe. Herons have also been sighted on the lake. The southern end of the lake has been established as a bird sanctuary. Fishing is permitted in season, on purchase of a licence.
  Other parts of the campus support a large rabbit population. On at least one occasion, students have been cautioned by the university for hunting rabbits.
  The Campus West has both indoor and outdoor sports facilities, including an all-weather AstroTurf pitch and County standard cricket pitch. A large, tent-like structure allows for indoor sport, gymnastics and dance.
  In 2013 it was reported that the university was planning a major redevelopment of Campus West which would also result in the creation of a tenth college.
caption: Central Hall and the lake
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