LJMU alumni gather for 25 year reunion

The University welcomed back BSc Building Surveying alumni for a special reunion 25 years after they graduated, on 18 July 1990. 

An afternoon drinks reception provided the opportunity for graduates to catch up, take a tour of the Redmonds Building and look back on their time at then Liverpool Polytechnic with the help of a poster of original ‘mugshots’ from 1986; the reminiscing continued on into an evening meal at The Old Blind School featuring a slideshow of photos from their student days and building projects the alumni have worked on since graduation.

The reunion was organised by graduate Fiona Colamarino (left), who said: “I floated the idea of a 25 year reunion with a couple of ex-course mates back in early 2013. It came about as a result of a female architect friend of mine asking me if I was on LinkedIn – once I'd signed up, it was great trying to locate other course mates. About the same time my parents found my graduation ceremony booklet; given the time I thought it might take to locate everyone, going for a reunion 25 years post-graduation seemed a fitting celebration.

“It did take a fair bit of research trying to track people down after so many years. Most of us have stayed working within the built environment sector, however some haven't been involved with building surveying since the day we graduated – a real mix of careers and aspirations, but we were all keen to return to our college roots and meet up again back in Liverpool!”

Many graduates attending the reunion manage their own companies or work within local authorities, higher education institutions, building consultancies and architecture firms, such as Liverpool City Council, Faithful+Gould, and Nottingham Trent University; they travelled from around the UK for the reunion, with Ian Brunning returning from Brisbane, Australia.

Pictured l-r: Building Surveying alumni Richard Maddison, Ian Brunning and Ian Whiteside

The event was also attended by lecturers from the School of the Built Environment, including Professor Del Williams, who retires in September after 35 years and was presented with a card signed by the alumni, and former Head of the Department of Surveying Charles Hubbard. 

School director Michael Riley said: “It was fantastic to see the class of 1990 return to the University and to see the huge changes that have taken place since they graduated from what was then Liverpool Polytechnic. So much has changed since 1990, yet the core disciplines of the School of the Built Environment have remained strong. 

“Reunions of this type are very difficult to coordinate and we applaud all of the efforts made by Fiona to bring such a large group together from all over the UK. It is also excellent to see that the skills and knowledge acquired during their studies has allowed the graduates of 1990 to thrive so well in their chosen disciplines.”

To find out more about LJMU alumni and keep up-to-date with news, visit the LJMU LinkedIn University page, like us on Facebook  or follow @LJMUAlumni on Twitter

Find out more about studying Building Surveying at LJMU on the course fact file or explore other courses within the School of the Built Environment.