Duke gives Worcestershire landmarks royal approval (From Malvern Gazette)

Duke of Gloucester gives Worcestershire landmarks royal approval

9:00am Wednesday 13th March 2013 in News By Tarik Al Rasheed

TWO of Worcestershire’s newest landmarks have been given the royal seal of approval.

The Duke of Gloucester visited the county yesterday (Tuesday 12) to officially unveil a new study and guidance centre at the University of Worcester and a striking new statue of a pair of buzzards in Malvern.

Starting his day in Worcester, the Duke visited Worcester University’s St John Campus to officially open its new Peirson Study and Guidance Centre.

The building was previously home to the university library for almost 40 years and has been re-developed following the opening of The Hive, Worcester’s striking new gold-coloured joint university and public library.

The new-look facility offers more than 390 places for group and silent study as well as two computer suites and a hub for student services including careers guidance and financial advice.

The Duke was a particularly fitting choice to open the new centre as he is Chancellor of the university.

Vice-chancellor David Green was delighted to welcome the Duke.

“Our students now have more spaces at which to study than ever before,” he said.

“The Peirson Study and Guidance Centre is proving very popular with our students and is a real centre for learning.”

Meanwhile, Malvern’s metallic birds were created by renowned sculptor Walenty Pytel and have proved quite a talking point with locals and visitors alike since taking up their perch in Rosebank Gardens.

The statue was commissioned to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee and the Duke, a cousin of the Queen, said he was certain it would win her seal of approval.

He told the massed ranks of onlookers and local dignitaries who had braved the cold and light snow to huddle around the buzzards: “You could have done a portrait statue of the Queen, but we have a lot of them and I am sure that she would be delighted to see these birds having a conversation here in your lovely park.”

Pulling a golden drawstring to reveal a new bronze plaque marking his visit, he added: “I hope that people will come to see it (the statue) and that they enjoy it as much as I have.”