FRESHERS at University Campus Suffolk have been celebrating in style this week at the start of the new term that will see the first students making use of the new flagship building on the docks.

Lizzie Parry

FRESHERS at University Campus Suffolk have been celebrating in style this week at the start of the new term that will see the first students making use of the new flagship building on the docks.

The Student's Union has a packed programme of activities to help new students get their bearings and get to know one another in time for teaching to start next week.

On Monday evening around 80 freshers took to the streets of Ipswich dressed as pirates.

Eye patches, bandannas, and stripy tops were all donned for the event, which passed through the town centre and ending up at the newly refurbished Student's Union bar on Rope Walk.

Howard Smith, president of the Student's Union, said: “It is going really well, it is nice to see so many new students settling in. It is great to see Ipswich evolving into a university town.

“Everyone coming out is enjoying themselves; it is definitely moving in the right direction, the students are coming out night after night so I think that's a good sign.”

Other events planned this week include a trip to Alton Towers on Friday and the Fresher's Fair on Thursday where over 50 stalls will be on display giving information about local businesses, community services and students groups.

The new starters will be the first students to make use of the recently completed flagship building that is gradually opening for teaching this month.

Bosses at UCS say they are confident the building on the waterfront will be fully open by the start of next month.

On Monday students had their first orientation sessions around floors one and two of the £25million development.

UCS has already moved some staff into the building in time for when teaching starts next week.

Caroline Askew, a spokeswoman for UCS, said everything was running smoothly and on course.

“It's all going to plan,” she said. “Next Monday is when the majority of teaching starts. Most courses will be in the new building, but there are some that are taught in the legacy buildings - those we inherited from Suffolk College.

“Next week the second phase of staff will move in. We can't move them all across at the same time because we need to make sure all the equipment is ready.

“After that there will be a third phase and hopefully everyone should have been moved by the first week of October.”

The building - the first stage in a four-phase project - has room for 1,300 students at any one time and is 10,500 square metres.

The campus will be home to the faculties of health, well-being and science, arts, business and social science, as well as the Student Union-run café.

The ground floor will contain two lecture theatres - holding 140 students each - while nine more theatres will seat a further 600.

The main campus will link up with colleges in Bury St Edmunds, Lowestoft, Great Yarmouth and Otley as well as smaller learning centres in Stowmarket, Halesworth, Mildenhall and Haverhill.

The UCS project is due to be complete by 2012 - with one of the next buildings going up on land next to Neptune Quay in Ipswich.