Churchill College

Churchill College grew from an idea that Winston Churchill discussed on holiday in Sicily in 1955. He admired the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and wanted a British counterpart, and the plan settled on a college within Cambridge that would lead on science and technology while still keeping arts students in the mix. A trust was formed in 1958, with Churchill as chairman, to build a national and Commonwealth memorial to him. The royal charter was approved in August 1960, and the college's statutes still ask for roughly 70 per cent of its students to be scientists or technologists. Its motto is "Forward".

What to look for

• The campus. Richard Sheppard, Robson & Partners won an architectural competition for the design, and their modernist scheme uses brown brick, pre-cast concrete lintels and teak-framed glazing. Completed in 1968, it is arranged around nine residential courts and a central block holding the dining hall. The central buildings and the chapel were each listed Grade II in 1993.
• The sculpture. A Barbara Hepworth piece, Four-Square (Walk Through), stands at the west door of the main complex, and the college also holds Andy Warhol prints and many other modern works.
• The Archives Centre. Added in 1974 to house Winston Churchill's papers, it now also holds those of scientists and engineers, among them Rosalind Franklin and Frank Whittle.
• The grounds. The college describes a 50-acre campus. Students are allowed to walk on the grass.

Early years and firsts

The first postgraduates arrived in October 1960 and the first undergraduates a year after that; full college status followed in 1966. The founding intake was all male, and in 1972 Churchill was among the first three previously all-male colleges to admit women. In 1970 the student body took part in a High Court case, brought together with the National Union of Students against the Cambridge Town Clerk, over whether students could vote in the town where they studied, a nineteenth-century precedent that the case was meant to overturn.

Later additions

The original campus was joined by newer buildings. The Møller Centre for Continuing Education opened in 1992, funded by the Møller Foundation and designed by the Danish architect Henning Larsen, with a three-storey octagonal tower as its signature feature; in January 2018 it became the Møller Institute. In 2016 Cowan Court, a hall of 68 rooms by 6a architects, was finished, the first new court since the campus was completed. It is named after an alumnus who gave generously towards it, and won a RIBA East Award in 2017.

Practical notes

The campus lies west of the centre, near the West Cambridge university site, about fifteen minutes from the city centre. The college's own pages treat it chiefly as a home for students and give no standing public opening times, so contact the Porters' Lodge on 01223 336000 before a visit, and use the Archives Centre's own arrangements if you want to consult papers.