THE Duke of Kent has finished off what The Queen started with one of Huddersfield’s most stunning buildings.
Her Majesty laid the foundation stone at the Creative Arts Centre at Huddersfield University during a visit to the town two years ago.
And yesterday the finished £15m state-of-the-art building was officially opened by the Duke Of Kent.
He was joined by Mirfield-born actor Patrick Stewart, who is the university’s Chancellor and the two spent about 45 minutes admiring the work put into creating the centre.
They were given a grand tour of the building, which included an eye-catching, cube-shaped acoustic lab – and is the first of its kind in England where musicians will be able to experiment with three-dimensional sound.
The Duke officially opened the centre by unveiling a commemorative plaque in front of dozens of students and professors.
Patrick Stewart said: “Every time I come back here I’m amazed by the growth and the beauty of this university. It’s a gorgeous building.
“Of course, to have the Duke of Kent visit us today to open it is very prestigious for the university and it was perfectly clear that he was impressed and delighted with what he saw here.”
Huddersfield University Vice Chancellor Prof Bob Cryan added: “It’s absolutely fantastic to have another Royal visit us within two years and is a great opportunity to showcase the university.
“The main building was opened by the Duchess of Kent in 1977 so to have the Duke of Kent come here to open our latest venture more than 30 years later is wonderful.
“He thoroughly enjoyed his tour of the building and spent a lot of time talking to the students. He said he would love to come back here in the future to learn even more about what the centre has to offer.”
Work on the new centre began in 2006 and will be home to the university’s music and design faculties.
The building will see 600 students pass through its doors each day and is the latest in the university’s ambitious £150m new build programme, which has already seen £80m invested over the past 10 years.
Prof Cryan added: “This new centre will bring a great opportunity to develop and express the students’ creativity.”
The Duke of Kent was also on hand to present the Queen’s Award for Enterprise to Bradley-based print specialist Leach Colour Ltd when he spent a day in the town.
The company was a winner in the innovation category of the award for its STIK magnetic graphics display product, which is used extensively in retail stores, car showrooms, offices, museums and visitor centres in the UK and abroad.
During a two-hour visit to the firm, the Duke of Kent was given a guided tour of the business by managing director Richard Leach and met staff before presenting the award and having lunch with directors and invited guests.
He visited the production office, design studio and photographic laboratory as well as the main shopfloor and sales and accounts office.
The duke was accompanied by the Mayor of Kirklees, Clr Karam Hussain, and Dr Ingrid Roscoe, Lord Lieutenant of West Yorkshire.
The visit was the second by a member of the royal family to the company. The Countess of Wessex officially opened the 30,000sq ft premises at Bradley Business Park in 2005 following the firm’s move to the purpose-built premises from Brighouse.
Leach Colour was founded in 1891 by Richard Leach’s great-grandfather. It employs 80 people at its purpose-built 30,000sq ft premises at Bradley Business Park.
