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Description
A look at Walton Hall, including student records, enquiries, computer area and correspondence services. Briggs discusses the role of higher education and the OU's place in it.
Subtitle Number Time In Time Out Subtitle Text
100:00:14.558 00:01:07.237Music playing
200:01:10.937 00:01:15.164Welcome to Walton Hall for the first Open Forum television programme of 1972
300:01:15.164 00:01:19.412In this programme we're going to spend most of our time here on the campus but
400:01:19.412 00:01:22.816in future programmes we hope not only to return here but to go out to
500:01:22.816 00:01:26.655the regions and involve a lot of people. Students and part time and full time
600:01:26.655 00:01:31.515members of staff. But first let's look at some of the buildings of the university.
700:01:31.515 00:01:37.380Behind me here is Walton Hall itself. While down over on the right we've got
800:01:37.380 00:01:40.856the faculty blocks, or at least some of them. There are some new buildings
900:01:40.856 00:01:45.060down there but also some that we've had for a year or more now. That houses
1000:01:45.060 00:01:49.391Maths, the Arts and also the Social Sciences where I work and temporarily
1100:01:49.391 00:01:54.403also the Library. Over here on the left we've got a building which always reminds
1200:01:54.403 00:01:58.406me of a Cunard liner because of it's brick funnels and that houses correspondance
1300:01:58.406 00:02:03.322services and it also has media production and you'll be visiting those areas later.
1400:02:03.322 00:02:07.080But now you can go round and see some of the other buildings of the University.
1500:02:07.080 00:02:10.928These are the science preparation laboratories in which I'm assured they
1600:02:10.928 00:02:14.632undertake experiments related to the courses. The members of the Science
1700:02:14.632 00:02:18.876faculty are housed in these buildings. It's here that Professor Pentz and his
1800:02:18.876 00:02:24.244colleagues plan their courses and devise their ingenious home experiment kits.
1900:02:24.244 00:02:28.129This is the lawn at the side of Walton Hall. There's a formal garden on the
2000:02:28.129 00:02:31.755right there but there is uncertainty about whether it is going to grow herbs
2100:02:31.755 00:02:36.296or roses. The building at the back is the catering block with a self-service
2200:02:36.296 00:02:41.132restaurant. To the right of it they're now building the new staff common room and
2300:02:41.132 00:02:45.169behind it is our new showpiece, the lecture theatre. This is for lectures and
2400:02:45.169 00:02:50.270very large gatherings. This fine little church moves us back in time. It was
2500:02:50.270 00:02:54.553one of the few buildings on site when the university arrived. Another original
2600:02:54.553 00:02:59.429building was of course Walton Hall itself which is under a preservation order. This
2700:02:59.429 00:03:04.139part of the building which we can see now dates from the 1830's. Here we see it a
2800:03:04.139 00:03:08.692couple of years ago in the first stages of restoration. This involved among other
2900:03:08.692 00:03:14.097things putting on a completely new roof. The first of the new buildings that we put
3000:03:14.097 00:03:17.880up was a faculty block which as I said earlier has temporarily housed the
3100:03:17.880 00:03:22.728library and has in it three of the faculties. The campus was more like a
3200:03:22.728 00:03:26.279building site at that time than a university. A training ground for
3300:03:26.279 00:03:30.339Flanders field, but out of all the mud and rubble came the restored hall.