Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park welcomed His Royal Highness The Duke of Gloucester on Tuesday 19 March to meet representatives involved with the project, which is transforming one of the most deprived areas in the UK.
Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park is delivering a tangible legacy from the London 2012 Olympic Games through a combination of world-class sports facilities, education, new skills, research and innovation, environmental improvements and opportunities for the local community.
An evolution of the Sheffield City Region Innovation District, Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park aims to place physical activity and prevention at the heart of the NHS, tackling key health and wellbeing issues affecting the nation.
Dignitaries and representatives from the Park met with His Royal Highness as he was given an overview of the site.
Former Minister for Sport and Project Lead for Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park, Richard Caborn, said: “We were honoured to welcome The Duke.
“It was wonderful to show how we are delivering the four key themes from London 2012: Sport – improving infrastructure and providing access for all levels of ability; Community – providing opportunities in education, skills, training and jobs; Environment – enhancing the amount and quality of green space and promoting sustainable travel; and Economy – creating jobs and wider employment opportunities.
“This is all happening in a single location at the heart of a successful Innovation District, and we’re extremely proud of it.”
Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park is being delivered by Legacy Park Ltd, a joint venture between Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Sheffield City Council.
His Royal Highness met Dr Sarah Clark, Principal of UTC Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park, who said: “The Duke was interested to hear about the kinds of careers that our students are progressing onto as a result of studying at the UTC and how support from employers on Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park is providing them with exciting opportunities to gain real life experience of work related projects.”
At UTC Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park – graded ‘good’ by Ofsted – students complete high-quality technical qualifications in computing, health sciences or sport science as well as GCSEs and A Levels to get the skills that employers and universities need. The UTC opened three years-ago and its three technical specialisms complement the health, wellbeing and tech focus of employers based at Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park.
Following The Duke’s visit to the UTC, he was given tour of the Advanced Wellbeing Research Centre (AWRC). Dr Chris Low, Head of Portfolio and Partnerships in the Faculty of Health and Wellbeing, Sheffield Hallam University, said:
“As construction work continues on the AWRC, we were pleased to welcome The Duke to Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park. This is a really exciting time for the University and for Sheffield as we push forward with our plans to revolutionise healthcare on a regional, national and international scale. The AWRC is in prime position to shape research, innovation and practice so that future generations are sufficiently active to benefit their health, wellbeing and economic outcomes.”
Councillor Olivia Blake, Deputy Leader at Sheffield City Council, said: “We’re very proud to demonstrate the excellence here at Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park to a royal audience and welcome The Duke of Gloucester to Sheffield. With partners across the city, we have created a truly innovative home for sport, education and research and it’s wonderful that this is being recognised.
“The Park is certainly living up to its name in terms of the legacy created since the 2012 Games, providing education and training, plus some of the best opportunities for sports participation, to thousands of people. We are now starting to appreciate the huge benefits this development brings to the city and we are eager to see how much more can be achieved as the journey continues.”
