Crumbling Campus

It is not only York’s ever increasing popularity and recognition as a leader amongst British universities that encourages so many highly desirable candidates (in other words, Oxbridge rejects) to apply, but its wealth of unique qualities too. Alongside Oxford, Cambridge, Durham, Kent and Lancaster, it is one of the few universities in England to be made up of colleges.

The opportunity for each person to choose not only their first year accommodation, but also a community with whom they will be associated and which will form a major part of their social and academic life, is a very attractive prospect. Admittedly, the prospect of spending three or more years linked with Langwith or Halifax may not be as glamorous as one might originally hope. Yet the disproportionate amount of money being spent on developing Hes East causes some serious issues to the way the college system is run, changes that might ruin one of the most attractive aspects of coming to this university.

The problem seems to consist of the fact that the all seeing eye of Heslington Hall is solely focussed on the development of Hes East when there are still serious issues that need to be addressed on the current main campus. Derwent is going to inherent a range of problems that the university has not prepared for.

One example is the recent fire in the Chemistry labs. If the University had taken adequate precautions to ensure that safety regulations were properly implemented the fire may not have happened. We may soon find that the fire was the first in a line of problems that the University has failed to deal with due to their overexcitement over the new Hes East complex.

We are getting to the point now where we are not only having to worry about mouldy showers and leaky ceilings, but actual, genuine threats to the safety of our staff and students. With the revelation that several of the University’s Hes West buildings are now in critical condition, it is imperative that the Hes Hall bigwigs invest in the old campus before it’s dead beyond repair and Derwenters find themselves sleeping in a pile of sewage infested rubble. Meanwhile those in Goodricke and over in the new Langwith will be swanning about in brand spanking new accommodation blocks, reticent to venture across to the dilapidated old campus in fear of meeting its mob of inhabitants.

The lower quality in accommodation will almost certainly create a large disparity between the students on Hes East and Hes West. Richer students will be attracted to the new complex while those from worse economic backgrounds will find themselves in the old blocks. We might find that university unity is broken down as the students begin to seem themselves in two separate mini-universities, not as one collective whole.

What I’m saying is that the University is breaking up in more ways than one. The way it is letting its buildings slowly disintegrate into an irreparable state will end up with Heslington West becoming an unwanted hovel for unfortunate students who cannot afford the lavish conditions laid on by the University on its favoured Hes East. Yet, all these problems are avoidable. We’ll need a combination of improvements on the Hes West campus as well as more whole campus events that will ensure Freshers think of the university as one large central body. For this to happen it will take unprecedented co-operation between YUSU and Heslington Hall. But it won’t be easy.