Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal recently made her latest visit to the University of Huddersfield to unveil a plaque in recognition of the University’s achievements in the fields of textiles and fashion.
Officially opening the new Student Central Building, she hailed the university’s recent successes, commenting: “What you have achieved here is remarkable.”
The Princess Royal paid her previous visit less than a year ago as part of a project to boost the numbers of women studying science and technology subjects. On this occasion, she was particularly taken by a display mounted by eight talented undergraduates who are in the final stages of fashion and textiles degree courses.
The design concepts ranged from fabrics inspired by the ocean flora of Australia – where BSc student Cara Mellor had spent several months on work placement with two Melbourne design companies – to woven textiles that evoke the imagery of the fishing industry of Grimsby, hometown of student Danielle Souter.
The students whose work was on display had experienced a wide variety of stimulating work placements as part of their courses. April Lyons taught weaving to U.S. youngsters at a camp in Vermont, while womenswear designer Hannah Reuter spent a year in London with leading fashion designers and retailers, including Topshop, which used some of her prints for garments placed on sale in its stores.
The party accompanying the Princess Royal as she inspected the students’ work included Professor Cryan, senior lecturer Nicola Redmore, who is subject leader for Textiles, and Dr Kevin Almond, the University’s head of fashion and textiles. Also present were 14 VIP guests representing firms, agencies and textile bodies with which the University’s Fashion and Textiles Department has close links and used the opportunity to thank them with a celebratory lunch.
The Princess was escorted throughout her visit by the Vice-Lord Lieutenant of West Yorkshire, Timothy Hare, and among the dignitaries in attendance were the new Bishop of Huddersfield, the Rt Revd Dr Jonathan Gibbs, and the Mayor of Kirklees, Cllr Ken Smith.