Dear Alumnus,

Happy New Year! I hope you have had a positive start to 2023.

As a community, our University is entering this year in good shape and we have much to look forward to, building on all our progress and achievements from 2022. Key to this is our continued focus on delivering against our Being Westminster strategy, which has guided us well and helps us deploy our energies positively together towards a successful future.

Earlier this month, I met with external stakeholders (including members of Government and Vice-Chancellors from other UK universities) to look at how we navigate the coming year. We have the potential for so much positive change, both here at Westminster and around the world.

Meanwhile on campus, although still only January, the level of activity already under way is heartening and impressive.  More than one in three of our students are active in clubs and societies, which is such an important part of making friends and feeling part of the community.

It’s been great to see the completion of a super new social space at Marylebone – a collaborative project between our Students’ Union and Estates team – and to know that students and colleagues have immediately started making use of the space to meet, socialise and work together. Make sure to register for an Alumni Card if you haven’t already, so you can come back onto campus to use and enjoy these new spaces as a graduate.

Our links with businesses and with you – our alumni – as mentors and as volunteers is proliferating, and is an essential part of preparing our students for the world of work and finding employment. Your role in enabling and supporting this is so important and so worthwhile. We are very grateful for all you contribute. 

One of the greatest assets we share is our Westminster community, encompassing colleagues, students, alumni, partners and friends of the University. It makes our campuses great places to be together – working alongside each other to the best of our abilities, enjoying each other’s company and taking advantage of the myriad of opportunities and activities that take place across the University every day.

With this is mind, I would highly recommend you sign up to the many engaging and thought-provoking events we have coming up this semester. From our Black History Year events, our Dragons sports team events, research conferences, student shows and exhibitions, to the Westminster Conversations series, we would love for alumni to be part of these sessions and the interesting and important discussions they spark. Make sure to book your space via the University website.

For those more recent graduates, ensure you also make the most of the many employability events open to you, to help you in your early career. These can be booked these via Engage.

I look forward to hearing about your achievements throughout 2023, as you continue to do Westminster proud.

I wish you and your loved ones all good health, happiness and success for 2023.

Best wishes,

Peter