Beautiful, supportive, calm and proud are just some of the words I would use to describe the campuses at Liverpool Hope University. I have been studying at Hope for three years, and still to this day, I find myself being taken back by the beauty of our campuses. We are very fortunate here at Liverpool Hope to have four campuses, each individually purposed to not only to meet the academic needs of its students studying here, but to also commend and celebrate them. No matter that campus you find yourself on, you’ll be able to feel Hope’s pride in its students.

I could write a whole series of blogs, outlining magnificent things on each campus, but for now I shall give you a taste through summarising some of my best bits. Hope Park, Creative Campus, Aigburth Park and Plas Caerdeon are the four campuses that come together to form the Hope community.

I will start with Hope Park. As a Primary Education student, this is where I spend most of my time. The campus is located in Childwall, which is just a short journey outside of the centre of Liverpool. The first thing you will notice whilst entering this campus (like each of Hope’s campuses) is its beauty. Right across Hope Park, there are several flower beds and little secret gardens, each blossoming to really help create a calming atmosphere for your studies. During my fresher’s week, the layout of the campus helped me to not get lost. Each subject is grouped together, usually in its own building, meaning finding your class is a lot easier. Also, your subject tutors’ offices are usually located in the same building, so you know where help is if you need it.

There are several different facilities, such as the amazing library, gym & sports hall, Health Science Building and Employability Hub. The Sheppard-Worlock Library is so resourceful, each subject has its own area and a friendly tutor attached to it (if you have an assignment they will know where the books you will need are). There are individual and group study rooms that you can reserve to help get your head into an assignment. There are also academic tutors in the library, they offer support with assignment writing. As I hadn’t been in education for some time, the academic tutors really helped me with academic writing, referencing and knowing how to structure my assignment.

As I mentioned before the gym on Hope Park is fantastic and full of up-to-date equipment. It has great opening hours, meaning you can go before or after your studies, it is open at weekends and throughout holidays as well. The best part of the gym is definitely the cheap price; for an annual sum of £25 you get full access to the gym, fitness classes, outdoor football pitches and sports hall full of sporting equipment. We once hired the sports hall out for a cohort game of dodgeball and there are such a vast range of equipment to use, from basketball courts right to trampolines. There are several classes on throughout the week, whether you like a bit of upbeat Zumba or some yoga, there are plenty of classes to go along to.

The Gateway Building is like the command centre of Hope Park as it is home to a lot of important departments. Firstly, it is where you will go to pick up any post, those care packages from home or online purchases you’ve made with your student discount will be safely waiting for you to collect them. I mentioned before about the Employability Hub, here you can get helping finding a part time job either on campus or in the city, get help with job applications, interview tips and support with your SALA award (Service and Leadership Award). Student Wellbeing is located on the first floor, they are always there will a cup of tea and some biscuits to listen and help with any worries you may have.

Now time for the most important part; the places to eat. One thing you need to know about Hope is you’ll never be too far away from tasty food and a hot drink. We have a Costa and Starbucks for all your hot chocolate/iced latte/fresh coffee fixes (yes, we even get the Christmas cups in). The Hope canteen offers fantastic hot and cold meal choices. There’s a range of hot/cold meals each day, a noodle bar and sandwich station. There’s a great range of vegetarian and vegan options as well. But one of my personal favourite places to eat is the student bar, Our Place. Our Place offers mouth-watering pizzas and loaded fries (amongst a variety of other delicious choices), for as cheap as £5 for a full pizza. There is always something on during the week at the SU bar so you will never be short of something to do.

The next Campus I will talk about is the Creative Campus, and as the name indicates, this where the majority of our creative course are conducted. Again, just like Hope Park, the Creative Campus is filled with the most beautiful greenery and water features. There are a range of art studios, dance studios and theatres. Anything you could want or need to put on the most fabulous dance/drama/art show will be found here. The performance spaces range from smaller more intimate ones to our very own Capstone Theatre. There is a big gallery space to display all your hard work in an exhibition too!

There is a library here as well and study spaces, to help have that calming learning environment. Again, as I promised, you are never too far away from food and drink. The 1846 Café prides itself on offering a range a cuisine, whether it be tradition dishes from south Asia or a grab-and-go sausage roll, there will always be something fresh and tasty to have for lunch. If you fancy something a little different, the campus is only a ten-minute walk away from the city centre filled with lots of bars and restaurants. Being so close to the city is great, as Liverpool celebrates its vast student community so there is always something to do in the city (with plenty of student discount opportunities!)

There is also a free shuttle bus that runs between Hope Park, Creative Campus and Aigburth Park right throughout the day and a night bus that takes students from the centre of town to Hope Park.

This brings me to Aigburth Park, which is a residential campus. This campus is a private site located three miles away from the city centre. There is also onsite pastoral care, laundrette facilities and I.T room. The campus is only a short walk away from one of Liverpool’s biggest and most beautiful parks, Sefton Park. Over the year there are lots of festivals that take place here, from food festivals to Liverpool’s International Music Festival.

Now for the most adventurous campuses, no literally, our Plas Cardeon Campus is set in 18 acres of private woodland and offers Hope students a place to take part in a range of outdoor activities whilst also studying or preparing for their research projects. This stunning campus is located in Snowdonia and has two charmingly cosy cottages for you to stay in whilst visiting. It is a great place to visit as you get to know your class mates so much better.

Thank you for taking the time to read my highlights of our campuses. I hope from reading this I’ve given you a picture of how amazing each campus is. But if I can leave you with one thing, it would be: no matter what campus you find yourself on, you will get that Hope feeling. You can ask any Hope student and they will all agree studying at hope gives you the feeling of belonging to a community. You really do become part of the family here and know Hope is here to support you throughout your university journey but also, they really celebrate you and make you feel like a valued member of the Hope community.

By Danny Shankland