Claudia Parsons Hall and the Elite Athlete Centre and Hotel

This is Claudia Parsons Hall, the newest halls of residence at Loughborough University. It was opened on the 19th of June 2019 and has 480 bedrooms. It is named after Loughborough University alumna Claudia Parsons, who studied at the university between 1919 and 1922 and was one of three women in her year to graduate with a degree in automotive engineering. She went on to be the first woman to circumnavigate the globe by car. Also on the site is the Elite Athlete Centre and Hotel, which opened in November 2018.

I had wanted to pay a visit for some time and in late February 2021 I got my chance to walk around the site. It is a place that as of yet has never been seen by a Google Street View car or trekker (as are quite a few newer places in Loughborough) and with not a lot of photographs circulating on the internet either.

Enjoy!

Pedal-powered electricity generators. I think it's supposed to help power one of the buildings, but it might have been more interesting to use it to charge a phone instead. It, of course, couldn't possibly be the only power source, otherwise the building would be experiencing a prolonged power cut.

Grass-crete. Oh, I love the look of grass-crete. Ought to be used more, good new grass-crete. I wonder why more people don't use it! Although I doubt it would have much effect on drainage for Loughborough's clay soil.

The running tracks. A very nice, sporty touch. (There are also miniature running tracks inside the Sprint buses after they were refurbished, in case you're interested.)